Uk Talent Agencies

The amount and depth of information available on the internet concerning real estate investing is growing every single day. It seems like there are now more real estate “gurus” than regular people – and the number of blogs, forums and websites devoted to real estate investing are more numerous than the sands of the sea.

Not surprisingly, not everything you find on the internet is worthwhile – or even true. So considering that state of affairs, here are some ideas about some of the real estate investing resources you’ll find out there. Note that we leave it to the reader to make their own judgments concerning the legitimacy of each resource:

(Briefly, on a related note, there’s one really good real estate investing website that is absolutely no cost. Check it out when you get a moment.)

* Bryan Ellis is a little-known internet marketing expert with a very strong background in technology, real estate investing and internet marketing. Ellis is a little unique among most of the “gurus” because his blog is genuinely news oriented, with relevant political and economic commentary.

* Gerald Romine has a software package for real estate investors that helps them complete complex paperwork and calculate offers. The software is very pricey, but does have features helpful for serious investors.

To varying degrees, these three people are already well know to real estate investors. However, being well known doesn’t mean a whole lot these days. The reader is encouraged to take a closer look at these people and the resources they offer.

THIS WILL SURPRISE YOU (especially if you know me) You can be a lousy public speaker and still be great on the speaking platform. By lousy, I mean that technically you do everything wrong. You look terrible. Your grammar and diction stink and you might have dandruff.

Do not think for a moment that I want you to be these terrible things. In fact, I sell videos teaching you NOT to be pitiful technically when you present. What I want you to see is the bigger picture. If you give really great information that is targeted to the needs of the audience, and you do the things that build rapport, you can still hit a home run.

Again, do not think I am not giving you an excuse to forget about getting better technically as a public speaker. I am just saying that if your information is lousy it does not make much difference how smooth you are at your public speaking engagements. Yes, there are some people that slide by because they are entertaining, but substance and helping people come first.

When planning your public speaking engagement think about giving the audience immediately usable information. Yes, they may need a long term plan, but if you give people something usable and and action plan that they can get excited about you will have done half your job.

Half my job? … Yes, the other half is to build rapport with the attendees. This does not necessarily mean that they like you. This means you have done what is necessary to make sure they trust in what you have to say and they feel you care about them.

Public Speaking Rapport

I told you above that it was OK to stink up the stage by being a lousy presenter. Again, I must remind you that I am not encouraging this. I want you to get better technically, so that your message has a better chance of getting through. The big picture is that you must build rapport with an audience for them to get the message.

My definition of rapport is that the audience members trust you and that they feel you care about them. Here are some ways to build that trust and caring atmosphere:

Trust

* Know what you are talking about and admit it when you don’t. BS will not cut it with the sophisticated audiences of today.

* Have some credentials. Do something, write something, record something, help someone. i.e., do something more than talk.

* Do everything you say you are going to do before the program, and do it in a helpful and timely manner. The meeting organizer in most cases will tell the group, or let it be known that you walk your talk. Even if he or she does not, you will feel great about the way you handle things and it will show.

Rapport

* Phone interview a cross section of audience members prior to your speaking engagement. I cannot tell you how wonderfully this has worked for me over the years. People cannot wait to meet you and they tell others about the call. This really screams, ‘I care about you!’

* Make yourself accessible. As long as you are good on the platform, meeting planners love it when you come early and stay late … NOTE: If you bomb get out quick hahahaha

* Offer free follow up for the audience members via email or fax. If you are too busy to actually answer personally, have an assistant follow up. Do not brush this suggestion off too lightly. This is one of the main methods to deeply penetrate an organization. The people that do follow up for you are ‘angels’ in the company. They will tell you of other events or problems where you might be able to help.

So, you can be ‘lousy’ if you want to, but make sure the audience trusts you and build rapport and you will have a much better chance that your message gets through.

