The secret John D. Rockefeller used to build Standard Oil. It’s simple. Putting it to work in your business.

I found this on Bob Parson's Blog. Bob Parson's is the founder of GoDaddy.com, one of the greatest on-line domain registration and internet tool companies in the world. This is one of the most popular articles that has ever appeared on his blog.

(Begin Article) Given the timeless value of Mr. Rockerfeller's secret and the number of businesses I encounter that could benefit from putting it to work, I thought it might be worthwhile to re-publish it again.

Everything that is watched improves.
One thing I learned early in my business career is that anything of significance that is measured and watched, improves.

John D. Rockefeller knew the importance of business intelligence.
Back before I started Parsons Technology I became impressed with something I read about John D. Rockefeller. In fact, I still think about it and use it to this very day. I learned that Mr. Rockefeller was one of the few people in his industry (perhaps the only one) who knew exactly how much it cost to extract, refine and deliver a barrel of oil. In fact, he was entirely aware of all his costs.Knowing this information (and acting on it) gave him a huge competitive advantage. He knew how much he could price a barrel of oil for and still turn a profit. He was always keenly aware of each area of revenue, cost and market share, and he worked on improving in every area. As a result, he did cost saving things like manufacture his own oil barrels, have his own cartage company, and on and on.

He eventually managed his way to where he could sell a barrel of oil, with impeccable customer service, and turn a profit at a price less than what it cost his competitors to deliver the very same product. By paying close attention to the things that mattered, Mr. Rockefeller made his Standard Oil Company so successful that he became the wealthiest man in the world!

To read the rest of this article, click here.

$2.00 - What's it really worth?

I witnessed something today that reminded me of what it was like when I used to struggle with money. John and I went out to enjoy breakfast at a local restaurant today. The place was jammed so we sat at the bar and ordered. Next to us sat a mom - she looked to be in her 40's and next to her was her teenage daughter, about 13 or 14, well dressed with braces. The woman sat with a scowl on her face, arms crossed, slouched over with her purse on her lap. Her daughter duplicated her mom's posture...quiet, scowled, hunched and arms crossed. It was a rather sad sight.

As breakfast progressed, neither the mom nor the daughter spoke more than a few casual words ot each other...they just sat, hunched over. The daughters breakfast arrived...bisquits and gravy and a side of hashbrowns. She ate while the mom watched and when she was done, the mom started eating the remaining food, including the hash browns. The waitress brought the check and immediately the mom questioned the bill. "That was $6.50? That's an aweful lot". Then she dug through the menu and stated that she only wanted the bisquits ala-cart, not the hashbrowns. (Even though she was happy to eat the hashbrowns!) The woman got up and went to speak with the manager. The manager stopped what she was doing, walked across the store and deducted $2.00 from the bill. So the woman paid her $4.50 cash and didn't leave a tip.

I watched the woman leave b/c I wanted to see what she was driving (or if she was driving) to see if the experience was simply one coming out of a struggle with severe poverty. She moved across the parking lot to a newer model Honda Accord. She obviously isn't struggling in life to the point where $2.00 is going to make or break her day...she was a well dressed woman with a well dressed daughter driving an average vehicle. So why give so much energy to $2.00?

Just the time alone was worth more than $2.00 to debate with the waitress, find the manager and have the manager take care of it. All while disrupting the breakfast experience of the other diners. For what...$2.00! It seemed so absurd to me in the moment, but I remember that is exactly how I used to be. I used to drive to the gas station with "cheap gas", bargain over everything, only buy stuff when it was on sale and give so much energy to lack of money. I was constantly consumed with the thought of how much stuff cost, how I could get it for cheaper and what a diservice people were doing to me if I felt they overcharged me for anything. I was completely caught in lack mentality and it took SOOOOOO much energy. Energy and time I could have been doing something far more productive with. But, the reality is, I was caught up in not having enough money. That was the reality I was choosing to focus on myself and it's no shocker that I just got more of the same again and again. Until, that is, I made a decision to stop.

