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	<title>A Productive Pen &#187; facebook A Productive Pen : A blog about writing, online marketing and personal development</title>
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	<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1</link>
	<description>A blog about Freelance writing, online marketing and personal development</description>
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		<title>Pinterest: My Newest Social Media Obsession</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2012/01/pinterest-my-newest-social-media-obsession/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2012/01/pinterest-my-newest-social-media-obsession/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 28 Jan 2012 20:20:42 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[pinterest]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=1001</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[In addition to being a writer, I&#8217;m also an artist. I&#8217;ve got a passion for DIY crafts such as knitting and sewing, I love to cook and I appreciate fine fashion. Now I&#8217;ve found a social media site called Pinterest that allows me to indulge in collecting and &#8220;pinning&#8217; images of all of my favorite [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Pinterest2.jpg"><img class="aligncenter  wp-image-1002" title="Pinterest2" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/Pinterest2-300x173.jpg" alt="" width="404" height="233" /></a></p>
<p>In addition to being a writer, I&#8217;m also an artist. I&#8217;ve got a passion for DIY crafts such as knitting and sewing, I love to cook and I appreciate fine fashion. Now I&#8217;ve found a social media site called Pinterest that allows me to indulge in collecting and &#8220;pinning&#8217; images of all of my favorite things in one place.</p>
<p>Pinterest is one of the fastest growing social media sites. It&#8217;s an online pin board where members can collect, organize and share images of things they love.</p>
<p>Users create boards that they can give unique names to. After dragging the bookmarklet to your browser&#8217;s toolbar, you can just click on the &#8216;Pin It&#8217; button whenever you see an image on a website that you want to add to a Pinterest board.</p>
<p>Pinterest has great potential for marketing when it&#8217;s done discreetly. For businesses and brands that have a visual focus such as fashion, food, art, design, etc., Pinterest has obvious appeal. However, even brands that are not product or visual image based can benefit from using Pinterest to communicate the personality and aesthetic of their brand image and philosophy.</p>
<p>If you are already posting images to Facebook and Twitter, you can easily work Pinterest into your routine, and you can even add a cool Pinterest plugin to your WordPress blog. The Pinterest RSS Widget displays the thumbnail images and titles of your latest Pins on your blog using the <a href="http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/pinterest-rss-widget/">Pinterest RSS</a> plugin.</p>
<p>Because Pinterest is still in beta testing, you&#8217;ll need an invite in order to join. Send me an @ reply on Twitter, @evelynwrites, with your email address and I&#8217;ll send you an invite.<br />
Once you&#8217;ve joined, be sure to follow me: <a href="http://pinterest.com/evelynwrites/">http://pinterest.com/evelynwrites/</a></p>
<p>Are you already on Pinterest? Please add me and I will follow you back.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<h6 class="zemanta-related-title" style="font-size: 1em;">Related articles</h6>
<ul class="zemanta-article-ul">
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.wpjedi.com/wordpress-pinterest-friendly/">6 Ways To Add Pinterest to WordPress</a> (wpjedi.com)</li>
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.impressionsthroughmedia.com/?p=5532">Pinterest: The Power of Images</a> (impressionsthroughmedia.com)</li>
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.mediaegg.com/2012/01/simple-ways-to-use-pinterest/">3 Simple Ways to Use Pinterest</a> (mediaegg.com)</li>
</ul>
<div class="zemanta-pixie" style="margin-top: 10px; height: 15px;"><a class="zemanta-pixie-a" title="Enhanced by Zemanta" href="http://www.zemanta.com/"><img class="zemanta-pixie-img" style="border: none; float: right;" src="http://img.zemanta.com/zemified_e.png?x-id=a46eb47d-e0c5-45e0-a087-fa43be830839" alt="Enhanced by Zemanta" /></a></div>
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		<title>Do You Have Klout? How to Measure Your Online Influence</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/10/do-you-have-klout-how-to-measure-your-online-influence/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/10/do-you-have-klout-how-to-measure-your-online-influence/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Oct 2011 05:03:14 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[klout]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[publicity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LinkedIn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=961</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I have been hearing about Klout.com for awhile, and I&#8217;ve been seeing those +K tweets on Twitter and wondering what that was all about. Well, now I have a new social media addiction thanks to my friend, LaShanda Henry of Sistasense.tv. She talked about Klout.com in a the SistaSense Circle group coaching program that I [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Klout-logo.jpeg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-962" title="Klout-logo" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Klout-logo-300x98.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="98" /></a></p>
<p>I have been hearing about Klout.com for awhile, and I&#8217;ve been seeing those +K tweets on Twitter and wondering what that was all about. Well, now I have a new social media addiction thanks to my friend, LaShanda Henry of Sistasense.tv. She talked about Klout.com in a the SistaSense Circle group coaching program that I belong to.</p>
<p>Klout is a social media site that measures and identifies your social influence in social media. You can join for free and set up a profile. You give the app permission to link to your Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook profiles and then it uses that information to give you a score between 1 and 100. When I first joined Klout back in July I had a score of 38. Today my Klout score is 51&#8211;solidly in the middle of the pack.</p>
<p>I&#8217;m not quite sure how I feel about Klout yet, but I am learning about how it works and how I can leverage its features to get more exposure online.</p>
<p>One of the fun features is the ability that I mentioned earlier, which is to give people &#8220;+K&#8217;s,&#8221; which is kind of like the &#8220;thumbs up,&#8221; that the &#8220;Like&#8221; button on Facebook represents.</p>
<p>You can give people a +K to show your appreciation if they shared some of your content with their network, or if they shared something of someone else&#8217;s that you found useful. A +K can serve as a thank you for being helpful to you, or as an encouragement to keep up the good work they&#8217;ve been doing, or if they have influenced you in some way. +K is not about boosting your Klout score. It&#8217;s just about providing a medium for users to engage and build community around their topics of interest.</p>
