Blogging done well can put significant coin in your pocket. Like anything, it involves a process of steps and time. You don’t need to be technically proficient or commit huge chunks of time, either. With a few clicks of the mouse and some typing, anyone can learn to easily produce a blog people will want to follow and that makes money.

I’m not the one to teach you the ‘how to’, though. I haven’t gotten there yet. Until recently, I put all my energy and attention into creating and promoting my own websites. I’m good at it. Blogging, however, is new territory. So, I’m pointing you toward those with proven track records – bloggers who know what they’re doing… and are good at it.

Here are my Top 5 Picks

ProBlogger.net - Well-respected and popular, this blog is owned and produced by Darren Rowse, who makes his living producing a variety of blogs. I also recommend ProBlogger: Secrets for Blogging Your Way to a Six-Figure Income, penned by Darren and Chris Garrett

ChrisG.com – Chris Garrett professes to be a “…professional blogger, Internet Marketing Consultant, new media industry commentator, writer, coach, speaker, trainer and web geek.” See for yourself whether or not you agree.

BlogForProfit.com – Grant Griffiths started blogging to promote his law firm. Today his focus is on using blogging as a communication tool which you can use to build a relationship with your target audience, turn them into regular readers and then into life-long consumers of your goods or services.

Copyblogger.com – Brian Clark created Copyblogger, which has 40,000+ subscribers and 100,000+ unique monthly site visitors. It’s one of the world’s most popular, powerful and influential blogs.

FourHourWorkWeek.com - Tim Ferriss offers his unique view of work and lifestyle in his book The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich. Primary purpose of Tim’s blog is to promote and sell his book.

For more about making money blogging, go to…

How bloggers make money

…”How could this have happened – what went wrong?”

Clearly the near collapse of our economy didn’t happen overnight. Someone knew – a lot of some ones – and yet nothing was done… no one acted until crisis point was reached. There is plenty of blame to go around, but as I see it, pointing fingers isn’t going to help.

I’m appalled, deeply disappointed, and angry. Instinctively I want to lash out at every corporate giant and politician in the country. I want this problem fixed. Now! I want change so that nothing like this can ever happen again.

Not just change… change that gives us greater personal freedom and independence from a government filled with politicians who perform so poorly and point fingers of blame at everyone but themselves.

While I’ve lost a lot of confidence in the powers that be, for the short term, we don’t have much choice except to trust them to at least stop the hemorrhaging.

What I’m more concerned about is what’s going to happen after the current crisis is averted. The truth is that no matter what the government decides to do in the near term, an effective, realistic, long-term solution is needed.

The specific solutions to the immediate crisis are way above my pay grade, for sure. Yet I’m convinced the long-term solution lies within you and me.

What can you do?

Empower yourself. We can all empower ourselves if we choose to do so. As citizens of this country, we have a responsibility, in fact, a duty to act. What action(s) each of us decides to take is purely an individual decision — but act we must.

Here are at least two things I absolutely believe will empower you…

The first thing you can do is get out and vote in the upcoming Presidential Election on November 4th. I’ve heard some of you say that you’re not happy with the choice of candidates so you’re not going to vote. Others have said you don’t believe your vote counts anyway, so why bother?

You don’t have the luxury to sit this election out… it’s far too important. Your voice is essential and you can’t afford to sit on the sidelines and be silent.

Please… take the time to learn and make a decision - either for or against McCain or Obama.

Probably the most important issue right now is the economy, so if the condition it’s in scares you, vote for the ticket that’s committed to doing something to fix it … the candidate you believe possesses the integrity, capability, and commitment to…

• Put an end to so much wasteful government spending.
• Cut income, payroll, dividend, capital gains, and death taxes so you can keep more of what you earn, and invest in confidence.
• Hold accountable those who abuse their positions of power…

…Choose the team you believe has the experience and proven track record to get it all done.

This great country needs a strong leader who believes her citizens are fully capable of making decisions for ourselves, and has the inalienable right to do so.

Fight to keep her strong, independent and free! It will ensure your own freedom.

The second thing you can do is whatever it takes to start or continue building a successful business of your own, even if you can only do it on a part time basis. You will never have complete freedom, independence or dignity as long as you depend on someone else for your paycheck. The paycheck will control you.