Copyright © 1998 – 2005 Advanced Public Speaking Institute

Tom Antion provides entertaining speeches and educational seminars. He is the ultimate entrepreneur, having owned many businesses BEFORE graduating college. Tom is the author of the best selling presentation skills book “Wake ‘em Up Business Presentations” and “Click: The Ultimate Guide to Electronic Marketing.” It is important to Tom that his knowledge be not only absorbed, but enjoyed. This is why he delivers his speeches laced with great humor and hysterical jokes. Tom has addressed more than 87 different industries and is thoroughly committed to his clients’ needs. http://www.antion.com

Advanced Public Speaking Institute
3105 Sergin Ct.
Virginia Beach, VA 23452
(757) 431-1366
Fax (757) 431-2050
Contact: cmckinney@public-speaking.org
http://www.GreatPublicSpeaking.com

Visit our Blog at http://www.GreatPublicSpeaking.BlogSpot.com

Speaking to an individual is different from the group experience. Whether you are training someone, selling, coaching, or asking for a raise, here are some tips for speaking one-to-one.

• Eliminate distractions. Choose a comfortable settingperhaps your office or a conference room with good lighting. Block off distracting window views and minimize interruptions. Clear the table of clutter.

• Sit next to the person at eye level. Sit side by side rather than across a desk form each other. This has psychological and physical effects. It creates a feeling of being on the same side and allows both people to look at materials from the same perspective.

• Maintain good eye contact but don’t stare. In a group you make eye contact with everyone. With individuals, you don’t want to lock eyes. Break eye contact from time to time. A good guide is to look at the person 70% of the time.

• Use visual aids. Props, pictures, and objects can serve as effective visual aids. Visuals are important learning tools, and you shouldn’t overlook them in a one-to-one situation. Be sure your visuals are appropriate to the situation. A few carefully placed props and occasional use of a table easel can enhance your presentation.

• Clarify but don’t repeat questions. In a large group, you repeat the question so that everyone can hear it. But in one-to-one settings, the same technique would be silly. You may ask for clarification: “Are you saying that you need more practice?” Or you may restate the question in your answer. “The procedure for this project is…”

• Maintain a comfortable physical distance. Don’t invade the other person’s space. When sitting side by side, don’t lean in or take over the person’s materials. Ask permission to demonstrate with their materials.

• Pause. The brain needs a few seconds to process information. Don’t overload the learner with too much data. Pause between thoughts to let the information sink in.

• Use smaller gestures. Show enthusiasm and get involved with the learner. Allow yourself to be natural and expressive. But contain your gestures, because the physical space is smaller in one-to-one situations. Wide, sweeping movements will seem out of place.

• Prepare and organize. It’s easy to lose track of time when you’re working with only one person. Whether you train one person or a hundred, the preparation is the same. Without adequate preparation, you’ll seem disorganized and unprofessional. Prepare an outline and establish time frames.

Watch for nonverbal cues. In a group, different personalities react in diverse ways. Someone in the group will often say what others are thinking. In a one-to-one situation, however, the person may feel reluctant to tell you that he or she needs a break or doesn’t understand. Watch body language and continually check back: “You look like you disagree.” “Are you ready for a break?” “Is this something you can use on the job?”

Copyright Diane DiResta 2005. All rights reserved.

Diane DiResta, President of DiResta Communications, Inc. is an International speaker, coach, and author of Knockout Presentations: How to Deliver Your Message with Power, Punch, and Pizzazz. To subscribe to Impact Player, a free online newsletter visit http://www.diresta.com.

Sometimes, I think about certain artists and writers from the past, and I wonder how they would have functioned had they gotten to live right now… For my part, I’m glad I was born when I was, or, given the choice, I think I would have preferred to be born right now as opposed to in the seventies: this is primarily because I would have liked to have been a kid growing up with the internet as a part of daily life…yeah, that’s how much I’m into it. Well, that having been said, I also might choose, perhaps the seventeenth century here in North America, as a member of the Shawnee tribe…perhaps…I’ve done some reading over the years, and that was a fascinating culture, with a unique connection to the earth, and they are now sadly mostly gone, but, Tecumseh, your spirit lives on! Believe that…in one way or another the spirit does live on…

How about you? Have you ever wondered about this? What time period would you have loved? Perhaps, we can replace the cliche, “What’s your sign?” with a bit more bizarre, “Hello beautiful, what’s your era? You seem like a real 13th century girl pretty baby!”