<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/lashanda.gif"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-963" title="lashanda" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/lashanda-300x116.gif" alt="" width="300" height="116" /></a></p>
<ul>
<li>Here&#8217;s how to give your peeps a +K on Klout:</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Log in to your Klout.com account</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Type in the Twitter.com username of the person you&#8217;d like to give a +K to</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Now you will see their Klout profile. In the area where it lists what that person is influential about, click on the &#8220;see all. . .&#8221; link. Now you&#8217;ll find a list of their topics and you&#8217;ll see the &#8220;Give +K&#8221; button to the right of each topic.</li>
</ul>
<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Lashandatopics.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-964" title="Lashandatopics" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Lashandatopics.jpg" alt="" width="273" height="150" /></a></p>
<p>Once you&#8217;ve given them a +K you can then Tweet about it, or post a Facebook status update about it.</p>
<p>So far I&#8217;m finding Klout to be fun. I guess if and when I manage to boost my score beyond 51 I will see if it does anything to drive more traffic to my site, or increase my social medial following.</p>
<p>If you&#8217;re on Klout and want me to +K you, leave a comment. My Twitter username is @evelynwrites if you feel like returning the favor.</p>
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		<title>Facebook Boundaries&#8211;Separate Your Personal and Business Lives or Mix it Up?</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/09/facebook-boundaries-separate-your-personal-and-business-lives-or-mix-it-up/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/09/facebook-boundaries-separate-your-personal-and-business-lives-or-mix-it-up/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 21 Sep 2011 16:23:36 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[google+]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traffic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=947</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Now that Facebook has become such a fixture in both the business and personal lives of hundreds of millions of us around the globe, the question of how to keep your business and personal worlds from colliding on Facebook is one that eventually pops up. Create a company Facebook Page The first step is to [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/fence.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-948" title="Fence Line and Paddock, near Wanganui, North Island, New Zealand" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/fence-300x200.jpg" alt="" width="218" height="145" /></a><br />
Now that Facebook has become such a fixture in both the business and personal lives of hundreds of millions of us around the globe, the question of how to keep your business and personal worlds from colliding on Facebook is one that eventually pops up.</p>
<p><strong>Create a company Facebook Page</strong><br />
The first step is to follow Facebook&#8217;s terms of service and use a free fan page or company page to do business on Facebook, and use your personal profile for communicating with your friends and family. Yes, the personal profile is far better suited to engaging with your audience, but there&#8217;s no use investing a lot of time and effort building up a business following on your personal profile if it will get you shut down. I personally know of at  least one author and speaker who had a huge Facebook following on her personal profile and Facebook shut her down completely.</p>
<p>Once you&#8217;ve created your company page, the best way to get an initial influx of &#8216;Likes,&#8217; is to invite your friends to &#8216;Like&#8217; your company page. But first you&#8217;ll want to get a nice supply of posts in there so that they have something interesting to read and comment on.</p>
<p><strong>Segment your friends into lists</strong><br />
If your Facebook profile is anything like mine, it&#8217;s a mixture of family, friends, former co-workers, current business contacts and other random people. In order to create some kind of boundary&#8211;if that is what you want to do&#8211;you can first segment your people into lists. Going forward you can pop new friends into the appropriate list or create a new list. (Google+ style <img src='http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_wink.gif' alt=';-)' class='wp-smiley' /> </p>
<p>On your profile page click on &#8216;Account&#8217; in the upper right-hand corner of the page and then click on &#8216;Edit Friends,&#8217; from the dropdown menu that will appear. You will see a friend&#8217;s photo on the left and a &#8216;Friends,&#8217; button on the right. Click on the &#8216;Friends&#8217; button and another dropdown menu will appear with several lists along with the option to create a new list.</p>
<p>Let&#8217;s create some new lists. You may have current customers and clients, colleagues and prospective customers as Facebook friends. You can decide how you are going to divide people up. Give each list a name and then as you go down your list of friends, click on which list you are going to add them to. Be mindful that when you create these lists that Facebook will sometimes send them a notification that they have been added to a particular list. Just be careful what you name your lists and this information is not for your eyes only.</p>
<p><strong>Choosing who sees which status updates</strong><br />
Now that you have placed your friends in lists you can decide who sees specific status updates. When you send a notification about a company event, your aunt Sadie in Buffalo doesn&#8217;t need to see that.</p>
<p>When you click on the box on your profile that asks, &#8220;What&#8217;s on your mind?&#8221; you&#8217;ll see a down arrow to the left of the &#8216;Post&#8217; button. When you click on that down arrow a dropdown menu appears allowing you to select which list you want this update to go to.</p>
<p>If you don&#8217;t want to go to the trouble of segmenting your Facebook friends into separate lists, or if you are of the mind that you are your brand and that personal and business can mingle happily, then you might want to send a note to those contacts who are interested in your business activities inviting them to join your company page and include a link to it.</p>
<p>Of course, who knows how long these instructions will be valid because Facebook is constantly changing its layout and features, which should serve as a reminder that you don&#8217;t own or control your Facebook profile, so always create ways to bring your friends to your blog or website and encourage them to sign up for your email newsletter so that you can stay connected.</p>