Once I broke free of that way of thinking, abundance flowed freely to me. Now, instead of arguing over a bill, I'll pay extra (just for the fun of it). I leave ridiculous tips and enjoy the smiles it brings to the people who serve me. I buy what I want because I want it, not because of the "deal" or the sale. And all the energy I used to spend focusing on how to save $2.00, I know use to create thousands of dollars. It's called prosperity conciousness and it's a blast! How did I learn to be this way? I surrounded myself with prosperous people and followed what they did. I followed their example. I met successful entrepreneurs and home business professionals and duplicated their actions and soon found myself getting their results.

A few minutes after the woman and her daughter left the waitress brought us the check - $22.43 for John and I for breakfast. And we were happy to pay it and happy to leave a hefty tip.

Mastering four key elements of marketing

Entrepreneur Magazine: Ahead of the Curve: Mastering four key elements of marketing will put you in front of the pack—and customers will follow.
By Kim T. Gordon
Entrepreneur Magazine - October 2006

Extraordinary marketing results are rarely achieved by playing it safe. Yet when it comes to marketing, many growing businesses remain buried in the pack, going from year to year with the same minor market share. After all, with so much “me too” marketing out there, it’s easy to consider mediocre marketing the status quo.

But if you look to the standouts—the front-runners in just about every market niche—you’ll see that their marketing strategies and campaigns are anything but ordinary. They’re the top competitors you love to hate, yet want to emulate.

To compete on their level, you’ll need to be bold and approach marketing with an altered mind-set. There are four critical elements to extraordinary marketing success.

Click Here:

Why We Want You to Be Rich

Why We Want You to Be Rich:
by Donald J. Trump

This is a great discussion about the reality of our society today and the shrinking middle class. The book specifically discusses the realities of our nation and how to take personal responsibility for your results.

Check it out. Opportunities are all around us, it just takes a decision to be rich and successful.

Prosperity Is to You What it is to YOU

Abundance: Truth, Love, Energy: "Truth, Love, and Energy
by José Stevens, Ph.D.

What is prosperity? How can you be more prosperous? Why do people have trouble with prosperity?
Many of you automatically think of prosperity as something primarily financial. However, this is simply not so. Prosperity encompasses much more than money. In fact prosperity is synonymous with self-esteem. Prosperity is manifesting what you feel you are worth. It is success by your standards: it could mean lying in the sun for an hour a day without having to feel you should be somewhere else; knowing that you can lie there and congratulate yourself on having your life so well handled that lying in the sun is a celebration.

Prosperity or havingness (the ability to have) is a pervasive thing. You limit your success according what you think you are worth. This occurs unconsciously and it so happens that you have that level of success or richness of relationships that matches your self-esteem."

To read more, click Here: Abundance: Truth, Love, Energy:

They are ALL Billionaires!

For the first time ever, Forbes' 400 Richest American's are ALL Billionaires! That's absolutely AWESOME! How inspiring to see that the level of wealth, accomplishment and achievement is rising and this year has risen to new heights.

To read the inspiring stories of these Billionaires, most of them self-made entrepreneurs, go to:
The 400 Richest Americans - Forbes.com: "The 400 Richest Americans
Edited by Matthew Miller and Tatiana Serafin 09.21.06, 6:00 PM ET

It just goes to show you, a 9-figure fortune won't even get you recognition in Forbes...10-figures is the NEW standard!

Become a Millionaire in Home Based Business

I got started in the home-based business industry 6 years ago when I jumped into my then-boyfriend's, now husband's MLM venture. I was definetely excited and saw the potential to achieve a six-figure income. The problem...there was no system and I had no business experience. I was teaching high school and that's about all I knew how to do; teach Biology and manage teen-agers. What I learned was NO SYSTEM + NO BUSINESS EXPERIENCE = NO MONEY.

I gave it a good "try" but didn't find the success I was looking for. Plus, I wasn't too motivated by the health products I was attempting to move and there was quite a stock pile building up in my apartment b/c of the obligatory autoship required to stay a part of the company. One I had enough product stocked up for my next 10 lifetimes, I decided to cancel my enrollment and focus my energies back into teaching and tutoring. Not that I was happy teaching...unless someone likes working way too hard for way to little, they most likely don't like teaching in the public school system. Unless they are an angel.

So, four years ago when another opportunity crossed my path, I was skeptical. However, I heard from some of the people who were successful; ridiculously successful and they all sounded like normal people. I couldn't figure it out. No degrees, no special qualities but they were making $40K, $50K, even more a month. So I took a good look and what they had was a system. A simple system easy enough for me to follow. They also had leadership that was accessible. Real people with real results that I could connect to for guidance and support.