So, take a writer like Charles Bukowski. Wow, the very name is charged and frightening, like an electric eel in your backyard swimming pool; and he can barely be discussed without causing controversy or argument. Well, what can I say…the opinions on him are quite mixed. For my part, I like some of his work, which I think is outstanding on a literary basis; and I love some of his work, which I don’t think is outstanding on a literary basis, though I think it is some of the most entertaining stuff ever written. His poetry is quite hit and miss. His short stories are wonderful, with strong, action sentences that get the job done. His novels are a kick. And, the movie Barfly is riotous. One thing about the Buk, which cannot be in dispute, though, is that he was a prolific writer. Put prolific in boldface, billboard size letters. He wrote a ridiculous amount. If the Buk were alive now…with MSN Spaces and Blogger and so forth, I have no doubt he would have been blogger extraordinaire. I think he would have gotten into it. I think he would have been churning out a blog at a rate that would make your eyes cross. It would be pretty dynamic, no doubt, and it would be hysterical. I have no doubt.

It’s a funny picture. Bukowski blogging away, getting frustrated with his internet connection, trying to remember his email passwords, figuring out how to gamble on-line…lol.

Take a figure like Picasso or Bearden or Chagall or any great painter you like. Could you imagine if they had access to Photoshop and Corel Painter. Can you even imagine the work that would be produced? As a painter, I don’t have one percent of the talent of those individuals, and even I can create some interesting pieces that a lot of people like a lot. Wow, could you imagine such software in the hands of someone with a Picasso level genius talent? They just happened to come a little bit early.

If you are interested in these type of musings and would like to participate in a web site where these things are discussed, please take a moment to visit this Creative Concept Forum

Speaking In The Flow

Have you ever given a presentation one day that moved mountains, and the next day you were so dull you even bored yourself? I remember addressing a group and suddenly finding myself in the FLOW. My linear mind faded to the background, and a wiser, wittier and charismatic voice came forth. I heard myself wax philosophical. I saw audience members captivated. I felt time stand still. The next day I spent on airplanes and taxis rushing to my next speaking engagement, worried about being on time. I began my talk hoping to feel the FLOW again. I desperately racked my brain for glimmers of genius. Nothing. I tried to repeat what I said yesterday but it felt empty this time. I trudged through my presentation like a soldier through mud. The audience seemed restless. The clock ticked loudly.

Where Does Inspiration Come From?

Many speakers have reported the same phenomenon — one day inspired the next day insipid. What happens to turn creativity on or off? Let’s look at the word “inspiration”. One meaning in the dictionary is “the drawing of air into the lungs”. When you are truly inspired it is like breathing in purified air. When you expire that air, your breath, or speech, has a high vibration. On low-inspiration days it is like the air intake is stale or polluted, so naturally what comes out is dull or shallow speech.

Unclogging the Hose

Creativity is our birthright. It is magically available to us anytime, like a 24-hour all-you-can-eat buffet. The only problem is we sometimes lock the restaurant door and throw away the key. Opening your creativity back up again requires re-tracing your steps. Here are the top four ways we can lose the connection:

1. Lack of fresh air
2. Dehydration
3. Negative thinking
4. Trying

1. Lack of Fresh Air

Inspiration requires quite literally fresh, oxygenated air. If you have been breathing only recycled or polluted air, then you can impede inspirational speech. Before you speak make sure you find a place outside near trees, snow, water or grass and take some deep inhalations and exhalations. This is especially important if you have been breathing recycled airplane air.

2. Dehydration

Brain synapses act like an electric current. They need a strong conductor. Water is the best conductor for activating your mind. If you are feeling lethargic or negative – try drinking some purified water and notice the difference. Always have a large bottle of pure water available while speaking.