If your employer ever hits hard financial times, employees are usually the first thing to go… and if you’re dependent on the paycheck you get from your employer to make your mortgage payment, utilities, and put food on the table, you’ll be in big trouble.

That is not freedom. It’s bondage.

Entrepreneurship is the way to life the way you want it. It’s the only way to control your own destiny and dignity. I sincerely believe that. You came to this site because you wanted to learn something about small business ownership, so clearly you have the desire – and you definitely have the power…

…so why not just go for it!?

The economic crisis we’re facing right now is worrisome, but we are not without power. While I’m not naive enough to think the problem will go away overnight, I do believe with all my heart that each individual has the capacity to make a difference… for themselves and for this country.

So I urge you to act… don’t allow the weight of the current economy to cripple you!

Move forward, be positive and most importantly, thoughtfully and responsibly… ACT!

Well, maybe the headline is just a teeny bit of an exaggeration.  Okay, it’s total nonsense! I wrote it to make a point. It seems like the worse the economic picture looks, the more ‘get rich quick’ email I get. My inbox is crammed full of that kind of junk.

So, I thought you might get a chuckle out of this video Todd Falcone put together. It’s here simply because the absurdity makes me laugh and I think you’ll enjoy it!

…there really isn’t much to add to this wonderfully generous jesture…

http://www.shareasale.com/911.htm

Thank you, Brian Littleton and ShareASale!

“Owning a home based business is something 72% of U.S. households are interested in doing.”

Starting a home based business seems to be on the tip of everyone’s tongues these days. Looking at the benefits of running a business from home — and the way the world is headed — it’s not surprising interest is running so high.

Wouldn’t it be GREAT if you could…

1. Wake up happy and on fire with enthusiasm!
2. Not have a boss — BE your own boss!
3. Turn your hobby or passion into a profitable business!
4. Be around to watch your kids grow up!
5. Have more leisure time!
6. Take more vacations!
7. Give to others more freely!
8. Stop worrying about money!
9. Live life your way!

Who doesn’t dream of this kind of lifestyle!? Do you actually believe any of this is possible?…

…BELIEVE IT!

Countless work at home warriors are doing it right now – as you’re reading this – including yours truly.

• Sharon Michaels is a friend of mine who spent her early adult life riding an emotional roller coaster. Despite her driving desire for success and effort to achieve it, success nonetheless eluded her. Now Sharon works from home helping other women discover the power that lies within them to achieve their success!
  Check out the book Sharon wrote about the power to succeed here »
  

• Rosalind Gardner worked as an Air Traffic Controller before she started her career online as an affiliate marketer. With no prior business experience, she went from a dead-end job she detested to home business entrepreneur earning over $500K a year selling other people’s stuff.
  Learn more about Rosalind Gardner here »
  

• Ricardo Camacho barely eeked out a living with his security systems business. When the stress of high overhead, employee problems and 16-18 hour days began affecting his health, he decided to make a change and start a new business from home. Now Ricardo earns more money in one month than he previously did in an entire year! No huge overhead… no employees to worry about… health dramatically improved!
  Discover the home based business that changed Ricardo’s life »
  

Sharon, Rosalind and Ricardo are real people who followed their dreams. I didn’t include it here, but mine is one of those stories. You can read it here »

“Somebody tells you that you can’t do something, tell them ‘get outta my face!’”

Will You Chose Plan A or Plan B?

Short of winning the lottery or a fat inheritance from rich Uncle Harry, your best — maybe your ONLY shot at gaining financial freedom — is owning a home business…

…consider this your Plan A.

Invest in yourself. You are so worth it and you can’t lose! Work for someone else and the chances are much greater that you WILL lose… BIG TIME!

Greg, a long-time friend of mine knows this all too well. He worked at his job for 48 years. He was a faithful employee, never missed a day of work unless he was really sick, skimped on vacations to please his employer, kept his nose clean and always received glowing performance appraisals.

A few weeks after Greg celebrated his 65th birthday, one of the ‘big bosses’ sent word down that he was being terminated. No reason was given. The company had the right to terminate Greg without cause… and they did. No thanks for all the years of service, no gold watch, not even a kiss goodbye.

