How to Identify Genuine Drop Shippers (Homebusiness Ideas)

Whether you're just getting started with an online store or you're a veteran eBay Powerseller, drop shipping provides an easy entry point into wholesale buying.Drop shippers are simply wholesalers who are willing to send products directly from their wholesale warehouse to your customers' homes for you, one at a time.
For online sellers, this product sourcing method offers numerous advantages -- no inventory investment, no storage or shipping issues, and the ability to offer a much broader product selection.It's also an excellent model to test new products and identify hot sellers (so you can source them in bulk for even greater profits).
Of course, drop shipping does have its limits, two in particular: slimmer profit margins and occasional delivery problems.

Using drop shippers brings certain strengths to your Internet business, but that doesn't mean you should limit yourself to using only drop shipping. No single sourcing method will make you truly successful. Using only one method is like driving a car with only one wheel... four wheels works much better. Drop shipping provides a great complement to your other sourcing techniques, and should be one part of your overall product sourcing strategy.Unfortunately, locating real wholesale drop shippers isn't all that easy.

Most new Internet retailers start by looking in the search engines -- this is actually the worst place possible to look for legitimate wholesalers and drop shippers.You'll almost never find legitimate wholesale suppliers advertising in the search engines. The suppliers that advertise there are, with few exceptions, middlemen and scammers, trying very hard to convince you they're true wholesalers.There are a couple of different ways you can locate real, genuine wholesale drop shippers on your own:
Attend quality trade shows and meet with wholesalers and manufacturers who've been vetted by a trade association. Not every exhibitor at a show will drop ship, but many will, and you'll know that they're legitimate.
Call the manufacturer of the product you want to sell, and ask for a list of their factory-authorized wholesalers. Then start calling the suppliers on that list to see which ones drop ship. Once you know you're looking at genuine suppliers, you can start narrowing down the list of ones you want to work with. You do that by asking questions.The following are a few questions that can help you determine whether a drop shipper is a good fit for your E-Biz

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(some of these questions may also apply to other types of wholesale suppliers):
Do you work with online retailers?
The fact is that wholesalers aren't always eager to work with online sellers. Wholesalers operate on thin profit margins and make their money selling in large quantities.Most feel they're wasting the time and expense it takes them to set up lots of little accounts for e-tailers that they don't expect to place any sizeable orders on a regular basis. Many of them also have sales territories that they'd violate if they let their customers sell across the Internet.It's important to establish early in your conversation that you're talking to a wholesaler that will work with your online business.
Do you work with eBay sellers?
If you are mainly an eBay Seller, you'll want to ask this question too. Even if a wholesaler will work with online sellers, that doesn't always mean they'll work with eBay sellers. This is because the manufacturers of the products fear their items will be devalued in the market if they sell for too little there.If eBay is your main sales venue, you don't want to waste time setting up accounts, only to discover a supplier won't allow you to sell their products there.

Do you offer single-item drop shipping?
The key phrase here is single-item. If a drop shipper has a quantity minimum for drop shipping, then you can't offer their products to your customers Without imposing those same quantity demands. Look for suppliers who will drop ship items for you, one at a time.

What is your minimum dollar amount requirement for drop shipping?
Some drop shippers have a minimum dollar amount (sometimes called a minimum ticket). This limits the way you can offer their products -- you may have to bundle them, or simply avoid carrying any of their single items that cost less than their minimum order.

Do you offer blind drop shipping?
Blind drop shipping means the drop shippers' name doesn't appear on your labels, invoices, or inserts, so your customer is unaware of where package comes from. They may use a label that simply says "Fulfillment Center" or a blind PO Box.The end result is that they remain invisible to your customers, and your small business appears larger than it really is.

Locating genuine wholesalers is a tedious, pain-staking process: from tracking down manufacturers, to attending trade shows, to finding wholesalers willing to work with home-based E-Biz. You must be patient, take the time, and do the work to find authentic wholesalers.Of course, there's an easier way to find real suppliers:
At OneSource, the Internet's largest source of factory-authorized suppliers who will single-item drop ship for your online business.
Beyond drop shippers, OneSource lists every kind of supplier your business could ever need -- light bulk (low minimum) wholesalers, general wholesalers, liquidators, even direct import buys.

