Lets Start With The Soup

Writen by Lydia Ramsey

Many a business meal starts with a soup course. Unless you have already begun by munching on the bread, this is your first opportunity to demonstrate your table manners-to impress or un-impress-your dining companions.

Choosing the right spoon is step number one. If the table has been preset, your soup spoon will be the large round or oval one to the far right of your place setting. If the table has not been fully set, the server will bring your spoon with the soup. I recently found myself on a hunt for my soup spoon after the waiter had brought the bowl. There was no soup spoon to the right of the place setting and it didn't seem to be anywhere else close by. Just before confessing that I was without a spoon, I spotted a handle sticking out from under the oversized soup bowl. So check the plate first before you give up.

With soup spoon in hand, spoon the soup away from you towards the opposite side of the bowl. If a bit of the liquid should fall from the spoon this will ensure that it will drop into the bowl and not on the front of your nice business attire. Sip your soup quietly from the side of the spoon. Slurping is never acceptable.

No matter how hot the soup, at no point should you blow on it to cool it off. You may lift a spoonful slightly level with the bowl and hold it for a few seconds while it cools off. Be patient and grateful that your soup is hot. If the soup is not heated to your liking, don't make a fuss during your meal. If you send it back to be reheated, everyone else will feel obliged to wait on you. Then they will end up with the cold soup instead of you.

If you want the last drop of soup, you may tip the bowl away from you to spoon this last bit. Just try to avoid looking as if you are not sure where your next meal is coming from.

If oyster crackers come with your soup, as they do with chowder, you can put them in your bowl. However, larger crackers are to be eaten with your fingers and never crumbled into the soup. That's only okay when eating in private.

Between mouthfuls, rest the spoon in the bowl. When you have finished, place it on the under plate on the right hand side. That is a signal to the server that you have finished.

If you'd like to have a piece of bread with your soup, put your spoon on the under plate and use the same hand that held your spoon for the bread. Never go at your meal two-fisted.

Every detail of the business meal, including how you eat your soup, contributes to your overall professional image.

(c) 2006, Lydia Ramsey. All rights reserved. Reprint rights granted so long as article and by-line are published intact and with all links made live.

Lydia Ramsey is a business etiquette expert, professional speaker, corporate trainer and author of MANNERS THAT SELL - ADDING THE POLISH THAT BUILDS PROFITS. She has been quoted or featured in The New York Times, Investors' Business Daily, and Entrepreneur, Inc. Her programs, products and services are available at http://www.mannersthatsell.com

Where To Find A Cash Windfall Of 10000 1000000 You Never Knew You Had

Writen by Marc Goldman

There is a rather famous true story called "Acres of Diamonds".

It is about a successful farmer who risks everything searching the African continent for diamonds. Ultimately he dies sick and penniless, while the new owner of his farm uncovers on his property the largest single diamond ever known to man.

Point of fact: After helping hundreds of thousands of entrepreneurs and business owners, I'll lay odds that story is true for YOU in more ways than you are currently willing to admit to yourself.

No matter where you are on the success continuum, your ability to generate tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars in immediate windfall income is well within your reach. I know firsthand, because everyday, I am paid handsomely to do just that by my clients and associates.

Now, no one likes to be told that they are sitting on a diamond mine, especially when they don't see it for themselves. So please allow me to give you some advice which could potentially generate a cash jackpot of between $10,000 and $1,000,000 almost overnight.

"What's the secret?", you ask impatiently.

I'll tell you flat out: Your hidden wealth is buried in your email list...it's hiding in your client list...and it lies dormant in your vendor list. I could go on and on.

Here's the secret in a nutshell: One of the places your hidden wealth lies is in the trusted relationships you've cultivated with people over the years.

Let me prove my point with a quick example. I recently did a consult with a client who has a wonderful nutritional product. His own clients are very enthusiastic about the results they get. At the same time, although he is successful, he is also cash poor. He needs a cash infusion of hundreds of thousands of dollars to be able to fund the building up of his business.

What's the solution? A banker? An angel investor? A partner? Venture capital? Maybe, but I think there might be an easier way.

Here's what I suggested to him: I told him to write a heartfelt letter to his most devoted clients which tells his story and includes an offer that they pre-pay for a year's worth of his product to help him build his company. In return for their support, they'll receive very preferential discounts and unique bonuses from him.

Will the strategy it work? Maybe. Maybe not. We won't know until we test it. But the premise is sound because the odds are exceedingly high that many of his clients will empathize with him and want to be a part of his success by helping achieve his goals. Why? Because they trust him.

