Turning Your Journal Into An Idea Bank
Turning Your Journal Into An Idea Bank
A few magazines refer to their written idea sources in assigning articles to reliable, experienced writers, or even allow those writers to peruse them for topics to write about.And for awhile, I kept an idea book that was similar to a writer's journal. But there was a problem. If I needed an idea, I had to virtually read every entry before locating the one I wanted and needed. However, doing this so frequently proved to be a waste of time and energy. But after tweaking it a bit, I found a way to make it more efficient and profitable for me.I used a looseleaf cover and paper, organizing my journal into a few specific categories of interest, such as "pet health." There, I would include entries that directly pertained to that topic. For example, I would include observations tracking my progress in helping my cat recover from conjunctivities (pink eye), from following the vet's advice to developing my own strategies for administering medicine with an eye dropper. I would also include a few notes on what I probably should have done, as well as mistakes I made during that time. Bits of information from relevant, reliable websites and books would be included.Organizing my observations and notes this way enabled me to quickly locate a given topic and review its entries. Rereading those entries not only refreshes my mind, but provides some material from which to manipulate and gain additional insights for possible articles and books.In effect, I was writing entries in a writer's journal, but in a more organized manner. No more endless searches and rereading entries for me!You can try this yourself, using a separate hardcover, stitched notebook for each topic of interest. This strategy is especially effective if your chosen topic or topics are rather involved, motivating you to write detailed entries. Otherwise, a looseleaf notebook is fine. You can change the order of topics from three to two and organize their contents better.Another suggestion is dating each entry, as well as assigning a title to it. Doing this will save time. Instead of reading all of the entries under a given category, all you'll need to do is read a few selected ones. Dating entries is also useful for organizing purposes, especially if you want to track your progress in moving from idea trigger to a fully developed piece.And finally, wait until you have a month to several months' worth of entries under various topics of interest. Your subconscious will be at work in the meantime and you will be in for a pleasant surprise when you refer to your idea book again. Remember to keep making entry "deposits!" And have fun.Happy idea mining!Dorothy Zjawin's website, http://www.profitable-pen.com focuses on mining ideas from writer's journals for articles and books.
Using A Simple Idea to Target Your Audience – Email-Marketing
Using A Simple Idea to Target Your Audience
A wonderfully easy and free concept that many people seem to overlook during their online marketing career is the survey. If you are looking for programs to promote or ideas for articles, you really need not look much further than your own opt in list.Your list subscribers are a wealth of information right at your fingertips. Surveys can be as simple as asking one single open-ended question or as complex as using an entire form with several different types of questions and categories involved. These categories can range from open ended to multiple choice down to the yes or no variety. You will be amazed at the response you can receive just by showing your interest in your subscribers wants and desires.This approach can help you master the market in providing people with what they really want, whether that be a particular type of product, or a piece of information or instructions to make their online business more beneficial to them. In your initial email, it's always a good idea to notify your respondents that they will be notified of the results in a special email. If you send this out to your ezine subscribers, you can notify them that the results may be used in a future edition of your newsletter. I would also recommend offering a free gift to them for taking the time out of their day to help you with your project. Your respondents time is extremely valuable to them, so make it worth their while to spend a few minutes of it with you.Once you have tallied up your answers, now is the time to look into a solution or idea for what seems to pique their interest or a problem that seems to be affecting a majority of them. Remember, people online are always looking for something that will help them, whether that be something such as losing weight or making their business advertising more beneficial to them. The subject possibilities are endless.The ideas for survey questions are as different as the people who answer them. As you research solutions or products that might benefit them, you will become more aware of what may or may not work and this will come through to your readers. This simple action will help them to begin equating you with someone who is helpful, someone who cares and hopefully someone they can trust. Ask anyone who has their own list and they would probably tell you, building trust and a relationship with your readers is one of the most important things you can do with regards to your list and in my view this is what should be your ultimate goal.About The AuthorKellie Marzolf publishes the GoForTheGold Directory Newsletter where you will find informative articles on marketing, promotion, and ezines. Weekly safelists to join, useful resources and free bonuses in every issue. Begin your subscription today: http://www.goforthegolddirectory.com
kellie@goforthegolddirectory.com
Need a Great Idea? Feed Your Brain – Writing-Articles
Need a Great Idea? Feed Your Brain
