It is my pleasure to welcome to the 12th edition of the Carnival of Entrepreneurs many thanks to Benjamin Yoskovitz of Startupspark who gave me this opportunity. I did receive many great turnout of articles from a wide range of people. In fact, I have found everyone of it very useful. So, are you ready for what this week Carnival has to offer? Then, read on…

Find below the articles that I feel you must not miss. They are my ?best of the week? pick?

1. If you have produced some e-books like me and you have been looking at ways to sell them, Slade?s write-up on how to sell e-books with a paypal account is a must read for you. The message is very easy to adapt and you will find it very useful.

2. If you can dream it, you can achieve. Walt Disney is remembered as an innovator, a creator, a folk hero and a legend because he had a dream and he achieved it. Karen Lynch, in dreams, shared an interesting story on what can happen to a man that has dreams.

3. At one particular point in your life, you would see the need both to understand what kind of role you are specializing in and how the skills for the next role in your career differ from those that brought you to where you are. David Maister has prepared a great podcast that will help you to determine which role is actually for you

4. Winners never quit and that is why they are winners in the first instance. If you want to succeed in any endeavour, you must learn to give yourself no other option. Walt did a beautiful job with No Plan B! Don?t only read this article, make a commitment to live the lessons.

5. Are you currently battling with the fear of the unknown? Positivity Blog has some useful tips for you.

6. Having a good presentation requires skills. Scott Schwertly took time to share some of the best tips I have read on this issue. I am sure you would find them useful.

Useful tips

1. Anna Farmery shares some wonderful tips on how to value your business.
2. Wilson Ng focuses his write-up on what you need to do to maximize your profit.
3. Master these 5 tips for staying on top of your book before it is too late. Believe me, it will save you a lot of headaches later in life.
4. Fish Creek House gives some insights on the ingredients you need to experience victory in everything you do.
5. Matthew Paulson shared some wonderful tips on time management. Now wonder he has been able to work 60 hours a week and still love it. You too can do the same if only you can follow his advice. You would also find Priya Jestin?s time saving tips very useful.
6. What is life to you? A daring adventure or nothing at all? Alan shares some tips how to live your life to the fullest.
7. Do your employees do their best when you’re not around? Do they prefer to work for you rather than any other manager in the company? Do they make a beeline to get in on your team? If you answered NO to any of the questions above, Pushpa has provided some insightful tips on how to be that manager that every employee respects.

I also have some interview sections that would be of help to you.

1. Movers and Shakers: Question and Answers with Matt Coddington
2. Manager as Sociopath: An Interview With An Honest Boss

Others worth reading are

1. The New Economy of Internet Volunteers
2. Attention Mapping: The 10-point
3. Creative Destruction
4. Review of ?The Rich Jerk? ? Get It Free, Plus $1
5. A word about Business Plan

Technorati Tags: Carnival of Entrepreneurs, how to sell e-books, Walt Disney, science of getting rich

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Did you miss out from part one? Then, click here. First, you need to engage your mind to create pictures of great future. Then, you must be ready to commit everything you have got to ensure that those pictures become your reality. Persistence will eventually teach your mind to think positively and ignore negative thoughts. It does not matter what your circumstances are at the present moment. Think positively, expect only favorable results and situations, and circumstances will change accordingly. It may take some time for the changes to take place, but eventually they do.

The human mind is an amazing thing. It can store practically unlimited amounts of information. It can critically analyze the most complex of problems. It can distil millions of bits of information into a single thought or feeling. Yet, just like a sophisticated computer or a powerful machine, you must learn how it works to take full advantage of its potential. Your mind can only focus on one thing at a time. That is just it. It seems rather simple, but then, so are most of the profound truths in life. The human mind, with all its amazing capacity, simply cannot concentrate on more than one thing at once. You do not believe it? Then, try this:

Think about sitting down in your office sweating profusely trying to solve a problem. Imagine joy in your heart immediately you got the problem solved, the neatly typed report, and the exhilarating recommendations that follows. Now, holding that image in your mind, think about the inside of your refrigerator at home. Try to hold both thoughts in your mind at the same time. I am very sure you would not be able to achieve this. You ca not! You can alternate back and forth, but you cannot think about the two things at once. This is good news for some people, I guess.

Think about it this way. Imagine you being the plant manager in one of the assembly plants of a Computer Manufacturing Company in the country. Perhaps one week the line will turn out Computer Motherboards, the next week your boss ordered you to re-fit the line to produce Computer Hard Disks, or maybe Floppy Disks.

What if the order given to you suddenly is to manufacture CD-ROM drive and ZIP drives at the same time by alternating between CD-ROM drives and ZIP drives, every other one, down the assembly line? What would be the result? It would be total chaos with few finished products, inferior quality, and a lot of wasted energy and time. The human mind is the same. If a multi-million naira manufacturing facility can not do two things at once, why then do you think you can?