3. Negative Thinking

Anxiety, resentment, and judgmentalness create a wall between you and your creativity. If you want to be a truly creative speaker, you cannot afford the luxury of a negative thought. Over-indulging in negative thinking is like eating a vat of chocolate ice cream. It feels fulfilling in the moment, but you deeply regret it later. It toxifies and clogs up your system so that you cannot access your native genius. Read the previous article for ways to delete worry. It can also work for any other kind of negativity.

4. Trying

Trying to grasp onto the FLOW is like trying to harness a rainbow. The rainbow moves just when you think you’ve found your pot of gold. The “try” brain and the “creative” brain operate on different frequencies. It’s best to let the rainbow come to you.

The Pot of Gold

Once you’ve breathed some fresh air, drank some clean water, deleted your negative thoughts, and turned down the dial on your “try” brain – your natural creative genius will come forth. Perhaps it will come hesitantly at first, like a fawn towards your open hand. However, if you remain still enough, it will grace your presence. Practice these four steps before any speech and you will find the magic unfold, the smorgasbord of brilliance open for business, and the pot of gold may actually appear at your feet.

Carla Rieger is an expert on creative people skills at work. If you want a motivational speaker, trainer, or leadership coach to help you stay on the creative edge, contact Carla Rieger.

Web site: http://www.carlarieger.com
Tel: 1-866-294-2988
Email carla@carlarieger.com

Free Poetry contests are a very common happening as of late. They are popping up all over the web, most with slogans like “Win $20,000″ or “You can be the next winner.”

Now don’t get it wrong… some of these are quite great and can be useful to someone who just wants to have their name in a book, but the idea and how they go about this is a complete scheme.

The ways the winners are chosen have nothing to do with the “best poem.” It is a complete scam.

Sites like Poetry.com offer daily prizes as well, however they aren’t chosen truthfully. Well, to an extent. What they do, is select a certain number of poems randomly and then read them, and select the best poem out of those. They probably don’t even do that… but you get the point. They do not read ALL the poems. They read a very select few. As far as we know, they select a random poem as the winner and read it themselves and see if it totally doesn’t suck… and if it does they select another random one as the winner.

If you do not believe this article, try it out yourself.

Create a poem which totally sucks. Something like:

Poetry.com is full of them
They offer money and choose a winner
But the winner is not them
It is poetry.com

They never read the poems
And never select a real winner
This is all just a scam
And this poem is bad

So try this out yourself
And see who gets selected
To go to Washington
And get into their book

You will then see that they are a scam. They will soon send you a letter in the mail stating that your poem was great and that you were selected to receive a prize and want you to go to a convention in Washington.

They are not alone however. Most other “free” poetry contests are just the same. Poetry for America does the exact same thing as well as Amateur Poets of America. All are scams and should be avoided.

The best way to avoid these schemes is by looking at fine print and also only submitting to places which charges to read your poem. These are generally more legit. If you think about it, where are these contests getting the money from? Legit contests get money from the people who submit the poems while the scams receive money for telling all the authors that their work is great and they want them to pay $2 to have their poem in the book and tell them that the book is on sale for a “low” price just for them!

So please, avoid the scams and do what’s right. Tell others and spread the word. Do not let others be deceived by their money making schemes.

About the Author

Gary is the webmaster and a writer for Love Quotes and Poems

<div align=”justify”>Nothing ticks me off more than an Author who is constantly changing and revising their book after publication. Some Authors do this every couple of weeks and it is as though they are obsessed with a perfection very few of them will ever attain. I find it very frustrating and there I am thinking, <strong><em>Go away and stop wasting my time.</em></strong> Eventually I will snap and tell them enough is enough and that they have to pull their heads in or the tiger will come down from the Mountain.

It is easy enough to change e-books but there is still time involved; and it is time that you should not be asking your Publisher to expend. Changing print books is a little more involved (and expensive). There is a more serious reason why we don’t allow constant changing of manuscripts though and that has to do with professionalism. Publishers do not exist to be sounding boards for Writers and Websites (even ones located in Australia) do not exist for Writers to test the waters with their work. By the time you come on board with us it should be a given that you are a writing professional. It is time for the serious stuff and yet so many Writers are blissfully unaware of the message this act of changing their manuscript sends out to both the Publisher and the Reader.