Now some of you will be a bit hard headed and say "But I don't have a product" or "I don't have a client list" or "I don't have a business".

So let me say it again: YOUR windfall opportunity lies in the trusted relationships YOU have cultivated. And your wealth-building opportunities will be kaleidoscopically different from everybody else's.

Here another way of looking it:

Wealth = Opportunity = Trusted Relationships

Now here's the big question. Whether you own a business or not, how can you put this information into action immediately?

My answer for you: Well, the most success-certain way I know is by engineering joint ventures with people. It's my absolute favorite way of building businesses...generating enduring streams of income...and especially creating instant windfall profits. Of the $7 Billion in profits I am credited with, at least $2.5 Billion has been generated doing lucrative joint ventures.

Solely by learning how to become a joint venture deal-maker who understands the money-making opportunities and "money connections" that exist all around you, you could turn-around almost any problem...make almost any amount of money you desire...and live a life most people only dream of.

Try it! I think you'll be pleasantly surprised the results you achieve.

Jay Abraham has been hailed as America's #1 Marketing Genius by leading national publications such as Investor's Business Daily, Forbes Magazine, USA Today, Entrepreneur, Success Magazine, and The New York Times. Jay recently released his life's work on joint ventures with expert dealmaker Marc Goldman. To learn the secrets behind his $2.5 billion success, go to http://www.jvmastery.com

You Have Tons Of Name Cards So What

Writen by Vern Lai

Are you making full use of the name cards you collected? I'm going to show you a simple way to maintain your list and to build a personalized relationship with all the name card owners with just one simple email...

"If you're not networking, you're not working." This statement stands true for every one of us, especially those of us who are looking for business opportunities.

Usually at the end of a networking session, you would have added a stack of name cards to your already huge collection of 100, 500, even 2,000 cards. There seems to be a sense of achievements from here, as though you've collected a limited edition Superman comic book. However, let me ask you this:

* Do you remember who, when and how you gotten the name cards from? How about remembering just 5% of them?

* What are you doing with the name cards?

* How many of them are you still keeping in contact with?

* How many changed their contact detail?

From just these 4 simple questions, you'll know how much these name cards are of value to you and how you've added value to the owners of these name cards. It's not a matter of how many name cards you have, but how many name cards owner you're building quality relationship with.

Although a name card is just a piece of paper with a person's information and contact detail on it. It is however more than that. The person who gave you their name card may become your potential client, your friend, your mentor, even one who gives you opportunities or vice versa. It may not be immediately, depending on what you're currently doing, but these people may be of value to you in the near future. That is if you still remember each other, and able to still keep in contact regardless of any changes in contact detail.

Rather than keeping in touch with just a few name card owners, how about keeping in touch with all of them once in a week? Or at least once a month?

Of course, this would be a difficult feat if you were to call them individually. But it is possible and much easier if you were to contact them in mass via email and best of all, personalized with their names! How cool would that be?

Instead of sending an email:

Subject: It's been some time since we last chat…
Content: Hi, how have you been…

Wouldn't it be great to send this out instead?

Subject: Tom, it's been some time since we last chat…
Content: Hi Tom, how have you been…

By seeing their names, it is unlikely for the recipients to delete the email without looking at it. Furthermore, you can keep in contact with them with a personal touch to the email as though you're communication just with them, instead of having the email message looks like one for mass distribution.

Not only that, it is also possible for you to pre-prepare a list of email messages once and send it out automatically. For example, you can prepare a message that sends out every month automatically asking the people in your database to update their details. And you just need to write the email once.

Of course, you can't do what I mentioned above using your normal email clients / services. This however can be done with Sequential Autoresponder. This can either be a program that you install in your web server, or a web service that you can subscribe to.

For more information about Sequential Autoresponder, you can do a search with the keywords "Sequential Autoresponder" in the search engines, or check out my Internet Resource page at www.vernlai.com.

Vern Lai is an Internet Home Business Expert. For FREE e-Books and 24 Parts "The Master Key System" success e-Course, visit http://www.MySuccessResources.com For recommended resource on making money online, check out http://www.InternetCashEmpire.com/success

Are You Shooting Yourself In The Foot

Writen by Jeffery Glaze

Have you ever been at a networking function talking to someone when during the conversation you felt very self-conscious trying to say the right thing? Were you afraid that maybe if you said the wrong thing the person might not find you likeable, and therefore not want to do business with you? If you have, I am about to tell you why you should not worry about it. Like the obnoxious song "Don't Worry - Be Happy" from years ago, I want to share with you the reason why being careful about what we say works against us in the networking environment.

