Friday, July 29, 2011

Free Short Motivational Quotes of the Day 3

If you’re looking for motivation right now, read these pearls of wisdom from the masters. A selection of quotations to inspire all.

When one is truly ready for a thing it puts in its appearance.
Napoleon Hill

You can’t hire someone else to do your push-ups for you
Jim Rohn

You can do it if you believe you can
Napoleon Hill

You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today.
Abraham Lincoln

Render more service than that for which you are paid and you will soon be paid for more than you render. The law of ‘increasing returns’ takes care of this.
Napoleon Hill

You must learn from the mistake of others. You can’t possible live long enough to make them all yourself.
Sam Levenson

Without self-awareness we are like babes in the cradles.
Virginia Wolf

If you cannot do great things yourself, remember that you may do small things in a great way.
Napoleon Hill

Whatever you think about continuously emerges in your reality.
Brian Tracy

Wednesday, July 27, 2011

How Not to Praise Your Kids

Some parents in their enthusiasm to make the child happy praise more than the child deserves. This could result in two things. Either the child feels what he’s doing is enough. And consequently may not apply more effort to improve. Or the child could begin feeling that he doesn’t deserve it or feels indirect pressure by parents to do better.

Don’t be reserved when you praise a kid, but don’t overdo it too, I heard my grandmother tell a neighbor when I was about seven or eight. How true!

Some parents think that good words of appreciation should be limited to great achievements only. Sadly mistaken. A kid deserves (even looks forward to) a pat even when he runs an errand, lends a hand in cleaning the house or draws a cute cat in his notebook. Praise motivates like nothing else. It’s a healthy tonic. Invigorating, comfortable, spirit-lifting and positive. Makes one feel worthy.

Praise must always be proportionate to the achievement. Vow! Great. Fantastic. All will sound hollow if you’re telling this to your daughter who’s scored 60 percent in math. Doesn’t sound genuine, don’t you agree?

Everybody wants their effort to be rewarded. So always appreciate the work, act or service. Not the individual. Don’t be too judgmental, evaluating his character. This could put him in the defensive mode. ‘Job well done. You’ve made the home dust-free. I can already breathe a lot better now’.

Sounds genuine. There’s warmth in what you say. And he’ll feel good.
Make it a little physical. Caress, pat or put a hand on the shoulder. ‘ Stroking’ leaves a positive impact.

No ifs and buts please
Be clear and straightforward in your approbation. Don’t stick another condition at the end of it. ‘Great sonny. You’ve given ‘Roger’ a good bath. He’s fresher than before. But, you haven’t cleaned the ticks. Next time don’t forget that. No use of a bath till then’.

You son would feel better if you didn’t open your mouth. So keep the rest for another day. For now, just praise the work done.

Don’t pressure your kid
Never praise your daughter so that she’ll live up to it. Chances are that stress and anxiety could slow down her performance. Avoid ‘playing games’ with them.

Take the Praise Quiz
1. When your child wins a competition, do you
a. Secretly admire the neighbors praising your child
b. Play down the achievement
c. Pat your son and tell him how much you love

2. If your child shows you a picture he’s just drawn, do you
a. Tell him its not the time to draw
b. Tell the kid he can draw better
c. Cuddle him and compliment the details of the picture

3. Do you praise so that
a. Your son will perform better next time
b. He will feel encouraged
c. Your neighbor will feel proud of you

4. Do you compliment with
a. Words only
b. Pat, caress and say a few words
c. Hardly compliment

5. When people praise your child for making a toy car model, you say
a. Ah! This is just the beginning
b. He must concentrate on studies
c. He’s very passionate about car modeling and reads a lot on the subject

Answers:
1. c
2. c
3. b
4. b
5. c

Monday, July 25, 2011

Short Zen Story, Wash Your Bowl

This is a typical Zen story that teaches you that simple Zen momnents are important. Part of my book 51 Short Motivational Stories from Zen, Buddha and Ancient Tales.