The Simple Secret to Having More By Doing Less (Homebusiness Ideas)

The secret I'm referring to is known by several names. Maybe you've heard it called the Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 Rule.
The 80/20 Principle states that 80% of results, rewards, or outputs are generated by 20% of causes, efforts, or inputs.
In other words, when it comes to getting the results you want, only a very few things you do really matter. The rest...well, they're just a waste of your time.

Business philosophers love to talk about the 80/20 Principle, because it applies so clearly to corporate situations. You've probably heard it said that 80% of profit comes from 20% of customers, or that 20% of a company's staff generates 80% of its productivity.
But the 80/20 Principle is much, much bigger than that. It's a universal, natural fact, proven over and over again in scientific research. And it's visible in nearly every imaginable circumstance.
For instance, in the wider world, roughly:
20% of thieves account for 80% of the value of all crime
20% of drivers cause 80% of all car accidents
20% of any community's population utilizes 80% of its resources

And if you look at your own personal life, you'll find that about:
20% of the time you spend at work accounts for 80% of what you achieve
20% of your clothes are worn 80% of the time
20% of your home's carpeting receives 80% of the wear

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These fascinating little statistics demonstrate the truth of the 80/20 Principle — and the fact that, like it or not, it has an impact on your life.
Interesting, you're probably thinking. But where is the power he keeps talking about?
Well, the real power of the 80/20 Principle — the secret to using it as a tool for massive life transformation — lies in finding, focusing on, and exploiting the most important 20% of your resources in every situation in your life.
I'm not talking about cheating or cutting corners. I'm talking about learning to identify the things that matter most to you and add the most value to your life...shifting the majority of your energy and attention to those things...and disregarding everything else.

In theory, applying the power of the 80/20 Principle is really quite simple.
You see, we've all been ingrained with 50/50 thinking. We intuitively believe that hard work will bring about equal results. That cause and effect are equally linked.
The 80/20 Principle demonstrates that just the opposite is true. The world is imbalanced. Everything isn't fair. Working really hard doesn't necessarily mean you'll be amply rewarded. And hardly working at all can sometimes make you a multimillionaire.
That can be a very difficult idea to get your mind around. It can be even harder to put it into practice. After all, we're programmed to believe that a truly productive workday must consist of eight hours at a minimum. It can feel impossible to cut that down to just one or two hours, even when the results you're generating are the same or even better.

Developing Your Vocal Impact (Part II)

Remember to try to 'fill down' with your breath - rather than filling up and lifting your shoulders and chest. The latter cuts you off from your breath powerhouse in your centre.

Centring the breath enables you to:

• Project without push
• Be connected to a deeper place - thus giving you more gravitas
• Work freely, because you would not be supporting your voice in your throat
• Open up your pitch range - giving variety and interest
• Resonate more effectively

Find that centred, grounded position again and try to maintain it throughout the exercises

• Place the flat of your hand between the base of your ribcage and your navel
• Breathe out fully through an open mouth; notice that little moment of 'nothingness' deep inside you as your body changes gear from breathing out to breathing in. Wait for the impulse for you next IN breath and the relax the area beneath your hand in order for the breath to replace. Repeat 6 times, always making sure not rush the exercise.
• Breathe out fully and easily through an open mouth, letting the outgoing breath last for a mental count of 5. Relax the area in the centre of your body, as in the previous exercise, in order for the breath to be drawn in. Then release the breath for six mental counts then 7, 8, 9 and 10 - always relaxing in your centre, not lifting your upper chest. Think of the outgoing breath as warm quality and allow your throat and jaw to release and feel spacious
• Then repeat the exercise but count aloud easily fo five on one breath. Send the counts to a specific place across the room. Repeat, gradually extending the counts as far as you can without feeling strain. Always stop when you feel your breath supply has been exhausted.
• Repeat - this time intoning the counts. Start on a comfortable, mid register, but try going to your lower register and upper register, before going back to your most comfortable range. Keep the voice forwards as though the sound is leaving you on an arc of energy.
• Ribs - Place the back of your hand on your ribcage. Breathe without lifting your upper chest, feeling your lower ribs expanding. Then find a point some distance away from you. Focus clearly on that place and send a stream of hissed sound on 's' to that place for 5 mental counts.
• Repeat on a 'z' and a 'v' - focusing the sound across the space in a steady stream