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		<title>Are You on Google+ Yet?</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/07/are-you-on-google-yet/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/07/are-you-on-google-yet/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Tue, 19 Jul 2011 16:47:55 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[google+]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Google]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media marketing]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=890</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[&#160; A few weeks ago I finally got a much-coveted invite to join Google+, which is Google’s shiny new social media platform that just came out of beta in early July. Now anyone with a Google account can join Google+.  I’ve been having fun playing in this new social media space, getting to know the [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/G+.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-891 alignleft" title="G+" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/G+.jpg" alt="" width="100" height="100" /></a></p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
<p>A few weeks ago I finally got a much-coveted invite to join Google+, which is Google’s shiny new social media platform that just came out of beta in early July. Now anyone with a Google account can join Google+.  I’ve been having fun playing in this new social media space, getting to know the ‘lay of the land,’ and I’ve been having a great time.</p>
<p>Facebook and Twitter were my first foray into social media marketing, so I am considering Google+ from the perspective of how I use those spaces and what additional benefits it might have to offer me.  What I have observed so far is that Google+ so far has been embraced primarily by early adopters—those of us who geek-out on new tech tools and can’t wait to see what the latest tech gadget has to offer.  So, I have been using it to connect with other business people who are using G+ because, frankly, my peeps—that is my friends and family are not yet on Google+, nor do they show much of an interest in joining.</p>
<p>Here’s a quick overview of what Google+ has to offer, so that you can decide it maybe you want to come on over and check it out.</p>
<p><strong>+Circles</strong></p>
<p>On Facebook everyone is your friend, on Twitter everyone is a Follower, but with Google+ as soon as you add someone to your network you place them in one of your existing circles, or you can create a new one to add them to.  Here’s an idea of some of my circles:</p>
<ul>
<li>Friends—yes, actual friends that I know and have established a real relationship with whether or not we have actually met in real life.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Business contacts—colleagues, fellow business owners, collaborators</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Blogs to watch—As a blogger I have certain blogs that I keep a close eye on for relationship building. I put those in this circle.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Clients</li>
<li></li>
<li>Acquaintances</li>
<li></li>
<li>Relatives</li>
</ul>
<p><strong>+Hangouts</strong></p>
<p>Hangout is a video and voice chat application that allows up to ten people to do a video chat on whatever topic they choose. You  must install a little plugin, and your laptop must have video and a mic in order to participate in a hangout. You can either initiate your own, or visit, <a href="http://gphangouts.com/">http://gphangouts.com</a>, to find a public hangout that you can join.</p>
<p><strong>+Sparks</strong></p>
<p>This is a colossal feed engine that contains feeds from across the Internet on any topic you can imagine. Just type in your keywords and up pops all of this content that you can read and share with the people in your circles.</p>
<p><strong>Google’s +1 Button</strong></p>
<p>The +1 button is separate from Google+, but there is also a +1 button along with your posts. You can think of it as the Google version of Facebook’s ‘Like’ button. Clicking the +1 button means that you think that site is kinda awesome and you’re giving it the ‘thumbs-up’ vote. But another cool thing about the +1 button is that all of the sites that you have clicked +1 for are listed on a page on your Google profile making it sort of like your own de facto social bookmarking site. People can peruse your +1 page to see what you like and recommend, but you can also keep your +1 page to yourself by making it private.</p>
<p><strong>+Mobile</strong></p>
<p>As an iPhone user it’s more than a little bit irritating that the mobile app for iOS is not yet available. But if you are an Android user you can take all of Google+’s features with you on the go with the exception of hangouts , but they may be adding that functionality to the mobile app at some point in the future.</p>
<p><strong>Breaking News:</strong> The Google+ iOS app for iPhone and iPad is now available in iTunes</p>
<p>http://mashable.com/2011/07/19/google-iphone-app/</p>
<p><strong>My G+ conclusions</strong></p>
<p>So, for the moment, I’m digging Google+. I use if for business networking, and research primarily. One of my business colleagues shared on G+ that she was going to ditch all of the business contacts on her personal Facebook profile and tell them to look for her on Google+ so that she could reclaim her Facebook profile for actual friends and family. I am watching and waiting to see how things shake out with Google+. I was on Facebook for years before anyone I actually knew joined, so maybe in time G+ will gain more mainstream appeal.</p>
<p>What are your thoughts on Google+? Have you joined yet? What do you like or dislike about the new social media platform on the block? Feel free to leave a comment.</p>
<p>&nbsp;</p>
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		<title>Online Visibility: 11 Ways to get More Exposure for Your Blog in 2011</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/01/online-visibility-11-ways-to-get-more-exposure-for-your-blog-in-2011/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/01/online-visibility-11-ways-to-get-more-exposure-for-your-blog-in-2011/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Mon, 17 Jan 2011 05:30:15 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[article marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[personal development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[press releases]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[professional development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[publicity]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[traffic]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[blog]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LinkedIn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Search engine optimization]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wordpress]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[YouTube]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=806</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Bloggers might sometimes get the feeling that they are fighting an uphill battle because theirs is just one of millions of other blogs out there competing for the attention of their prospective audience. But if you develop a solid marketing plan for your blog and take consistent action toward the goals you set daily, weekly [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Search.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-807" title="online visibility" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Search-300x298.jpg" alt="" width="246" height="244" /></a></p>