Greg’s story isn’t so unusual. It happens all the time. And it can happen to you. The only protection you have is to create your own income — even multiple streams of income.

Consider this list of mind-boggling realities about the financial state of most Americans…

• 1-in-53 households in America files for bankruptcy each year. That statistic is rising. Of those, 80% could have avoided this tragedy with an additional $200-$300 income per month
• 95% of retirement-aged Americans can’t afford to maintain the lifestyle they had while they were working
• Only 2% of Americans own their home outright!

Not a pretty picture.

Still… there is a way to avoid disaster… BEFORE it hits.

Because of the advancements in technology, you can start a home business — doing what you love — no matter where you live or what you do now. And you can do it more quickly… with greater ease… and with very little money.

Owning a home based business can help you…

• Eliminate Debt
• Boost Your Retirement Savings
• Save for a Rainy Day
• Pay Off Your Mortgage Faster
• Buy the Car or Home of Your Dreams
• Enjoy Tax Benefits
• Spend More Time with Your Family
• Take More or Longer Vacations
• Be a Stay-at-Home Parent

You have a dream, don’t you? I’m guessing it doesn’t have much to do with making your boss wealthy, either.

So what’s holding you back?

Life is full of choices. All you need to do is… decide you’re going after whatever it is you desire. You have the power within you to be as successful as you wish to be.

Start building a world-class home business… one step at a time. Now is the time.

“Successful people adapt to changing conditions, believe in themselves and understand the power of persistence.”

Do you wish you had more time for family, friends, hobbies, and travel?

Are you doing EXACTLY what you want to do… everyday?

Whether you are an overworked, under-appreciated, underpaid worker or a small business owner trapped in a business that’s not generating enough profit…

…owning a home based business is one of the surest paths to a happier, easier, fuller, more satisfying life.

Whatever you truly and deeply desire – freedom… enrichment… wealth… eternal happiness – it’s possible for you to have it. And you can start manifesting it today – I’ll explain what I mean in a minute.

The home based entrepreneurs who are already living the ultimate home business lifestyle all started with three things in common…

1. Almost zero money ($2,000 or less)
2. Few, if any, marketing skills
3. Virtually no business experience

Conventional wisdom would tell you not to even start under this scenario. Fortunately, people with a strong desire rarely pay attention to convention wisdom!

Okay, you’re sick of the grind and you want the lifestyle change… but you have a lot of doubts and a list of fears as long as your arm. How do you take the leap from “just over broke” to a five-figure monthly income?

What do you do? Should you quit your day job?

Obviously no… at least not yet. Unless you win the lottery or rich Uncle Harry is willing to fork over enough for living and business expenses while you’re building, stay put until you’re sure you can afford to quit.

Everyone has a different comfort zone here, so you have to use your best judgment. Just don’t postpone leaving your job behind for too long. I suggest setting some realistic goals and benchmarks for yourself so you have something to work toward… and look forward to!

What if you’re not so young anymore? Or what if you are very young?

Age isn’t a factor at all. Anyone who is sick of not living the life they truly desire is a candidate to own a home based business. Entrepreneurs come from every walk of life and live in every corner of the world.

You might be…

• the young guy just out of college with no money and no experience
• the teacher on summer break
• the mom with 2 kids and a thankless job
• the soldier who just retired from the military
• the grocery clerk with a big dream
• the postal worker who is tired of delivering the mail
• the accountant who is tired of being a bean counter
• ANYONE who wants to live life to its fullest potential!

Your background and experience don’t really matter. You just need the desire and willingness to work. Building a home based business won’t happen just because you want it to. You have to work.

Earlier I said you could start manifesting the freedom, enrichment, wealth or eternal happiness you desire. And it’s true – you can start right now…

…by using the power of your mind to attract the things you desire.

This isn’t a lot of airy-fairy twaddle, either. This works. The mind is your most powerful tool… use it for good.

Start by visualizing yourself living the lifestyle you want. Let your imagination run free… let those long-deferred hopes and dreams come to the surface and shine. Don’t be shy!

If visualization doesn’t come easy for you, keep practicing anyway. You will get good at it.