A new disciple came to meet Zen master Joshu.



“I’m a day old here and would like to learn the first Zen lesson,” said he to the master.



“Did you have your meal?” asked Joshu.



“Yes master,” replied the disciple.



“Now go and wash your bowl,” said Joshu.



Notes: Doing things on your own is a huge learning in life. Very simple things like eating when hungry and sleeping when tired are Zen moments. No need to wait for big Zen moments, every moment is a Zen moment. Learn to enjoy life. Today and now is the moment. There is no past or future.

Friday, July 22, 2011

Blogger’s guide to accepting comments on blogs

Many of you may not be aware that spammers tend to post comments using softwares. With preloaded messages and invalid mail ids, they post random messages on hundreds of blogs and hope people click on them and land up on their illegal site.

Many bloggers accept all comments on their blogs without knowing that search engines penalize you for posting spammy comments or irrevelant comments from spammy sites. They don't want the users they send over to your site to be dissatisfied with non relevant stuff on your blog.

Use comment spam services like Askimet. Otherwise the best thing to do:
1. Moderate all comments to your blog
2. Read through the messages and post only those that seem genuine
3. It’s preferred to have comments only from those who sign in
4. Allow those who don’t want to sign in to post comments, but choose only those that add value to your blog or provide readers with more information
5. It’s preferred not to accept those who post nothing useful but leave their signatures
6. It’s best to check the site of any spammy looking comment and find out what the site is offering before accepting the coment.

What’s good about comments on your blog?
1. They provide user generated content
2. They tell you how useful your blog content is
3. They also let you connect to those with similar blogs or sites and exchange links
4. They help you connect to folks with similar likes
5. It tells you that users are engaged on your site/ blog

How do search engines look at comments to value your blog?
1. Search engines take comments as an indication of your blog’s likeability
2. They count it as a vote for your blog post

It’s not equal to a link but certainly has value

Thursday, July 21, 2011

I Can Make a Difference to This One, Motivating Story

Short motivating story about how little things we do make a big impact for someone else. Part of my book 51 Short Motivational Stories from Zen, Buddha and Ancient Tales.

One sunny morning, the beach was stranded by thousands of star fish that were washed ashore by the high tides.

A man noticed a little boy pick up the fishes and throw them back into the sea. He watched the boy do this for an hour.

He realized the futility of the boy’s act. He thought that all these fishes can’t possibly be saved.

So walking towards the little one, he said, “Boy, I’ve been watching you for some time now. Thousands of star fish are lying along the beach shores. You can’t save all of them.”

The boy smiled, picked up another one and threw it back into the sea, “But I can make a difference to this one.”

Notes: One is not to be recognized by the magnitude of the task performed. Every little act of good work goes to make this world a better place to live in. If everyone did their bit a lot of suffering would vanish. A change of perspective is all it takes to see the world differently

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

The Tale of Rebirth, Short Buddha Story

Wisdom from ancient Buddha tales. Part of 51 Short Motivational Stories from Zen, Buddha and Ancient Tales, a book by Rajasekar Raju KS.

Two men who served their sentences in hell were summoned by Yama, the lord of Death.
“You have completed your sentence in hell, you will now be reborn on earth. If you do good in this birth you may not have to worry about coming back here,” said Yama.
The men nodded in relief.

“I’m giving you a choice. You can be born as a person receiving money from other people throughout your lifetime. Or as a person giving money to others all your lifetime,” said Yama.

“I choose to receive money all the time,” said the first. The second choose to give money to others.

“Let the first be born in a beggar’s family and the second in a rich man’s home,” said Yama.

The first man cried, “What did I do that I have to be born in a poor man’s home and he in a rich man’s home.”

“You wanted to get money from others all the time, only a poor beggar can afford that. He wanted to give others therefore he needs to be rich,” said Yama.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

7 Secrets of Simple Living

Humans have a tendency to complicate life, if only we could follow some simple secrets we could live happily.