RESONANCE

Using your breath support, hum a very internal hum and feel all the vibrating places on your face, neck and skull. Turn the hum into a 'chewy' hum to get the facial muscles involved. Try to focus the hum to different surfaces, notice how the voice resonates differently in each place. Repeat as you go from 'mmm' to 'ah' then 'mmm' to 'oo'. Also to different surfaces. Try saying the opening of a speech, feeling the vibrations of your voice coming forwards into your cheeks, lips, back of neck and top of skull. Do it on different pitches. Speak it feeling grounded with your energy filling your personal space and beyond.

ARTICULATION

First massage your face and jaw, being aware of any particular tension areas. Yawn vertically, horizontally and with your lips together - each time keeping your tongue tip in light contact with the back of your lower front teeth and programming your soft palate at the back of the roof of the mouth to rise.

Stretch your tongue out onto your chin to release tension from the tongue root. Speak with your tongue out on your chin and then with it back inside your mouth noticing how free it feels as a result. Say the "the sixth sheik's sixth sheep's sick" with precision and clarity, without missing out any of the sounds. When you feel it is clear, speed it up, still maintaining clarity.

Repeat on: Peggy Babcock (6 times -gradualyy speeding up) and Popacatapetyl, Popacatapetyl, Popacatapetyl - Pop

Finally:

• Always make sure you understand and believe in what you are saying. This applies equally to conversation as it does to presentations and speeches
• Wherever necessary and possible, prepare the material to be spoken
• Most listners want to hear you speak, they are generally on your side and want you to do well.

Homebusiness Ideas

Developing Your Vocal Impact (Part I)

With just ten minutes of gentle exercise per day, you can build vocal stamina and improve the tone of your voice.
Always start with some gentle limbering to release excess tension from your body. Work from a ‘centred’, grounded position, with a strong spine, but working towards releasing the muscles you are not using.
The breath is the powerhouse for the voice, so once you feel your body is released and centred, start to focus on your breath. Always try to breath to the base of your lungs not into the top or you will risk causing shoulder and chest tension.
Once you feel the breath is ‘centring’, then go onto sounds, words, sentences and whole speeches.

The Exercises:

Finding A Centred Position:
The body works at its best when it is firmly grounded and working in a state of equilibrium. First get the feet right
put the together
turn the toes to 'ten to the hour'
turn out the heels so the feet are parallel
within a short time, this will happen instinctively without you having to gom through the whole process.
Close your eyes and start to part the area just below the belly button. Focus all your attention there and try to imagine the area beneath your hand as a ball of powerful energy. Imagine that energy spreading out all over your body. Feel the strong connection between your feet and the floor. Let your knees have a little 'give' in then- not bent and not braced back. Notice if you feel more connected in this 'centred' position.

Stretching:
First have a really good stretch. Stretch up to the ceiling, keeping your shoulders down, but feeling the stretch coming from your ribs and arms.
Develop into a stretch and a yawn to release the jaw and open your throat. Keep your tongue tip touching the back of your lower front teeth as you do this and conciously open the top of your throat.
Stretch up and hold the body in a tight position for a moment
Flop down as you breath out fully
Repeat This time
Stacking up the spine, starting at the tailbone and continuing up as though you are stacking small building blocks one on top of the other.
Leave your shoulders and head till last
Then let the neck stack up and the head float

Pushing
To release tension around the arms and shoulders, imagine you are pushing against a wall a foot away at shoulder height. Push really hard, then gradually release the effort and allow your arms to fall easily beside you.

Head & Neck
Then release your neck by allowing your head to fall heavily onto your chest. Raise it slowly until it feels well balanced on your shoulders. Try to use the minimum of effort and try to engage the muscles at the back of the neck - not the front.
Repeat this three times, Imagine your head getting heavier as it falls and lighter as it rises.
Repeat the above exercise, allowing the head to fall to the back and then each side in turn.
Each time there should be no sensation of 'placing' your head, but of allowing it to find its resting position on its own.

Chest & Shoulders
Lift your chest up and forward until you feel an exaggerated hollow in the centre of your back. Hold it there for a few mental counts and then release the chest.
Roll your shoulders forwards three times and back three times
Then lift them up to your ears and try to move them into different shapes
Try to speak with them up around your ears
Then loosely shake them up, notice the contrast while you speak.