Create a dream board. It doesn’t have to be anything fancy… just a place where you can place pictures of the home you would like to live in… the car you want to drive… the school you want your kids to attend… the place where you want to vacation.

I use a dream board and it really helps keep me focused. I can also tell you how good it feels when something from your dream board becomes a reality. WOW!!

Replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Be polite but be firm about it. There’s no place for negativity and doubt in the home business lifestyle.

Don’t give up! Have faith in yourself. Stay focused on your dreams.

“It is far better for a man to go wrong in freedom than to go right in chains.”

-Thomas H. Huxley

Look… if you aren’t living the way you would like, change course. It’s not too late. In fact, it’s easier and less painful than you might think.

Consider the price you’ll pay for NOT doing anything. Your inaction can only lead to regret. It doesn’t have to be that way. You can easily avoid the inevitable pain of regret by doing something… TODAY!

You CAN lead the impressive, enviable life of enjoyment and accomplishment you desire… by taking deliberate ACTION!

Get the iThemes Developer’s pack - 10 premium Wordpress themes - only $199.95.

The Developer’s License allows you to use the themes as many times as you want. The only you can’t do is re-package or resell them. You get 10 professional, ready-made Wordpress themes, free updates, special discounts on future exclusive Wordpress themes, a useful support forum and free online tutorials.

The themes are professionally written, have a great look and feel, and they are highly customizable. You could get hundreds of different looks from these 10 themes.

If you are a web developer and need a variety of themes you can use straight ‘out of the box’ or customize for a completely unique look, the iThemes Developer’s pack is a good fit.

I use them for many of my own projects… they’re easy to use, simple to customize and support is good. If you can’t find what you need through the support forum, you can contact the company directly. You probably won’t need to do that, though.

The iThemes Developer’s Pack is worth more than $800 and is normally sold for $399.95.

Now, for the next few days only, you can get this deal for the bargain price of $199.95…

Themes included in the pack are:

• Essence – The most popular, feature rich theme series
• iCompany – Wide business and blog layout
• Grunge – A contemporary, dirty, yet glossy look
• Photo Gallery – Use as a web portfolio to show off your work
• Ecommerce – Build an online store for yourself and your clients
• Industrial – Traditional business website look
• Biz Card – For simple CMS websites
• Corporate – Web 2.0 professional website
• Brochure – For simple CMS websites
• Deep Order – Business Web 2.0

Already own a single or mult-use package? Upgrades are available. You’ll need to contact iThemes directly for upgrade pricing.

Remember… if you want to save yourself $200 bucks off the regular price… you only have a few days.

While face-to-face meetings are more personal, it’s not always possible to gather everyone together in one place. Maybe the timing isn’t right … or the location is too far away.

No worries! There’s a simple and easy solution…

…Give your presentation via the Internet… ONLINE!

Through the magic of your computer, you can present your products and/or opportunity from anywhere… to anyone… anytime!

Imagine the advantages of using your computer to connect with more prospects to…

• Present your new product or service
• Conduct group trainings
• Share ideas and resources
• Reduce travel (especially important with gas prices so high!)

Now there’s a service called “MeetMeNow” from WebEx that makes this possible.

I recently discovered how awesome this tool is! It is easy to learn and use – and the people at WebEx are super-nice and very helpful! You will be guided through everything… without any hassle or making you feel like a dummy!

Here’s an idea of some of the cool things you can do using WebEx…

• Video Conferencing – Using a webcam, you can meet face-to-face with your guests
• Integrated Audio – You get a special call-in number and access code for your guests, and you can mute and unmute callers
• PowerPoint and Word Integration – Launch your online meeting from any applications such as PowerPoint, Word and Excel
• Desktop Sharing – Share anything on your computer with your guests in real-time. It’s like everyone is right there in the same room with you
• Rich Annotation – Turn your desktop into a whiteboard and use interactive tools to convey your point
• Guest Chat – Chat privately with a guest during your meeting - even when sharing your computer with the group

You can even pre-record your presentation and play it later.

Another advantage of giving a presentation or holding a meeting online is that it can be recorded and then distributed to everyone to listen to again. This is especially useful for team training. You can also place the recorded presentation on your website for your general audience to hear.

There’s even a 14-day free trial - no strings offer if you want to try it out.