Yet, many of us try to do just that. No sooner do we get our mind working on one thing, when we remember something else to concentrate on. Today we think of getting that job, learning a trade or starting that business and tomorrow, our thought pattern has changed. When we are at work, we think about home. At home, we worry about work. The phone rings, the boss calls a meeting, you remember a task that you forgot to do, and on it goes. Rare indeed is the man or woman who can truly focus his or her mind on a single task long enough to let the power of the mind work on it without interruption.

This is the key to unleashing the power of the mind. It can become a mighty tool when it is allowed to concentrate and focus. Imagine the increased levels of personal power and effectiveness you would achieve by simply learning to do this one thing: focus your mind on the important tasks and problems of the day. Here are three effective tips to help you practice focusing your mind . . .

1. Set a definite time to concentrate on a given task, project, or problem. Do not allow interruptions or stray thoughts to displace your thinking during that time.
2. Keep a note pad handy to jot down stray thoughts that enter your mind when you are focusing on something else. Once these thoughts are written, you can forget about them until the appropriate time.
3. If you get caught up in destructive thoughts such as guilt, worry, or fear, practice replacing them with positive, constructive thoughts.

Remember the oft-quoted success maxim, “do the most important thing now” Why not take it a step further and THINK the most important thing at any given moment. Do this, follow these suggestions, and you will be astonished at the exciting new ideas, innovative solutions, and dynamic successes that will naturally flow to you.

The human mind is like a stage. Only one performance can play at a time. If a competing cast enters the stage, they displace the existing performance. The good news is that YOU get to decide what is playing on the stage of your mind at any given time. God has given every one of us an incredible gift ? the ability to picture within our minds something we want to happen.

Lying within the mind are two powerful tools ? imagination and memory. Your memory keeps files of the past (both painful and pleasurable experiences). Your imagination is a machine given to you by God to create pictures. Both are God?s given gifts that can make or mar you. So, learn to replay the memories of past triumphs and pre-play the pictures of your desired future.

Download this free book - ?Secrets of the science of getting rich!? It is my gift to you.

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Technorati Tags: Persistence, starting that business, science of getting rich

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Your dream is to be successful in your business or to be within the top 3% of your career. Great! What a detailed plans you have. Excellent! You are even committed to act the plan. That is so wonderful. All this without the right mental picture leads you to no where. Your thought pattern determines who you eventually become.

“The quality of your life will never appreciate beyond the quality of your heart”

To keep at the top of your game you have to keep a clear head. You can not afford to fill up on news and negativity. That is why you can not afford to start your day by reading newspapers in the morning. The newspapers are overflowing with negative news about happenings in our world and the only way to be a winner is to be in control of your thoughts.

Where you are today is a direct reflection of the words, thoughts and actions you took days, months and years ago. No matter how much you continue to blame your parents, teachers, where you grew up, television, the government or anything else, the truth is that nobody got you where you are today but yourself. The longer you choose not to take responsibility for your life, the longer you will be living uninspired lives that you do not love.

Therefore, you need to keep your focus on what is working - for you and for others. You are bombarded with negative input all day long. You need to watch what goes in because your livelihoods depend on what you creatively crank out. Your head needs to be full of positive inspiration or free space where you can dream. It is, therefore, important to keep a positive mental attitude no matter what your life is like because nothing is more important than your thoughts. Your thought determines what you will experience the next minute, hour, day, week, year, decade and century.

Imagination is important. When you fail to use your imagination, your life just become a routine. Routine leads to a rut of complacency, and complacency is deadly to the creative expansion of your skill. Imagination adds amazing outreach to your capacity. It opens doors of achievement and happiness which you do not anticipate. People do not change their attitude and thoughts overnight.

The power of thoughts is a mighty power that is always shaping our lives. This shaping is usually done subconsciously, but it is possible to make the process a conscious one. Even if the idea seems strange, give it a try, as you have nothing to lose, but only to gain. Forget what others might say or think about you if you change the way you think.

Always visualize only favorable and beneficial situations. Use positive words in your inner dialogues or when talking with others. Smile a little more, as this helps to think positively. If you feel inner resistance when replacing negative thoughts with positive ones, do not give up, but keep looking only at the beneficial, good and happy thoughts in your mind. Disregard any feelings of laziness or a desire to quit. If you persevere, you will transform the way your mind thinks.

Once a negative thought enters your mind, you have to be aware of it and endeavor to replace it with a constructive one. The negative thought will try again to enter your mind, and then you have to replace it again with a positive one. It is as if there are two pictures in front of you, and you choose to look at one and disregard the other.

Download this free book - ?Secrets of the science of getting rich!? It is my gift to you.If you enjoyed this post, subscribe today to get free updates by email or RSS.

Technorati Tags: business, attitude, Imagination, science of getting rich

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With the permission of my friend at Startupspark, I would be hosting the 12th Carnival of Entrepreneurs. As always, I believe we all have a broad assortment of content and information that can help entrepreneurs in all stages of their lives.