Wrist & Ankles
Shake out your wrist - trying to make them go as completely floppy.
Remember, even tension in your hands- although a long way from your voice box it affects the way you sound.
Then do the same for each foot - shake them out as though you could gently shake your foot off.
Replace on the ground and feel the connection.

Homebusiness Ideas

How to use EBay to Promote Your Internet Business (Homebusiness Ideas)

Few people realize what an incredibly useful tool eBay can be for promoting a "regular" Internet business.However, there is a right way to use eBay for promoting an off-eBay website -- and there is a wrong way.
The right way can drive huge waves of qualified visitors to your business... but the wrong way can get you banned from ever doing business on eBay again!So before I tell you about what you can do, I think it's important you understand what eBay's stringent regulations say you can't do. That way, you can make sure you never get on eBay's bad side, and can continue to tap into its enormous pool of 244,000,000 registered users!eBay DON'Ts:

DON'T include any links to your off-eBay website in your auction listings
DON'T include any links to your website in your eBay store or custom pages
DON'T include an opt-in offer in your auction listings
DON'T include an opt-in offer in your eBay store
DON'T automatically add your customers or visitors to your auctions to your opt-in list ...

In short, don't overtly try to send people off eBay or collect their information for marketing purposes on your auction listings, your eBay store, or any of your custom pages without their expressed consent."But wait a minute," you're probably thinking, "then how on earth can I use eBay to drive new visitors to my website?Well, there is one place you can include a link to your off-eBay website. AND you can put an opt-in form there to collect people's email addresses, so you can build a relationship with them and promote your products to them in the future.
What is this place? It's your "About Me" page. And it's the most important weapon in your eBay marketing arsenal!Here's how you use it...eBay DOs:

DO include a link to your off-eBay website on your "About Me" page, and encourage visitors to see what other products you have to offer
DO include an opt-in form on your "About Me" page, with a compelling offer -- an interesting newsletter or valuable free report -- that encourages people to sign up
DO use every possible opportunity in your auction listings and your eBay Store to encourage people to check out your "About Me" page
Tell them to go to your "About Me" page to learn more about important information such as your shipping policies
Tell them to read your FAQs on your "About Me" page
Tell them to learn more about the products you sell on your "About Me" page
When people buy something from you, send them ONE follow-up email to thank them for their purchase and invite them to sign up for your newsletter or free report, so you can get them on your opt-in list.

BUT: They HAVE to opt in for you to be able to mail to them!
(If you just start mailing them out of the blue and they complain to eBay, you WILL get kicked off the auction site for good.) And that's basically it! You create as many reasons as possible for people to visit your "About Me" page, and then you give them a compelling reason to...1. Sign up for your newsletter.
Check out your off-eBay store to see what you offer there, If you do it right, you'll discover that eBay is an excellent customer acquisition tool for your business.In fact, you might find it more effective NOT to sell your main product on eBay, but to sell related products for minimal profit, simply to grow your customer base so you can back-end sell your main products to them in the future.
Here's an example of what I mean... Say you sell an eBook teaching people how to cure their tennis elbow. eBooks are great products in the off-eBay world because you get to keep 100% of the profits from each sale.But on eBay, eBooks tend to sell for relatively cheap. So don't sell your eBook there, where you'll take a loss in profits!Instead, sell tennis-related dropshipping products on eBay for very little profit. You won't make a huge amount of money on the front end... but you WILL be able to grow a huge customer base of people who are obviously interested in tennis.Then, once you've persuaded them to sign up for your opt-in list, you can promote your "tennis elbow" eBook to them down the road -- as well as scores of other tennis-related products.And THAT's when the money will really start pouring in.

Finally, I'd just like to point out that eBay does regularly change their policies, so it's important you regularly check to make sure you're following eBay's official seller regulations, so you can stay on their good side.You can find everything you need to know about selling on eBay here: http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/resources.

Essential Internet Business Tools(Homebusiness Ideas)

Imagine you have access to every software tool you might need to get your internet marketing business started. We will show you six essential software programs that you must have. Best of all they're free. These are not stripped down versions or limited time trials. These are full versions that are every bit as powerful and easy to use as the full retail programs you might be familiar with.