<p>Bloggers might sometimes get the feeling that they are fighting an uphill battle because theirs is just one of millions of other blogs out there competing for the attention of their prospective audience. But if you develop a solid marketing plan for your blog and take consistent action toward the goals you set daily, weekly and monthly, before you know it, your Alexa rankings will be falling and your Google page rank will begin to rise which means you’ll be attracting more visitors.</p>
<p>Let’s dive right in to 11 tips for getting your blog seen more in 2011:</p>
<p><strong>1. Post consistently</strong></p>
<p>Having a consistent posting schedule gets both your readers and the search engines used to visiting your blog more often.</p>
<p><strong>2. Know the basics of SEO and how to      optimize your blog and your posts for the search engines.</strong></p>
<p>If you are running a WordPress blog there are several free plugins that will help you to maximize your blog’s SEO from both a structural and a content perspective. Optimizing your blog helps you get more traffic and better search engine rankings.</p>
<p><strong>3. Comment on other blogs in your topic</strong></p>
<p>Visiting other blogs in your niche or topic, reading the posts and leaving relevant comments is an effective way to increase your visibility with both the blog’s author and your fellow commentators.</p>
<p><strong>4. Guest post on popular blogs in your      topic</strong></p>
<p>Guest blogging gigs are a great way to create a win-win with other bloggers in your niche. You help them out by providing content that is suited to their blog and audience, your presence on their blog helps get you exposure with a whole new audience, and the readers get to experience a new perspective.</p>
<p><strong>5. Send out press releases</strong></p>
<p>Whenever you are planning a news-worthy event, send out a press release. Not only might you attract media attention, but you’ll get a ton of high page rank back links to your blog and a nice, if short-lived, flow of traffic to your blog.</p>
<p><strong>6. Host a contest/giveaway</strong></p>
<p>Who doesn’t want something for free? Host a contest or a giveaway where you offer up a valuable product or service in exchange for your readers helping to spread the word about your blog.</p>
<p><strong>7. Join or host a blogging challenge</strong></p>
<p>A blogging challenge can have many benefits including increased exposure for the host and the participants, you get motivated and inspired to blog more to keep up with your fellow challengers and you get a little traffic boost and more comments as other members of the challenge make the rounds to the various blogs.</p>
<p><strong>8. Offer a free product</strong></p>
<p>If you are building your opt-in email subscriber list, offer a free product for visitors to your blog who sign up. Invite subscribers to share your premium with their friends and make sure that it contains a link back to your blog.</p>
<p><strong>9. </strong><strong>Be active in social media</strong></p>
<p>Work your Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter profiles to send traffic back and forth. Use a Facebook Fan Page to share valuable tips and info with your audience, host events and invite your followers and be a trusted resource that people want to follow.<strong> </strong></p>
<p><strong>10. Video marketing </strong></p>
<p><strong> </strong></p>
<p>Video marketing is an incredibly powerful way to gain some valuable exposure online. Create a series of videos containing useful how-to tips, recipes, instructions, or advice. Include a link back to your blog in the description box and a compelling call to action in the video. Share your videos on all of the top video sharing sites for lots of traffic and visibility.</p>
<p><strong>11. Article marketing</strong></p>
<p>This tried and true strategy is still effective today, but you’ve got to be committed to creating a high volume of quality articles with links back to your blog. Write articles for some of the top websites in your industry to establish yourself as an expert and draw attention to your blog.</p>
<p>As you focus on increasing your online visibility remember those qualities that make you unique and set you apart. There really is no competition because you are one of a kind. The goal then is to get yourself out there in the marketplace of ideas so that you can shine your brilliance for the world to see. Being modest and shy will not serve you, so if you don’t have the gumption to get out there and share what sets you apart then you may as well fold up your tent and go home.</p>
<p>If you have a vision and a mission to accomplish, then it is your responsibility to share the message that you have been given with a world that is waiting to hear what you have to say. Make 2011 your year to break through. Those who succeed are those who never give up working towards their goals.</p>
<h6 class="zemanta-related-title" style="font-size: 1em;">Related articles</h6>
<ul class="zemanta-article-ul">
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/8248/How-to-Be-an-Awesome-Blog-Commenter.aspx">How to Be an Awesome Blog Commenter</a> (hubspot.com)</li>
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.shoutmeloud.com/how-guest-blogging-increase-blog-brand-recognition.html">How Guest Blogging Can Increase your Blog Brand Recognition</a> (shoutmeloud.com)</li>
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.problogger.net/archives/2011/01/15/boost-your-blog-traffic-a-guide-for-bloggers-who-want-more-traffic-in-2011/">Boost Your Blog Traffic: A Guide For Bloggers Who Want More Traffic in 2011</a> (problogger.net)</li>
</ul>
<div class="zemanta-pixie" style="margin-top: 10px; height: 15px;"><a class="zemanta-pixie-a" title="Enhanced by Zemanta" href="http://www.zemanta.com/"><img class="zemanta-pixie-img" style="border: medium none; float: right;" src="http://img.zemanta.com/zemified_e.png?x-id=dcb54ee5-ba03-426e-b59d-bb1d3f68f972" alt="Enhanced by Zemanta" /></a><span class="zem-script more-related pretty-attribution"><script src="http://static.zemanta.com/readside/loader.js" type="text/javascript"></script></span></div>