Basically it says you are a dork. No apologies for that. You are unprofessional. You have not finished your job. You are still at the kindergarten stage.

And… you have not learned when to let go. No one will deny the writing process is intense and if you are really good at it you will be consumed by it. Spending time writing a book can be a solitary experience but it is one that can also lead to tremendous insight and personal fulfilment. You generally know you are on a winner if you get to know (and like) your characters to such an extent that they are so real you can have a conversation with them in your head. This is what I call “the higher plane” and once you reach that level you will experience a euphoria that confirms that yes, you ARE a Writer.

The process of writing should begin with a clear idea and lots of planning, drawing up of outlines and character sketches and so forth. The jig-saw puzzle will get bigger every day you write. By the time your book is finished you should know every aspect of it inside out. You should be able to quote whole passages from it and you should know exactly why the character in Chapter Six felt the sudden urge to chop off his mother-in-law’s head. You should know that you will be toying with your Reader’s emotions when you choose certain imagery and symbolism and the reward should be that you can anticipate the effect they will have on your Reader.

Heavy stuff. And when you are “finished” the real work begins. All the analyzing and editing, re-writing, seeking other opinions and road-testing your product. I’d say the majority of Authors who need to constantly change their work do not have enough confidence in their ability to trust their own instincts. So what do they do? Oooooooh, this is the scary bit. They take the plunge… and show their spouse. No one else, just their spouse or some other close relative. Instead of seeking the help of a professional like an Editor or at the very least an experienced Writer, they leave it to someone who is going to say all the right things (read things they want to hear). Hence the questions remain unresolved. The doubt lingers on.

Everyone needs help in these initial stages. The book should be sorted out from a technical perspective before you go off and start garnering interest from potential Readers. I have a person whom I have known for about 25 years who looks at my stuff. I got to know her all those years ago when we were co-editors of a local interest Newsletter. She is a former Tertiary English Teacher who is highly qualified and I do not know anyone more suited to being a literary critic. She is also brutally honest. She does not let our friendship get in the way of her opinions. She has tremendous analytical skills and if something stinks she tells me so – and I respect that. I respect her knowledge of language and the fact that she knows what works in certain situations and what does not. I am very lucky to have her to keep me on the straight and narrow and I would urge all Writers to seek out someone like this.

So… you can get help from a professional but that is still only part of the whole deal. Let’s go back to YOU. Forget talking to other people – the final decision is yours. You have to at some stage be prepared to ask yourself, <strong><em>Is this book the best it can possibly be? Have I done all I can? Am I satisfied with it? </em></strong>If you come up with any negatives at this stage then the answer is… <strong>You are not finished.</strong> Put the thing in a draw, take a break and come back and start again and then ask the same questions down the track. A lot of Authors rush in and try and place their work with Publishers before they have resolved all their own writing issues. And sometimes the manuscripts are accepted and the publishing ball starts rolling. And then the trouble starts.

Do yourselves a favour and make sure you are not in the dork category. Your baby has been born, you have fed and nurtured it and the time will come when you have to let it go. A true professional will know instinctively when to let go because they are honest enough with themselves to be able to say that everything feels right. YOU will know after you have done everything you possibly can and you can be satisfied that you have done a good job. That is really all anybody can possibly hope to do – be satisfied. Your book is in the lap of the gods now. It is no longer your property. It belongs to your Readers. Deal with that.</div>

About the Author

L P King is an Australian Writer, Publisher and Principal of Mountain Mist Productions –

http://www.1stmist.com

Most all small business people are truly exceptional at what they do, they have learned through the school of hard knocks and have it pretty much all figured out. What if they were better at conveying the message? What if they were better at informational selling? What if all their customers, their competitor’s customers and their future customers all considered them the local leading expert on the Industry, subject or market sector? What if when a reporter was looking for a story or a quote they called up to ask them?

What if this small businessperson with all the answers was you? And What if You Were a Good Public Speaker Too? What if you volunteered to help educate, spoke at seminars and truly became respected in your field? Well then you might very quickly noticed that out of the blue people were coming to you, lining up, paying full price for your great products, services and/or advice? You would have referrals and recommendations, now wouldn’t that be nice?