Open Office (openoffice.org) - Even if you have MS Office(tm), you need to check this office suite out. Open Office meets your needs word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, and databases. You can also create pdf documents on the fly.

Gimp (gimp.org) - This program rivals Photoshop(tm). Now you can create and edit graphics with ease. If you are already familiar with Photoshop(tm), then check out Gimpshop (gimpshop.com). This gimp version really looks and feels just like Photoshop(tm).

3D Box Shot Maker (bosseye.com/boxshot/) - Did you every wonder how those sales pages made the wonderful looking product box pictures? Now you can do it too. This great little program combined with gimp is all you will need to start knocking out great product graphics.
LS Screen Capture (linos-software.com/capture.html) - This program will let you capture whatever is on your screen. You can edit it in gimp for even better results.

NVU (nvu.com) - This Web Authoring System is similar to Frontpage(tm) and Dreamweaver(tm). Anyone can create professional looking webpages quickly and easily without knowing HTML or other technical stuff.

Audacity (audacity.sourceforge.net) - A great Audio Editor and Recorder. With this program you have everything you need to record and edit podcasts.

With these programs loaded onto your computer, you will have all of the tools to build a very profitable Internet Marketing business. You now have the professional tools to bootstrap yourself to success. Now go out and build a profitable business. Money is no longer holding you back

Website Review (Homebusiness Ideas)

John and his wife own the site, which sells a variety of different guided journals.They haven't had much luck selling their books, so they turned to the IMC team for help

I have to say that writing in was great idea. Whenever your website has you completely stumped, the quickest way to pull yourself out of your rut is to reach out to an expert for advice.I'm pleased to offer you a helping hand.

In this site review, I'm going to focus on the following points:
1. Your business model
2. Your keyword phrases
3. Your salescopy
I hope these tips help you get your business on the right track!Now, to begin...

1. Your business model
The first thing I noticed when I looked at your site is that you're trying to sell products to completely different audiences.For example, the main product featured on your homepage is a pregnancy journal. But you also sell an engagement journal on the same site. And you have a couple of pages with links to affiliate sites -- for people who are looking to buy baby products, as well as people shopping for wedding products.Plus, you're also trying to sell home security systems on your site.
Online, this "something for everyone" approach simply doesn't work. I strongly urge you to set up a different dedicated site to promote each of your main products (e.g., your pregnancy journal and your wedding planner).
You'll have more success if you laser target your audience and speak directly to their specific needs, rather than muddying your message by trying to appeal to too many different people at once.(Then, once you start making some sales, you can stay in touch with your two main customer groups via email and promote different affiliate products to them over time.)
A good principle to follow is:
one problem + one solution = one website.
If you use one site to sell too many things to too many people, you'll end up selling to no one.

2. Your keyword phrases
One of the first things I do when checking out a website is look at its source code to see what keywords and phrases it's optimized for. After all, your keywords are the "key" to your success with the search engines.
I was pleased to see you do have keywords inserted into your meta tags (it's a basic search engine optimization technique that not everyone knows).
However, the cluster of words and phrases in your keyword meta tag is far too broad to be effective.
Your keywords include words like pregnancy, journal, and wedding. Individually, these topics don't really have much in common. And bundling them all together in your meta tags is going to dilute your ranking in the search engines.Plus, the keywords themselves are far too general.
If you do a search on "pregnancy" you get 81,700,000 results. And a search on "journal" yields 554,000,000 results! There's no point optimizing your site for keywords that have such overwhelming competition.
Instead, you need to find keywords that are far more focused and speak directly to your target market's needs.
For example -- and this is just off the top of my head -- phrases like "memory problems during pregnancy" or "how to celebrate my pregnancy" should get you a far more targeted audience for your pregnancy journals than simply, "pregnancy."But are these actually phrases people type into the search engines? I don't know... That's for you to find out. It's research time!Conduct some keyword research on Wordtracker (http://imc.wordtracker.com) to see exactly what phrases people are typing into the search engines in order find a solution to the problem YOUR product solves.(E.g., how to remember pregnancy, how to celebrate pregnancy, how to cope with pregnancy memory problems.)
Visit popular pregnancy forums, blogs, and chat groups. See if people really are talking about these problems -- and if so, what language they're using to describe them.THAT'S the language you should be using in your salescopy.Which brings us to our next point...