A lot of great ideas happen when two or more other ideas collide to form something completely new.Think of this like those old chemistry movies we used to watch in school. You had all of those atoms floating around and when two collided -- bam! A chemical reaction. Maybe something new was created. Maybe something exploded. Or maybe it all fizzled out and nothing happened.Well, a similar reaction is going on inside your brain or muse. Except instead of atoms floating around they're pieces of information or other ideas. As they drift about, they occasionally bump into each other. When that happens, you may get a new, third idea. Or a big explosion. Or absolutely nothing at all.Now, if you have lots of atoms, or information and ideas, you're going to get lots of reactions. Some will fail. Some will be so-so. And some will be hot -- so hot, so full of energy, they'll have the power to change the trajectory of a business. Or even a life.The problem occurs when you don't have lots of random information and ideas. Fewer atoms mean fewer reactions. On top of that, you still have to weed through the invariable duds. So the odds of landing that one amazing idea drop considerably.But not to worry -- there's good news. You can increase your odds of getting those great ideas. Better yet, it's fairly easy and painless. Below are three ways to get started.1. Read, read and read some more. I know, I know, I can hear the groans already. "But I already have too much to read. How can I fit more reading in?" Never fear, there are ways to do this. (Remember I did say this was painless.)The key is to keep it wide and shallow. What does that mean? Well, read lots and lots of different things, but keep it general. Read about sheep farming, finances, yoga, cooking, traveling, dog training, etc. But keep it general -- don't read deeply. You can even skim if that's all you have time for.Start by subscribing to a couple of different magazines and e-zines. General interest magazines are really good for this -- Walt Disney used to read Reader's Digest. Scatter them around the house -- by the bed, the couch, even the bathroom. I'd put a few in your car as well for those times when you have to wait for an appointment.When you have a few moments, flip through them. Skim a few paragraphs. See what catches your eye.You can also buy or rent audio books and CDs and listen while you exercise, drive, do the dishes, etc.Whatever you do, DON'T read publications related to your industry. That's for another time. This is brain-feeding time, not keeping up in your profession time.2. Travel the world. Traveling has so many fabulous benefits for your creative soul I could write an article just about that, but for now I'll limit my comments to brain food.When you travel, you open yourself up to lots of new and exciting experiences. New sights, new sounds, new smells, new tastes, new textures. And they all have the ability to form a reaction with something else.Don't have time to hop on a plane to India? Take a day trip to a town you've never visited. Or, if you can only spare a few hours, seek out a park you've never been to or a museum you've been meaning to see or even that new cute little shop that just opened. You can always find somewhere new to visit no matter how long you've lived in the same city. And if you're truly desperate, try walking around your neighborhood on the opposite side of the street in the opposite direction you normally walk. (It can help jolt you out of rut.)3. Open yourself up to new things. Of all of these, this one is probably the scariest. But, it also has the potential to be the most powerful.Take the time to try new things. Meet people outside your normal circle of friends. Attend associations, nonprofits, hobby groups outside of the ones you usually go to. Listen to speakers on topics you know nothing about. Take a class at a community college about something outside your scope of knowledge. Or even have dinner at an ethnic restaurant you've never tried.Now I'm not just talking about "typical" creative things, like taking an art class or learning to belly dance. If you're a creative professional, take a class on doing your own taxes or budgeting your finances or repairing your car. (Oooh, I bet all you creative folk felt a chill when I mentioned that.) The point is to really stretch yourself past your comfort zone. Make yourself uncomfortable. It's not only a great way to grow, but it's a fabulous way to keep your muse fat and happy.And that helps keep the ideas flowing.Creativity Exercises -- Prepare the banquetOver the next month, I want you do to at least one tactic from each of the above three techniques.1. Read something you know nothing about. Even if you only spend five minutes skimming an article about quilting when the last time you tried to sew a button on a shirt you stabbed yourself with the needle and got blood all over the material.2. Travel somewhere you've never been before. Even if it's an antique shop and the most antique piece of furniture in your house is a bookshelf your parents bought from Sears when you were a little kid.3. Stretch yourself in a different and potentially scary way. Even if it's attending one of those Home Depot gardening workshops despite every plant you've tried to grow didn't and if your thumb was any blacker it would fall off.You know how you work better when you're not hungry, see how well your muse starts churning out ideas after a good meal.Michele Pariza Wacek is the author of "Got Ideas? Unleash Your Creativity and Make More Money." She offers two free e-zines that help subscribers combine their creativity with hard-hitting marketing and copywriting principles to become more successful at attracting new clients, selling products and services and boosting business. She can be reached at http://www.TheArtistSoul.comCopyright 2005 Michele Pariza Wacek