Dare to tell the truth
To yourself and to others. This makes matter easy. You don’t have to cover up anything. Your conscience isn’t pricked. You begin to believe that’s it. So, there’s no conflict inside your mind. You’ve spoken the truth and it’s left to others to interpret things. That’s their problem. Not yours. Don’t forget The Truth Frees Us All.

Dare to differ
Recall Magellan’s voyage around the world to prove that the earth is round, not flat. Think of Gallileo’s path-breaking discovery that the Sun was the centre of the universe, not the Earth. They have a place in history because they dared to differ, and differ with the world. It’s these differences that make living in this world so interesting. Don’t forget the world needn’t be always right.

Be proud of yourself
To a point of commonsense. Pat yourself for good work done. Reward yourself when you deserve with a chocolate, a sumptuous dinner or a holiday. Learn to appreciate yourself and the world will also do the same. It also helps you appreciate others easily. Nothing wrong in knowing you’re handsome, pretty, smart or super skilled in something. They say it take fewer muscles to smile, than to frown. Take the easy way out. It makes you positive and above all likeable.

Treat everyone as yourself
With love, care and respect. It gets reciprocated, you see. Karma. If you throw garbage into your neighbour’s garden, don’t expect to find your roses bloom (He would have plucked it before dawn). Every action has an equal and opposite reaction. The law of reality. Remember, everyone wants to be loved and respected. Just do that. And you’ll live happily ever after. Don’t forget – Do unto others what you’d want them to do unto you.

Learn to say no
That’s tough. But that’s exactly what makes you tough. ‘Yes Men’ are plenty. Smart bosses like men who say no. Because they’d have good reasons for it. Accepting, adjusting all the time subordinates your own ideas, desires and dreams. Saying no gives you tremendous power. Provides you with the upper-hand in a transaction. Try it with the shopkeeper who’s trying to sell you something. Say No. And see the price dropping steadily. Saves a lot of money and plenty of regret (if you had said yes). Don’t forget - No is not negative. It’s very positive, for you.

Dare to dream
Dream is the fuel that sustains man’s aspirations. The Wright brothers dreamt of flying like a bird. They made a plane. Mahatma Gandhi dreamt of freedom. He delivered India from the British. No great achievements have come about without a dream, sacrifice, blood, sweat and toil. The lady who’s lost her husband recently also has to dream. To bring up her daughter, the symbol of their love. Dreams energize you. Dreams push you forward.

Accept criticism
Or you wouldn’t know your faults. Helps you overcome negative aspects in you. Broadens your mind. Changes your perspective. Reminds you that there’s still a lot to learn and do. Could be the way you walk or the way you work. Makes you accept reality. It’s like doing a research on yourself, without having to pay for it. Helps you audit your attitude characters and values.

Monday, July 11, 2011

Link Building Strategies and Resources

Building links is a surefire way to good traffic on your site. Here are the best resources on link building strategies that beginners can confidently read and use.

Build great content.
Build reputation through social media.
Build links naturally.
Link only to relevant content.
Exchange links with high page ranked sites.
Share useful content with your readers.
Make it easy for your blog readers to share content with others.
Write content for relevant sites and blogs.
Create different forms of the same content - PPTs (slideshare), videos (youtube, vimeo), audio podcasts, text content...
List your blog in quality directories
Link blog from your Linkedin, Facebook, Twitter...
Follow a bookmarking strategy to create a network on Stumbleupon, Delicious...

Linking Strategies and Resources:

Eric Ward Linking Articles
Chris Sherman’s Articles in Search Engine Watch
Linking Matters
Link Building Basics by Eric Enge
Link Building Tips by Aaron Wall and Andy Hagans
Ethical Link Building Tips
Creating Compelling Links by Brian Clark on Copyblogger
Link Building Popularity on Google Webmaster Central

Sunday, July 10, 2011

Free Short Motivational Quotes of the Day 2

Quotes are short pearls of wisdom from inspiring leaders. Go ahead and read them.