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		<title>Online Visibility: Are You Ready to Be Discovered?</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/01/online-visibility-are-you-ready-to-be-discovered/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2011/01/online-visibility-are-you-ready-to-be-discovered/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 08 Jan 2011 19:19:41 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[personal development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[press releases]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LinkedIn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Online Communities]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Social Networking]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Target audience]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=791</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Online visibility is all about being found online by the target audience who is looking for what you have to offer. With millions of other websites competing for your prospective clients&#8217; attention, your challenge is to find a way to rise above the &#8216;noise&#8217; or the many distractions on the Internet, and show up consistently [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Online visibility is all about being found online by the target audience who is looking for what you have to offer. With millions of other websites competing for your prospective clients&#8217; attention, your challenge is to find a way to rise above the &#8216;noise&#8217; or the many distractions on the Internet, and show up consistently where your target audience is already hanging out.</p>
<p>What inspired me to write this post today was a meeting I had this week with a prospective client. He found me on social media and while he has been cooking up his project, he has been observing what I&#8217;m up to online. He visited my blog, my Facebook profile, Fan Page and Twitter and then he sent me a Facebook Inbox message to ask about working with me. These days I have not been publicizing my consulting services too much because my schedule is full to overflowing with producing lots of content for my fabulous clients. But part of my vision for the life that I intend to create for myself includes doing more consulting, and speaking. In order to achieve success in those endeavors I must continue to build on my online visibility.</p>
<p>Towards that end I am preparing to be a guest on a radio show called, &#8220;Being, with Ron Ash,&#8221; on Wednesday, January 19 at 9am EST. Ron Ash is an author and Pastoral Counselor. This will be my third radio appearance, and the previous two interviews came about because the hosts found my website and resonated with my vision and mission. Ron also found me on Facebook.</p>
<p>So, I guess what I am trying to say here is that you&#8217;ve got to be relentless about your marketing. Get yourself out there! Write about the topics that you are passionate about on your blog. Take a stand for something that you believe in and defend it. There will be haters out there, but there will also be people who are attracted to your authenticity and sincerity. And to that last point, be who you are. The world does not need any more copy-cats. For so long I felt insecure because I was always comparing myself to other people and feeling like I did not measure up. Thank God I have learned to get over myself, let myself off the hook and learn to love myself for who I am&#8211;warts and all.</p>
<p>The best way to get discovered is to be everywhere all the time. Participate in social media, work your Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn profiles. Network with your peers and get on the &#8216;radar screen&#8217; of those luminaries in your field that you would love to work with. Comment on blogs. Contribute articles to the major publications in your niche or topic. Guest blog for a few of the high profile blogs in your niche. Submit press releases when you are doing something newsworthy, and, oh yeah, do something newsworthy! Submitting press releases is an amazingly effective way to generate buzz, which is what you really want.</p>
<p>While you are getting out there, make sure that your house is in order. Make sure of the following:</p>
<ul>
<li>Your blog should look great and has lots of      valuable content for your new visitors to consume.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>If you will be sending our press releases,      make sure you’ve got a ‘Press or Media’ page with links to your media kit      on your blog.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Put your email list opt-in box above the fold      and in the upper-right hand section of your website.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Create an engaging intro video about yourself      and post it on your blog.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Create a Facebook Fan Page with a      keyword-optimized title and post valuable content there.</li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li>Share your friends&#8217; content and they will      reciprocate.</li>
</ul>
<p>Gaining online visibility takes time and commitment. It will not happen overnight barring your appearing on the evening news for some reason. If you intend to get discovered by prospective clients you&#8217;ve got to be willing to lay a strong foundation and put in the work required.</p>
<p>Remember, there is no one else out there like you. No one else can do the genius work that you were sent to this planet to do. If God has given you a vision then it is your responsibility to bring it to fruition. You would not be given the desire without also having been given the means by which to fulfill that desire. It is your job to take the first step in faith. Feel free to contact me if you want to talk about me working with you to boost your online visibility.</p>
<h6 class="zemanta-related-title" style="font-size: 1em;">Related articles</h6>
<ul class="zemanta-article-ul">
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://thinkup.waldenu.edu/archive/item/8823-8-reasons-why-we-love-social-media&amp;sa=U&amp;ei=9aEmTap6g8aVB6G2wP4B&amp;ved=0CIkBEBYwOjj0Aw&amp;usg=AFQjCNEABQX3iNB8QsoSJAhWIEu3yhpWPg">8 Reasons Why We Love Social Media</a> (thinkup.waldenu.edu)</li>
<li class="zemanta-article-ul-li"><a href="http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2011/01/05/can-you-have-an-effective-online-presence-without-your-own-site">Can You Have An Effective Online Presence Without Your Own Site?</a> (webpronews.com)</li>
</ul>
<div class="zemanta-pixie" style="margin-top: 10px; height: 15px;"><a class="zemanta-pixie-a" title="Enhanced by Zemanta" href="http://www.zemanta.com/"><img class="zemanta-pixie-img" style="border: medium none; float: right;" src="http://img.zemanta.com/zemified_e.png?x-id=901dac28-83ef-4ffa-85c6-25d72de1e4bd" alt="Enhanced by Zemanta" /></a><span class="zem-script more-related pretty-attribution"><script src="http://static.zemanta.com/readside/loader.js" type="text/javascript"></script></span></div>
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		<title>Social Media Optimization: Strategies for Maximizing Your Social Media Presence</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/09/social-media-optimization-strategies-for-maximizing-your-social-media-presence/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/09/social-media-optimization-strategies-for-maximizing-your-social-media-presence/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 24 Sep 2010 05:00:48 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Internet Marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Search engine optimization]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=669</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Social media marketing can no longer be called a passing fad. If you look at some of the big players such as Intel, Honda, Coca Cola and thousands of other brands both large and small, who are using social media to engage with their audience and increase brand awareness, you’re sure to discover that social [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Social-Media-Optimization.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-670" title="Social-Media-Optimization" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Social-Media-Optimization-300x213.jpg" alt="" width="300" height="213" /></a></p>