Our goal in business networking should be to establish new relationships and through the process of follow-up develop them over time. As with any relationship, being honest plays a very important role in that development.

When we meet someone for the first time, we want to make a good impression. Often we put on our "party face" so that we do. This can often cause us problems that we do not expect. One problem is that when we try to appear to be something that we really do not feel inside of us, we often have a fear that we are going to be "discovered". This fear causes us to feel uncomfortable about the situation and though we may be smiling, we are really cringing inside.

Most people worry that if they just be who they are, that no one can accept them. I argue that if we do not just be ourselves, sooner or later who we really are will slip out and then we will have to deal with the consequences of being discovered. This then leads to a feeling of distrust between people.

Have you ever been in a relationship with a person of the opposite sex where you did not tell them something important early on and later had to reveal it or even worse it was revealed by accident? It leads for difficult times after that and a lot of shuffling and apologizing.

In my opinion, it is better to risk being who I am up front. To let people know exactly how I feel. People, for the most part, have a forgiving nature. They actually want to forgive. If you make a mistake and say something that can be potentially embarrassing, you can always apologize for it and be forgiven. But if you say something that is not necessarily true and are discovered later, your credibility may be permanently damaged.

If you go into a networking environment prepared to be relaxed and genuine, you will find that it is a lot more fun to be there. If you have a plan of action to really get to know people, you will be much more productive in a shorter amount of time. People will feel comfortable talking to you and you to them. In an environment of truth, more people will want to do business with you and to be around you.

Authentic enthusiasm is contagious. You will always appear to be more attractive when you are excited about what you are doing. When you are not worried about making mistakes, you will appear to be happier. Being happy about the situation will help you to smile more, and the smiling face is a natural human attractor.

So next time you attend a networking function, just be yourself. Your results will improve and you will feel better when you leave to go home. Over time, the difference will be measurable in more ways than just your income. You will find that you have more friends than you had ever imagined possible. When it comes time for the referral, your friend will remember you because friends really do refer friends.

Jeff Glaze is the Editor of http://www.AtlantaEvent.com, founder of http://www.privacy-first.com e-mail certification program and the author of several e-books. His company, Mostcool Media Inc.( mostcoolmedia.com ), specializes in marketing planning, coaching, business networking training, web and media development. His e-book "The Six Xtremes Of Power Business Networking" is available here: http://www.atlantaevent.com/ebook.htm Jeff Glaze is available to speak to your group and can be contacted at 678.508.5975 Copyright © 2006 by MostCool Media Inc.

Need More Business Create A Coop

Writen by Suzanne Lieurance

If you're the owner of a small business and have limited resources, use the power of numbers to obtain more customers or clients. Create an informal co-op.

Creating such a co-op is simple. First, make a list of other small business owners you know personally, trust, and respect. On your list, include some businesses that have products or services similar to yours and others that provide very different ones.

All of these small business owners probably have limited resources, too. Arrange a meeting with several of these owners and sit down together at a relaxing location (like a coffee shop or bookstore) to discuss how you could all benefit from an informal cooperative (co-op, for short).

For example, do you all attend trade shows for your businesses? Could you share a booth with one or two of these other small business owners to cut the cost of a booth? Do all of you have web sites for your companies? If so, it would be easy to create a blog for your co-op, with links to the web site of each co-op member. Then, each member could take a turn updating the blog, which should result in increased web site traffic (or at least more publicity or exposure) for each member.

Co-ops are also helpful when you would like to join professional organizations but can't afford the dues by yourself. Join as a co-op and you'll probably get membership benefits for at least several of your members. Join several different organizations so that each co-op member can enjoy membership in at least one organization of his or her choice.

Here are some examples of the types of businesses that would make good co-ops:

Car dealerships - car washes - auto parts stores

Childcare centers - children's bookstores - children's clothing stores

Graphic designers - freelance writers - small printing companies

Animal clinics - pet stores - pet grooming centers

Advertising agencies - specialty food stores - gift basket companies

Freelance writers - gift stores - day spas

Are you beginning to get some ideas?

Start thinking about creating a business co-op and you'll probably think of many other cost-saving and service-sharing ways to fit your particular needs.

Create an informal co-op, then sit back and watch your business grow.

Suzanne Lieurance is a freelance writer, children's author, writing coach, and small business owner. Visit the blog for her freelance writers' co-op at http://www.lieurancegroupblogspot.com or get more information about her books and other services at http://www.suzannelieurance.com or read her daily food tips at http://www.threeangelsgourmet.blogspot.com