Within 3 months of following the system, my husband and I were making over $20K/month and were able to walk away from our jobs. By our seventh month, we were making six-figures a month. How did we become millionaires in home-based business so quickly and how can you get the results you want too? Here's 10 steps to take when taking the leap into home-based business.

1. Choose a business that has a system that is easy to follow. The friends, family and neighbors business model may make you a few hundred dollars but unless you've got thousands of friends and family or a really wealthy network, you're not going to get rich with it.
2. Choose a company that is solid. Start-ups may be appealing, but what is their model, who's in charge and do they have the cash to grow the busienss? Have the principles owned any other companies and what happened with those? What kind of legal advice does the company have to ensure they are doing everything legal? Some companies have already been through Attorney General investigations and other regulatory agencies, these are the best because they've proven themselves and were willing to pay the price to keep the company going.
3. Choose a company with accessible leadership. You should be able to speak to a top income earner directly before getting started and get their contact information.
4. What training is in place? Training is essential. Choose a company that has more than a once a month meeting.
5. Products. Can you stand behind the product and personally find value yourself. Are the products unique, proprietary and beneficial or can they be found on any supermarket or healthfood store shelf? Be a product of the product. Doing what you believe in is critical to your success.
6. Compensation Model: What is the compensation model and how do you get paid. How lucrative is it? Choose a company where customers pay you directly rather than a company paying you. If the company ever were to experience financial challenges, you would be the first to not get paid. Also, is their compensation lucrative enough to meet your financial expectations. Millionaires typically aren't made making $1.00 a sale unless you've got 100,000's in your organization. The most lucrative compensation plan I've seen is the Himalayan Hybrid.
7. Time requirement: How much time is really required to build your business. After all, you're not looking for another job. Choosing a business with leverage and an easy system will reduce your time requirement substantially.
8. Do they have a nationwide or international marketing system: Don't get tied to your backyard, city or state. Choose a company with a nationwide or international marketing plan. This will also give you total flexibilty in taking your business on the go.
9. Leverage: Leverage is the key to wealth building. Leverage allows you to benefit financially from the efforts of others. What kind of leverage is built into the compensation model?
10. Environment: Environment is one of the key elements of success. Does the business offer a community and environment that is empowering and conducive to your success? Find out how you can connect with the community to get a taste of the energy you'll be around.

Once you decide on the income vehicle that is right for you, give is 110%. Set powerful goals, take action and watch the results pour in!

More on becoming a millionaire? Learn Donald Trump’s Secrets to Building a Fortune

21 Secrets to Becoming a Millionaire

RadicalHop.com » 21 secrets to becoming a millionaire:

I received a “21 Secrets of Self-Made Millionaires” in my inbox recently, and after conducting a search in Google, I realized that these millionaire secrets are actually from a book by Brian Tracy. Are there really 21 millionaire secrets that will make you a millionaire if you put into action every secret described by Brian? Let’s take a look at the list of millionaire secrets:

* Dream Big Dreams
* Develop a Clear Sense of Direction
* See Yourself as Self-Employed
* Do What You Love to Do
* Commit to Excellence
* Work Longer and Harder
* Dedicate Yourself to Lifelong Learning
* Pay Yourself First
* Learn Every Detail of Your Business
* Dedicate Yourself to Serving Others
* Be Absolutely Honest With Yourself and Others
* Determine Your Highest Priorities and Concentrate on Them Single-Mindedly
* Develop a Reputation for Speed and Dependability
* Be Prepared to Climb from Peak to Peak
* Practice Self-Discipline in All Things
* Unlock Your Inborn Creativity
* Get Around the Right People
* Take Excellent Care of Your Physical Health
* Be Decisive and Action Oriented
* Never Allow Failure to Be an Option
* Pass the Persistence Test
* Conclusion: Success is Predictable

What do you guys think? I think the reason most of you are not yet millionaires is because it’s terribly hard to put all these millionaire secrets into action. The comfort zone. Complacency. Lack of motivation. Fear. You name it. The stumbling block to becoming a millionaire is more mental than anything else."

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