<p><strong>Social media marketing</strong> can no longer be called a passing fad. If you look at some of the big players such as Intel, Honda, Coca Cola and thousands of other brands both large and small, who are using social media to engage with their audience and increase brand awareness, you’re sure to discover that social media can help you to expand your brand, interact and engage with your target market and grow your presence online.</p>
<p>With social media sites such as youtube.com becoming the second most popular search engine, and Facebook growing larger than the population of some countries it’s time to stop ignoring its impact and start embracing the potential of social media to have a positive impact on your bottom line when done right.</p>
<p>So, what is social media optimization? It’s all about optimizing your online presence to take advantage of social media’s potential to grow your business and expand your brand. Just as SEO optimizes your website to attract organic traffic from the search engines, SMO seeks to optimize your site to receive targeted traffic from social media sites. In this article we’re going to look at some ways in which you can optimize your sites and your profiles to boost both your search engine rankings and expand your reach and influence online.</p>
<p><strong>1. </strong><strong>Your Website</strong></p>
<p>If you don’t already have one, create a blog which is optimized for your primary keywords.</p>
<p>Provide an email list opt-in form where visitors can sign up and learn more about who you are and what you have to offer.</p>
<p>Make it effortless for your visitors to share your content on social media by providing sharing buttons, Twitter apps, and Fan Page ‘Like’ boxes.</p>
<p>Provide an RSS feed so that visitors can keep up with your new content.</p>
<p>Use video to educate, entertain and inform your visitors.</p>
<p><strong>2. </strong><strong>Your Social Media Profiles</strong></p>
<p>Make sure that all of your profiles are 100% complete. LinkedIn profiles that are complete rank higher than those that are incomplete.</p>
<p>Post a good, clear photo of yourself in your profiles (people don’t create relationships with a logo).</p>
<p>Create compelling content that your visitors will want to share.</p>
<p>Focus more energy on giving and providing value than you do on advertising your wares.</p>
<p>Present yourself as a trusted authority, and people will be attracted to what you have to offer.</p>
<p><strong>3. </strong><strong>What is your plan of action for social media?</strong></p>
<p>Clearly articulate what you specifically hope to gain by being involved in social media.</p>
<p>Do you want more traffic to your website?</p>
<p>Are you trying to engage with your audience and create relationships?</p>
<p>Do you want to build a community around your ideas?</p>
<p>Are you trying to provide customer service?</p>
<p>After you establish those goals you can determine how you will measure success.</p>
<p>Go over these items and take an assessment of where you are right now with social media optimization and take a few actions today that will move you one step closer to having an online presence that is optimized to make the most of your connections on social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Youtube.com.  Use these ideas to come up with a single goal to start with and then work towards achieving that goal as you expand your vision.</p>
<p>Social media marketing is an effective way to get your brand out there, get found and grow your online presence and your business. Are you making the most of this golden opportunity?</p>
<p>Want to get more involved with social media, but you don&#8217;t have the time, or the expertise to do it right? Ask about our <a href="http://www.productivepen.com" target="_blank">social media management services</a>. Contact me at ebb567 [at] gmail [dot] com.</p>
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		<title>Review: SistaSense Circle Business Women&#8217;s Coaching Program</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/09/review-sistasense-circle-business-womens-coaching-program/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/09/review-sistasense-circle-business-womens-coaching-program/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Wed, 08 Sep 2010 05:00:25 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[personal development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[professional development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Business]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Coaching]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Marketing and Advertising]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[social media]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=651</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Over the past few weeks I have been attending LaShanda Henry&#8217;s SistaSense Circle group coaching program. It was designed to provide focused coaching for women infopreneurs, authors, and coaches who wanted to grow their businesses. LaShanda is the founder of Black Business Women Online, which is an over 8,700 member strong online community. She has [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/sista-sense-circle.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-652" title="sista-sense-circle" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/sista-sense-circle-300x78.jpg" alt="sista-sense circle" width="300" height="78" /></a><br />
Over the past few weeks I have been attending LaShanda Henry&#8217;s SistaSense Circle group coaching program. It was designed to provide focused coaching for women infopreneurs, authors, and coaches who wanted to grow their businesses. LaShanda is the founder of Black Business Women Online, which is an over 8,700 member strong online community. She has been in business for several years so she knows what she is talking about and she has achieved the level of success that I am striving for in my business.</p>
<p>There were ten women in this first circle and we got to know each other over the series of telephone coaching sessions and the online forum. I really enjoyed the focused attention that was made possible because the group was so small. I learned so much and I was inspired both by LaShanda and by the other amazing women in our group.</p>
<p>Here are a few of the little &#8216;nuggets&#8217; that I learned that I  will share in order to inspire you to invest in some coaching:</p>
<p><strong>The importance of sharing our stories</strong><br />
