AOL has got me mad!

They are discontinuing access to the Usenet Newsgroups in February. The reasons that they have given include them saying that their members don't use them as much and that there is so much spam and the popularity of blogs.

I do not agree with this. My main reason is because now I won't be able to send or receive binary files! If I have to pay for this service then I will definitely be leaving AOL! There is no sense in me paying 2 services!

Microsoft Word!

I was playing around with this program last night. In fact I was playing with it for a couple of hours! I forgot just how many options this program has! Usually I'll use a more simple program for my word processing but I have a neighbor who is a writer who told me about a problem he was having with the program.

So I'm playing around with it - especially drawing pictures and turning them into 3D pictures and having fun with adding patterns and colors.

I'll have to use this program more often!

Not Everyone Started Their Own Business With A Lot Of Money!

A lot of people that have started their own business did not have a lot of money to start with.  What you do in a case like this is use what you do have which is your time and effort.

I do consulting all the time and there are a lot of things that one overlooks when looking for resources that are available to them right now.  For example one's own computer is a gold mine as far as available resources go and I'm not just talking about being able to go online - I'm talking about the computer itself and the programs that come with them.

Offline you can start your business by using one of the most overlooked resources that one has and that is their local paper.  You have to use what you have to get what you want and even though there are a lot of businesses out there I'm sure your gut will tell you that not ALL of them started out with a lot of money.

A lot to be thankful for....

Just watching the news and hearing all the devastating stories from people that have lost so much makes me realize how much I have to be thankful for.

How do you stay motivated?

This message is for anyone who runs a home based business. How do you stay motivated? I think I lack the dicipline to work out of the house. Does anyone have advice that might help.

I think it all comes from desire. A lot of people have started their own business because they didn't want to or were sick and tired of working for someone else. I posted a message on one of the AOL boards called "Why would anyone want to work from home!" It was kind of meant to be an ironic sort of thing but people hate working for someone else, hate the amount of pay they get, hate the office "politics", hate their commutes...but I think its the desire that helps to keep one motivated. Once you get your first customer/client and you get that first payment then you're hooked!

I stay motivated because to put it quite simply I want to work from home and I want to continue to do so. I don't ever want to work for someone else again!

As far as you lacking the discipline to work from just think of and remember the reasons why you want to work from home. My discipline comes as a result of my business plan, my goals and the objectives that I have for my business.

I would think that receiving orders (and payments) from clients would be a very good motivational reason for maintaining the discipline to be able to work from home. What about being one's own boss? What about working as much (or as little) as one wants? What about actually being able to earn a profitable living doing something that one loves? What abut not having to go thru that daily commute - through the rain, the cold, the wind and the snow? What about being able to work at home so that you can be at home to be able to keep your eyes on your kids? But I think that the most best reason is simply the desire that you want to work from home.