3. Your salescopy
People go online to search for information related to a problem they have. Your keyword research will show you exactly which problem your market is trying to solve -- and the specific phrases they're using to describe it.
Now it's time to put those phrases to work in your salescopy.You have to show visitors your site offers a solution to their problem. And you have to do it RIGHT AWAY.That's why you need a large, easy-to-read, very clearly defined headline at the top of your site.
It should be the first thing people see when they arrive at your site, and it needs to present their problem -- and promise a solution -- in an attention-grabbing way.(Also, your headline shouldn't be part of an image, as it is now. It should be text, like the rest of the copy on your site.
This allows the search engine spiders to crawl it -- which is important, because the search engines place a lot of importance on the text you've got in your headline tags.)
If you discover that your market is mostly looking for information on how to cope with memory problems during pregnancy, your headline might be something like this:

Do You Have "Pregnancy Brain"?
Discover how you can hold on toYour memories of this once-in-a-lifetime experience
And recall every "miracle moment"for decades to come
No matter HOW forgetful you are right now!

Other phrases you might want to work into your salescopy (either in the headline or elsewhere) include...
"Pregnancy is a magical experience you'll want to remember for the rest of your life.
But if you don't keep a record of your experience, you're at risk of losing those precious memories forever!"
"It's a known fact that when you're pregnant, your memory is AWFUL, due to all the crazy hormonal changes your body is experiencing.
If you don't write your experiences down, you'll forget them -- and never be able to recapture them."
"Your body is going through amazing changes right now... and you need to keep track of them! The "While You Were Waiting" pre-birth journal makes it easy for you record important medical information that will help you AND your baby for years to come."
"Plus, you can write down the time of your doctor's appointments, so you never miss a single one. It's so important for you to keep all this information in one convenient place!"
"It's not just for you -- it's for your baby. It helps answer their most important questions, "Who am I?" "Where do I come from?"
"Imagine sitting with your child one day and sharing the story of their pre-birth life with them. It's the beginning of the relationship, an essential part of the bonding process with your unborn child."
(Note that these phrases all talk about your product in terms of its BENEFITS, not its FEATURES.)
In your copy, your wife also needs to explain who she is and why she's the perfect person to offer this product.
For example, was SHE ever pregnant? Did she suffer from horrible "pregnancy brain" and worry that she'd lose the most precious memories of the whole experience?Did writing things down in a journal solve that problem?
Over time -- and several pregnancies, perhaps? -- did she perfect a style of journaling that made it easy for her to record all the important information in a way that made it easy to access?

A story like this will show your visitors that you and your wife can relate to their problem, and will make you seem far more credible.Also, you have to include testimonials on your page! People need to see real words from real people, explaining how your product has made their lives better.John, I know you said you haven't had many customers yet.
But you can easily get testimonials by giving your product away for free to friends and acquaintances (or people you meet online, at pregnancy forums, blogs, or chat groups).
Simply send them a copy and ask for some feedback in exchange.

Finally, your copy needs to include a strong call to action that compels your visitors to buy.In your case, you have a definite advantage. Your product comes with built-in urgency -- your audience's clock is ticking! They're going to have that baby -- and the longer they hesitate to buy your pre-birth journal, the more their memories slip away, never to be recaptured.
(And don't forget the P.S. at the end of your letter. It should restate your main benefits or emphasize the urgency angle.)

I hope that gives you enough to get you started.

Mission Statement (Homebusiness Ideas)

If you're like most people, you've probably flirted around with New Year's resolutions: You've said, "THIS is the year I'm gonna lose weight and get in shape. Starting January 1, no more snacking. I'm joining the health club and I'm gonna work out daily. I may even do my first marathon."
What happens? By March 1 (the latest ...) you're back on the junk food regimen, you've been to the club a total of five times (you're "just too busy to get there"), and you've filed that marathon application in the trash. And you've concluded, "Resolutions don't work for me." (You've got a lot of company on that one ...)
Maybe you need a better approach. Instead of making a mental resolution, create a Mission Statement. The difference?