When we visit someone&#8217;s website and everything seems perfect and it looks like they&#8217;ve got it going on it can never reveal the depth of the struggles that they went through to achieve what they have today. Sharing the story of how you started your business, what struggles you were able to overcome, the lessons learned and the victories won makes your readers catch a glimpse of your humanity. They will find some aspect of your story that they can relate to and they might say to themselves, &#8220;If she did it then maybe I can, too.&#8221;</p>
<p><strong>&#8216;Marketing moments&#8217; &amp; business blogging</strong><br />
I learned that I have been giving far too much away on my blog and then not tying the content back into sharing about what I do. She taught us about a certain approach to business blogging that balances content marketing with lead generation, and I&#8217;ll tell you the very first time I put her advice into practice I got a new client.</p>
<p><strong>Social media conversion</strong><br />
As someone who uses social media daily to market my business, and as a social media manager for my private clients, what I learned from LaShanda about how to bring more of my social media audience to my blog and convert them to clients paid off because right away becuase I signed a new client that first found me on Facebook.</p>
<p>So, if you&#8217;re feeling a bit stuck you might consider a group coaching program like the SistaSense Circle where you can learn and grow and stretch yourself as you gain the skills and support to grow your business or coaching practice in a safe, encouraging environment.</p>
<p>If you are just starting out in online business and you could use some guidance, I recommend LaShanda&#8217;s, <a href="https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?ii=284918&amp;c=ib&amp;aff=96570&amp;cl=29267&quot; target=&quot;ejejcsingle" target="_blank">The Beginner’s Guide to Building Your Money Making Business Online</a>, which is a bundle of ebooks, a 7-day course and 15 &#8216;how-to&#8217; videos.</p>
<p>While the <a href="http://www.sistasense.com " target="_blank">SistaSense Circle</a> has officially ended, I plan to keep in touch with the members of the class so that we can<br />
continue to inspire one another and learn from each other.</p>
<p>Do you work with a stellar coach who has helped you to break through some barriers and achieve new levels of success? Brag about them here in the comments.</p>
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		<title>5 Tips For Becoming a Freelance Blogger</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/06/5-tips-for-becoming-a-freelance-blogger-2/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/06/5-tips-for-becoming-a-freelance-blogger-2/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Sat, 19 Jun 2010 05:53:51 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[blogging]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[marketing]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[twitter]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Uncategorized]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[LinkedIn]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Wordpress]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=249</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[Freelance blogging involves writing blog posts for other bloggers. You will be helping other bloggers keep their blogs supplied with fresh, well-written content while doing work you enjoy for decent pay. Adding freelance blogging to your portfolio can be an effective way to keep a more steady flow of work coming your way while adding [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/imBloggingThis.jpg"><img class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-239" title="imBloggingThis" src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/imBloggingThis-229x300.jpg" alt="" width="229" height="300" /></a></p>
<p>Freelance blogging involves writing blog posts for other bloggers. You will be helping other bloggers keep their blogs supplied with fresh, well-written content while doing work you enjoy for decent pay. Adding freelance blogging to your portfolio can be an effective way to keep a more steady flow of work coming your way while adding more variety to your work life.</p>
<p>Freelance writers enjoy an enviable lifestyle that affords them the ability to work where and when they choose,  and for clients that they choose doing work that they enjoy. One of the downsides is that there tends to be a bit of a &#8216;feast or famine&#8217; cycle of being swamped with work, and then sometimes, work is difficult to find. Adding more skills to your service offerings gives you more opportunities to serve a more diverse client base.</p>
<p>Aside from a love and passion for the craft of writing, you&#8217;ll also need a solid foundation in Internet marketing, effective website design and some knowledge of basic SEO practices to become a freelance blogger.  Knowledge of how to manage the popular blogging platform, <a class="zem_slink" title="WordPress" rel="homepage" href="http://wordpress.org">WordPress</a>, is also important. Your clients may want you to write the posts and then publish them to the blog as well.</p>
<p>Because basically anyone who can write a sentence, and who has Internet access can slap up a blog, you&#8217;ll have to differentiate yourself from the teeming masses by providing excellent, well-written content that&#8217;s beyond what the average person would be able to find upon doing a cursory online search.</p>
<p>Here are five tips for getting started with freelance blogging:</p>
<p><strong>1. Start your own blog.</strong><br />
Your first step is going to be to demonstrate that you can create some results with your content. Create a blog on a topic that you are passionate about and work towards getting it ranked high in the search engines for your keywords. Cultivate an audience and engage with them on your blog. Demonstrate best practices and show potential clients that you know how to build and maintain an effective blog.</p>
<p><strong>2. Create a page for your blogging services</strong><br />
Decide on what price you will charge per word, giving a price for a range of word counts from 350-400, 500-600, and 1,000 word posts. Although blog posts tend to be more effective when they are shorter and to the point.</p>
<p>Post your resume and a way for potential clients to request references.</p>
<p>Provide sample blog posts and consider sharing traffic data for particular posts.</p>
<p>Include testimonials that describe the results your blog posts have helped other blogs achieve.</p>
<p><strong>3. Create relationships with potential clients by guest posting.</strong><br />
You can begin by offering to <a href="http://budurl.com/guestblogging" target="_blank">guest post</a> for bloggers that you&#8217;d eventually like to write for. If they like your work they may consider hiring you in the future.<br />
<strong><br />
4. Comment regularly on blogs that you&#8217;d like to work with.</strong><br />
Leave thoughtful comments that add value rather than trying to show how nifty and smart you are. Join in the conversation and keep coming back to blogs that you like so that you can establish a reputation and credibility.</p>
<p><strong>5. Utilize social media to gain exposure.</strong><br />