You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them.
Napoleon Hill

An aim in life is the only fortune worth finding, and it is not to be found in foreign lands but in the heart itself.
Robert Louis Stevenson

A goal that is not written down is merely a wish.
Les Brown, Live your dreams

You must take personal responsibility. You cannot change the circumstances, the seasons, or the wind, but you can change yourself.
Jim Rohn

Learn the fundamentals of the game and stick to them. Band-remedies never last.
Jack Nicklaus

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitudes.
William James

If I have seen farther it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.
Issac Newton

Friday, July 8, 2011

Three Types of Mobile Users to Cater

Mobile marketing folks need to get this right. There are only three basic types of mobile users:

Repetitive
This is the user who frequently checks news, sports updates or connects to social media. The seemingly casual person who browses through things of interest, but without taking much action.

Bored
This user gets away from stress at work or fights boredom by switching on the mobile to browse, play, watch or listen. This user has fleeting attention and is difficult to engage.

Urgent
This user is looking for important information that he needs rights now. Perhaps location based information or decision-making information. He's the guy who might take action on a relevant ad or offering.

This does not mean to say that marketers have to ignore the first two, but it tells us to get our priorities right - who to engage first and with what.

Sunday, July 3, 2011

The Golder Deer Short Motivational Story

An inspirational short story that leaves a lasting impression on people. This is part of 51 short motivational stories series that I'm writing.

Long, long ago in a forest near Benares, in Central India, lived two groups of deer. One was headed the beautiful golden skinned deer named Banyan and the other by Branch, another golden deer. They took care of their herd and grazed on the green grass close to the river.

One day the King of Benares came by hunting. He shot one deer and thought of the nice meal he’d soon have. As he was leaving the forest he saw two herds of deer on the banks of river. He was delighted seeing them.

“From tomorrow, I shall hunt deer everyday from this forest,” he said to his minister.

My lord, did you notice the two golden deer amongst them,” asked the minister.

The king saw them and said, “They are so beautiful, they should be killed last. Nobody dare touch them.”

Thereafter he came with his servants everyday and hunted. The scared deer ran praying for their lives whenever they saw the king. And the king sometimes hunted just for fun. And many were wounded in the process.

Seeing the deer suffer, Banyan called the two herds together. “It looks like we cannot escape death. We all must die one day. But we can make it safer for all of us by deciding to send one deer each day for the king’s meal. One day from my herd and the next from Branch’s herd.”

Everyone agreed.

Next day, Banyan went and spoke to the king about their decision. Banyan also requested the king not to hunt and that the deer would be sent to his palace every day. The king agreed.

Every day a deer went to the palace and was came under the butcher’s knife. Days and months passed by this way.

One day it was the turn of a pregnant deer to offer her life. She belonged to the Branch’s herd. She requested Branch to spare her life till the young one was born.

“I’ll lay down my life as soon as the baby is born,” she said.

But Branch would not agree: “It’s not possible to send someone else, it’s your turn.”

The deer then went to Banyan and explained the need to save her baby.

“Don’t worry, your turn will not come for a long time,” assured Banyan.

And to the astonishment of all deer, Banyan himself offered his life.

When the king saw Banyan, the golden deer, in the palace, he said, “I have spared you till the end. Why do you come?”

“King, but there’s a need to save a little deer who has not even seen this beautiful world,” said Banyan and explained the story of the pregnant deer.

The king felt ashamed. Animals have so much compassion for each other. We humans are low compared to them, he thought.

“From here on, all the deer in this forest shall be spared of death,” promised the king.

And Banyan went back happy that all deer could live happily ever after.

Notes: When confronted by risky situations, leaders tend to stand up and face it. Leadership is all about setting examples and living by basic principles.