So, the carnival will be hitting the road next week on my blog. Do you have interesting write-ups or want to share your experience thus far in the business world? Then, visit the Blog Carnival profile page and submit your content there!

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Your ability to plan well, in advance, is a measure of your overall competence. The better the plan you have, the easier it is for you to overcome procrastination, to get started , and then to keep going. Always remember that you have to win on paper first before you can win in the business world.

The first stage in creating a winning plan is to have a list. Always work from a list. This will help you to stay focused and to maximise your time. When something new comes up, don’t do it immediately. Just add it to the list and focus on doing what is next on the list.

“You can increase your productivity and output by 25% or more from the first day that you begin working consistently from a list.” Brian Tracy

Can you still remember the reasons why you started that business? Those things you ever wanted to be or do when you were growing up? That is only possible if you set your mind to it and plan your time accordingly. Goals act like a magnet, pulling you towards it. The realization of your “dream” requires some goals and action. Planning helps you  stay on track and also helps you to channel your energy right.

Get out a piece of paper now and title it MY DREAMS. Draw four columns and label them: Section, 1 - 5 years, 6 - 25 years, and Date. List everything that comes to your mind. Don’t bother about eliminating anything now. You should focus on creating a master list on which you write down everything you can think of that you want to do some time in the future. This is the place where you capture every idea that comes to or every new task or responsibility that comes up. You can then sort out the items later.

Brainstorm on everything you have under your  “1 - 5 years” and “5 - 25 years“. Fill in the DATE column with the DEADLINE by when you would like to accomplish it. This has become your goal. The next stage is to logically put a plan in place instead of letting things “take care of themselves.” Divide your plans into yearly, monthly, weekly and daily. Create your daily list the night before in line with your 5-year plan, at the end of the workday.

Move everything that you have not yet accomplished onto your list for the coming day and then add everything that you have to do the next day. This makes your subconscious mind to work on your list all night long during sleep. You might even wake up with great ideas and insights that you can use to get your job done faster and better than you had initially thought.

As you work through the day, tick off the items on your list as you complete them. A good journal will help you to achieve this while helping you to create a visual picture of accomplishment. Seeing myself working progressively through my list motivates and energizes me and I believe you would derive the same benefit. As you work through your lists, you will feel more and more effective and powerful. You will feel more in control of your life. You will be naturally motivated to do even more. You will think better and more creatively and you will get more and better insights that enable you to do your work even faster.

Download this free book - ?Secrets of the science of getting rich!? It is my gift to you.

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Technorati Tags: business, Brian Tracy, plans, science of getting rich

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I got this in the mail today and I feel like sharing it with all. Have you heard about the frog that was born at the bottom of a well? He thought life couldn’t get any better till one day he looked up and saw daylight. Climbing up to investigate he was amazed to find a much larger pond than the one he lived in. And going further afield he discovered a lake that was bigger again.

The frog eventually came to the ocean and all he could see was water. It dawned on him just how limited his thinking had been. He thought everything he needed was down in the well, but that was a drop in the bucket compared to the things that were out there for him to enjoy.

Maybe you’re living today in your own little “well,” reluctant to leave your comfort zone, settling for a limited and safe existence while God has rivers “deep enough to swim in.” Wouldn’t you like to step out in faith, experience new depths in Him and go where you’ve never been before?

The enemy will do everything he can to keep you focused on your background, your lack of formal education, your appearance and your limited resources. But Bruce Wilkinson says,

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re short of money, people, energy, or time. What God invites you to do will always be greater than the resources you start with.“

You don’t have to let fear limit your vision when God is your source, because His supply is unlimited! One idea from Him, just one, can change your life and the lives of others. He’s got great things in store for you today - so start thinking outside the box!

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What is your company?s planning horizon? Five years? Two years? Six months? Or zero month? Do you often set apart long-term vision to meet your business shorter-term financial goals? Many companies are under enormous pressure to deliver bottom-line results every quarter. The pressures can rearrange your priorities and sometimes not for the better.

This just reminds me a story. A grasshopper chirped loudly during the heat of a summer?s day. An ant warned the grasshopper to start thinking about the cold times ahead as it would be winter before soon. The ant, by contrast, spent the rest of the summer gathering kernels of wheat and storing them for the colder months.

The winter arrived as expected and it was an especially bitter one. One night, the cold and starving grasshopper approached the ant for something to eat. I am sure you know the response already?This explains why it is important to maintain a long-term planning horizon. In Out of the Crisis, Deming W. Edwards outlined his fourteen principles to transform management in the Western world. His very first principle deals with having the vision to plan for tomorrow.

There are types of problems: those of today and those of tomorrow. It is easy for you to get caught up in the problems of today such as maintaining product quality, sales, profits, public relations and so on. But you need to keep an eye on the future at the same time.

Vision leads to innovation and innovation leads to constantly improving designs for products and services. It is your responsibility to create a constancy of purpose and a vision for the future.

Download this free book - ?Secrets of the science of getting rich!? It is my gift to you.

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