You see, if you are at the top of your game and you can convey it well, then they will call you first because they will know it, but not if you do not tell them. Being a good speaker is important, it is a skill, it is something you cannot do without if you want all the best customer all the time. If you want to get top dollar and not fuss over price then listen to me and take my advice, learn to speak and do it well. Think on this and let it dwell.

“Lance Winslow” – Online Think Tank forum board. If you have innovative thoughts and unique perspectives, come think with Lance; www.WorldThinkTank.net/wttbbs/

I bought a second pair of reading glasses from my local
Optician recently. I need this pair to help me find the
first pair which inevitably go missing. While in the
Opticians I remember thinking that I needed to buy some
solution and some of those tissues for cleaning my mucky
glasses.

However, when it came to the point of paying for my new
glasses the cleaning stuff went right out of my head. So why
didn’t the Optician or his assistant ask me – “Is there
anything else you need today?” or even – “Do you need any
cleaner for your glasses?” Perhaps they didn’t like or have
the courage to ask, or even they forgot. One way or another,
they missed an add-on sale and I didn’t get any muck
remover.

A couple of days later I was buying a lunchtime sandwich and
totally forgot to pick up a bottle of water. If only I’d
been asked – “Is there anything else sir, a drink to go with
your sandwich?” I ended up going back to another shop in the
mall for my bottle of water.

These are only two small opportunities of lost sales and
irritation for the customer. To be fair, I’m often asked -
“Is there anything else we can do for you today sir?” I
usually say “no” because I can’t think of any thing.

It’s far better to ask a specific question relevant to the
customers’ needs and your business. It doesn’t matter what
business you’re in, you could always sell another product or
another service if you only have the courage to – Ask!

Discover how you can generate more business without having
to cold call!
Alan Fairweather is the author of “How to get More Sales
without Selling” This book is packed with practical things
that you can do to – get customers to come to you .
Click here now
http://www.howtogetmoresales.com and
http://www.alanfairweather.com

Structure is valuable to creativity on a number of levels:

a) Short term goals (incremental productivity) produce more output than a “do your best” approach. With specific regard to creative writing, writing four pages a day completes a words-on-paper first draft screenplay in one month. A “do your best” or “waiting for inspiration” approach can take months or years. Witness the untold number of people with unfinished manuscripts under their beds.

b) Simply being prolific improves performance and quality. The single best creative product tends to appear at that point in the career when the creator is being most prolific.

c) Techniques such as separating creative from critical thinking increase the quality and quantity of the idea pool: they allow the production of a large number of ideas and a large number of diverse and novel ideas.

d) Sustained engagement in the endeavour increases the incidence and frequency of problem identification and thus the incidence and frequency of insight.

But before you use structure, you need to know WHAT TO WRITE. This is where the Hero’s Journey comes into its own. The Hero’s Journey is THE template upon which the most successful stories are based – ALL of the Academy Award winners (Best Film) of the past fifteen years (at least) are based upon it.

The Hero’s Journey allows you to construct a story from the ground up using at least 17 macro stages and more than 188 micro stages and gives the writer more structural elements than simply three or four acts, plot points, mid point and so on – it works because it attempts to tap into unconscious expectations the audience has regarding what a story is and how it should be told.

The Complete 188 stage Hero’s Journey and FREE 17 stage sample and other story structure templates can be found at http://www.managing-creativity.com/

You can also receive a regular, free newsletter by entering your email address at this site.

Kal Bishop, MBA

**********************************

You are free to reproduce this article as long as no changes are made and the author’s name and site URL are retained.

Kal Bishop is a management consultant based in London, UK. His specialities include Knowledge Management and Creativity and Innovation Management. He has consulted in the visual media and software industries and for clients such as Toshiba and Transport for London. He has led Improv, creativity and innovation workshops, exhibited artwork in San Francisco, Los Angeles and London and written a number of screenplays. He is a passionate traveller. He can be reached at http://www.managing-creativity.com