Use your <a class="zem_slink" title="Facebook" rel="homepage" href="http://facebook.com">Facebook</a> profile, create a fan page for your blog and use the Networked Blogs app to connect your blog with the millions of other blogs on Facebook. Use Twitter to get traffic by tweeting when you publish a post. You<br />
can also tweet about your topic and what&#8217;s happening with you.</p>
<p>If your blog is on a more serious business topic you&#8217;ll want to create a <a class="zem_slink" title="LinkedIn" rel="homepage" href="http://www.linkedin.com">LinkedIn</a> profile, add lots of relevant connections, and join participate in and start groups on your topic.</p>
<p>Visit the following forums to find blogging gigs:</p>
<ul>
<li>forum.freelanceswitch.com</li>
<li>forum.freelancevenue.com</li>
<li>jobs.problogger.net</li>
<li>bloggerjobs.biz</li>
</ul>
<p>You can also find blogging gigs on the regular freelancing sites such as oDesk, Elance and Guru.com.</p>
<p>If you&#8217;re an online freelance writer looking to expand your reach, freelance blogging can be a fun way to branch out , attract more clients and increase your bottom line.</p>
<p><strong>Resources:</strong></p>
<p>http://www.bloggingteacher.com/how-to-become-a-freelance-blogger</p>
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		<title>The Ultimate Dream Project: A Personal Review</title>
		<link>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/05/the-ultimate-dream-project-a-personal-review/</link>
		<comments>http://productivepen.com/blog1/2010/05/the-ultimate-dream-project-a-personal-review/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Thu, 06 May 2010 15:59:34 +0000</pubDate>
		<dc:creator>ebourne</dc:creator>
				<category><![CDATA[personal development]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[facebook]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[law of attraction]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Learning]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Motivation]]></category>

		<guid isPermaLink="false">http://productivepen.com/blog1/?p=199</guid>
		<description><![CDATA[I can quite easily be described as a personal development &#8216;junkie.&#8217; I discovered self-help books when I was in my late teens. Already a complete perfectionist, I think that my initial motivation for reading all of those books, listening to countless hours of tapes, and watching videos of motivational speakers talk about how great your [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p><a href="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rainbow.jpg"><img src="http://productivepen.com/blog1/wp-content/uploads/2010/05/rainbow-300x212.jpg" alt="" title="rainbow" class="aligncenter size-medium wp-image-200" height="212" width="300"></a><br />
I can quite easily be described as a personal development &#8216;junkie.&#8217; I discovered self-help books when I was in my late teens. Already a complete perfectionist, I think that my initial motivation for reading all of those books, listening to countless hours of tapes, and watching videos of motivational speakers talk about how great your life can be, was to learn how to be the best person I could be. </p>
<p>But at the heart of it&#8211;my basic belief was that I flawed and I was looking to these programs and to religiousness, to somehow &#8216;fix&#8217; me where I was broken and show me how to be a powerhouse of success and achievement. Somehow, despite having read all of those hundreds of books and following teacher after teacher, my life was not improving, I was still working at a dead-end job that I hated and my relationships were a classic, dysfunctional mess.</p>
<p>Then I met Angela Bear on Facebook. I had been meeting several spiritual teachers and life coaches on Facebook and other places on the Internet. They all had a similar message related to the Law of Attraction and focusing on being positive&#8211;wonderful messages, but I was looking for something deeper.</p>
<p>I joined one of Angela&#8217;s free calls where she was introducing a private, three session class where a small group could work with her personally to get support for our business or personal issues and questions. What I learned by working with Angela during that class and in the private session I had with her transformed my life in a deeper, more profound way than any other book or course I had participated in.</p>
<p>Angela is an intuitive who reads energy, so she can cut through all of the crap, and tell you exactly what is going on. She does not want to hear your &#8216;story,&#8217; she simply reads your energy and gives you some powerful questions to work with that help to get to the heart of whatever you perceive to be holding you back. By giving you the tools to eliminate those limiting beliefs that create the proverbial &#8216;glass ceiling&#8217; on your growth, it gives you a new perspective on the contextual reality that we happen to find ourselves in at this time.</p>
<p>Angela helps you to remember that you are an infinite being with absolutely infinite potential to realize your dreams and goals. </p>
<p>The Ultimate Dream Project is a membership program that Angela has created to provide a place where she can meet and interact with her clients and members can interact with each other to learn and grow and express their infinite potential. As you know, life is not all sunshine and rainbows. Sometimes when you are on a path of growth you will meet periods of resistance when you feel blocked and you wonder why you even waste your time trying to grow yourself. When I get into those funky places of resistance, Angela always has a way of snapping me out of it by asking me, &#8220;What creation of this energy am I using to validate other people&#8217;s realities?&#8221;</p>
<p>I cherish working with Angela because she reminds me that there is nothing about me that needs to be &#8216;fixed.&#8217; I am confident now that I am an infinite being with infinite potential. Now that I have let go of closely examining the wrongness of me, I can put more energy on expanding the Universe, and modeling what she is teaching me and what I am learning for my children.</p>
<p>My business is now thriving, my relationships have been transformed and I feel so much more personal freedom now that I have stopped trying to ‘fix’ myself. I now have the confidence to pursue my dreams and desires because I know that everything I want is on the other side of my fears and limiting beliefs. </p>
<p>So, if you are ready to step away from the need for another &#8216;hit&#8217; from motivational, self-help gurus who pump you up and get you excited about going for your dreams, but subconsciously, your limiting beliefs are holding up a &#8216;Stop&#8217; sign on your progress, visit Angela Bear&#8217;s website, <a href="http://www.ultimatedreamproject.com">http://www.ultimatedreamproject.com</a>, and sign up for her email list. You&#8217;ll receive a &#8216;taster packet,&#8217; or what I call little mini-appetizers that will give you a feel for what it&#8217;s like to work with Angela. </p>
<p>You are an infinite being and when you are ready embrace the fabulousness of who you are, Angela is eager to support you in your discovery process.</p>
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