A Mission Statement
is a handwritten or typed-out paragraph
is posted someplace you can see it regularly
is committed to memory
has specific, measurable outcomes
has a deadline — in this case, December 31st

Here's a process you can use right now to create a Mission Statement for personal success in your career or business. Get out a pen and some paper, or if you'd like to do this online, go to http://www.nightingale.com/mission_select.aspx.

Step A. Write down 5 positive personality characteristics you like about yourself in your career/business. For example: willingness to learn, persistence, creativity, friendliness, sense of humor.

Step B. For the items you listed above, describe the way you express each positive characteristic on a regular basis in your career, using the word "by" to begin each phrase. For example, if you listed "willingness to learn" above, you might write "by being committed to ongoing professional development" below. Another example: If you wrote "persistence" above, you might write "by making sure the job always gets done" below.

Step C. Write down 5 goals you’d like to achieve by one year from today. Be sure to list a specific financial goal separate from these 5 goals.

Step D. Look back over Steps A, B, and C, circling the 3 most important items in each column.

Step E. Now fill in the blanks of the following paragraph: "My purpose is to express my __________________________ ,________________________, and ______________________ (write in the three items you circled in Step A) by __________________________________________________, by ________________________________________________, and by ____________________________________________ (write in the three items you circled in Step B) to create ___________________________________________________, ___________________________________________________ and _____________________________________________, (write in the three items you circled in Step C) and at least ____________ (write in your financial goal) by ___________ (write in the date one year from today)."

When finished, you will have a short paragraph that reads something like:

"My purpose is to express my intelligence, creativity, and people skills by continually learning and applying new ideas, by finding unique solutions to my clients' problems, and by building a powerful network of contacts to create 15 new corporate accounts, a steady flow of referral and renewal business, and full technological competence, and at least $125,000 in gross commissions by this date one year from today."

I hope you give this deceptively simple exercise a try, and I encourage you to follow the guidelines above by posting it where you can review it, committing it to memory, and reciting it daily. Then you won't need to make any more fruitless resolutions — you'll be like The Blues Brothers ... you'll be on "a Mission from God."

Security and Compliance (Part III)

How to do BS7799/ISO17799 Projects

Who to Interview?

Security Management --------Sec Policy/Organisation

Security Management -----------Asset Classification and Control

Typically HR --------------------- Personnel Security

Site Security/IT manager------- Physical and Environmental Security

Business Manager/IT Manager--------------- Communications and

Operations Management

System Administration Staff---------------- Access Control

Development Staff-------------- System development

Business Continuity Manager---------- Business Continuity Management

Internal Audit/Legal-------------- Compliance

Appropriate staff/line Management----------- Business/Info Process

A Good Gap Analysis

Clearly defined scope

Clear findings against each control (good areas as well as gaps)

The ISMS

Clear practical and appropriate recommendations leading to compliance

All recommendations reinforced and supported by findings

Finalising Resources

Resourcing:

Match actions with in-house resources and confirm availability

Identify availability shortfalls

Identify where specialist support is needed

Obtain necessary approvals for SIP

Ensure the group have access to the full

Gap Analysis Report for guidance

Establish the ISMS through the creation of the Information Security Forum

Risk Assessment and BS7799/ISO17799

Define a systematic approach to risk assessment

Identify the risk

Assess the risk

Select control objectives and controls for the treatment of risk

Identify and evaluate options for the treatment of risk

Generic Steps

Identify assets

Identify asset dependencies

Business Impact Assessment (Asset Valuation)

Threat Assessment

Determine levels of risk (Risk Assessment)

Countermeasures Selection

Map to BS7799/ISO17799

Risk Treatment

Document Management

BS7799/ISO17799 section 4.3 calls for Distribution /Availability to staff as required

Version/ Change control

Documents to be dated (Including previous versions)

By implications, uniquely identifiable and fully controlled

ISO 9001 compliance is an advantage

Appropriate change control is needed for intranet solution

10 Tips for Success

1. Ensure senior management involvement

2. Recommend a realistic and useful scope

3. Develop a good risk assessment

4. Promote Active Risk management

5. Interpret the controls for the scope

6. Ensure early Security Forum creation

7. Ensure maximum use of the Statement of Applicability

8. Get internal third parties to sign up

9. Get audits underway to raise assurance

10. Take staff awareness seriously

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