How to Start Your Own Business

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Running your own business is a rewarding but demanding career and life choice. There are many different opinions about how to start a business from writing and researching a detailed business plan to jumping into a passion and trying to make money out of it.

Steps

1. Start with an idea. This doesn't have to be a brand new invention or new product. In fact, many successful small businesses have found a way to deliver an existing service more efficiently or economically or have customized an existing product or service.
   
2. Put together a business plan. This doesn't require hundreds of pages with thousands of charts. Use the plan to research things like how much you can charge for your product/service, how much it will cost to produce or deliver (include variable & fixed costs), and the size of your potential market (i.e. # of customers). The plan should evaluate your competitors - how many competitors, how strong are they, where are they, how will you compete. The plan should state what is required to enter this market, barriers to entry such as high fixed costs (factories, restaurants) and government regulations that must be met.
   
3. Determine if you need financing. Your business plan will include a section on financing. How will you pay the costs to start and run your business? Do you need a bank loan? Use credit cards? Self finance? Also, you'll need to consider how much salary you need to support yourself while starting your business.
   
4. Put together your initial marketing plan. Marketing need not cost a fortune. Some businesses require very little. For example, many service businesses such as accounting firms build their practices through word-of-mouth referrals. You can also join free or low-cost associations to build awareness of your small business. Again, your business plan (product, customer, competitor) will help you determine the marketing efforts you need to undertake.
   
5. Build your infrastructure early. This doesn't mean build a big factory or a fancy office. It simply means keep accurate customer records, a clean set of updated books and a technology foundation, if necessary. One of the downfalls of many small businesses is that they don't know if they're making or losing money (i.e. the need for a clean set of books). Another downfall is when small business owners try to sell their company years later but lack accurate customer history and customer information. Many times, the customers of a small business are its best asset, and, without the records, the small business can be sold only for salvage.
   

Tips

• Use free resources. Your local library contains numerous useful references regarding incorporation, writing business plans, marketing, as well as information specific to your industry. The Small Business Association, Chambers of Commerce, AMEX Small Business website, associations for your industry, associations by ethnicity...all of these offer training, materials, networking and sometimes financing. Another good option is SCORE, a group of retired executives who provide business start-up advice.
  
• Recognize that getting your business off the ground will take time. Most businesses don't become profitable right away, so plan for that in your personal life too. You will be making sacrifices to be your own boss.
  

Warnings

• Running your own business is extremely time-consuming. You can rarely leave work "at home" because you're the boss now.
  
• Be sure to carve out time for yourself. Make sure you stick with an exercise program or build in time to see your family. As mentioned in Warning #1 above, running your own business can consume you.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Become an Entrepreneur
  
• How to Create a Brand Positioning for a Small Business
  
• How to Create a Logo for Your Small Business or Website
  
• How to Find out What Kind of Business to Start
  
• How to Form a Limited Liability Company (LLC)
  
• How to Incorporate Your New Business
  
• How to Invest in Stocks
  
• How to Become a Caterer
  

Sources and Citations

• Buy an Ecommerce Website Bizatomic's E3 Ecommerce website is a feature-rich, secure ecommerce solution which allows you to easily sell your products online. E3 Ecommerce is a complete solution offering: integration with comparison shopping portals, Search Engine Friendly urls, powerful marketing & reporting tools, built-in content management and an easy to use administrative interface.
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Start Your Own Business. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Learn to Manage People

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

"Management is nothing more than motivating other people."
Lee Iacocca
Congratulations! You finally got that promotion you’ve been wanting and now, you’re a manager – perhaps for the first time in your career. So, now what? If this is your first foray into management, you might be a bit nervous. That feeling is understandable, common and, in fact, quite warranted. This is going to be very, very different from what you’ve done before. Management has an entirely different set of goals, rules and a different skill set is required. Very often, people that are new to management do not completely understand what it means to be a manager – how their life will change (yes, your life will definitely change). This is especially true if you’ve moved from an hourly wage to a salary… more about that later.
This article will present you with a set of guidelines you can use to help make some sense out of what is often a confusing transition. This is not meant to be a complete set of day-to-day instructions; that concept is pretty much gone forever now that you’re a manager. It is, however, a reasonable outline that will help you through the process of goal setting and managing staff. So take a deep breath and let's get started!

Steps

1. Understand what management is: What significantly sets managers apart is the migration away from a concept known as "individual contribution." Managers are not, primarily, individual contributors. That means that you are going to be responsible for the work of others; your success depends on how well your team performs. You are now responsible for far, far more work than you could ever possibly produce by yourself (see warnings). You can’t fix all the problems – don’t even try… that’s not your job anymore.
   
2. Prepare for the transition: This will become confusing and frustrating... perhaps not immediately, but managers are often pulled in multiple directions. You may have a different dress code to follow. You will have new rules to obey (particularly in the area of Human Resources).
   
   • Find a mentor: Not your immediate manager, but find another manager with lots of experience and ask that person to help you transition. This is a very important and often overlooked tool. It will also gain you considerable esteem in the eyes of the upper level management team. It shows maturity.
     
   • Join a networking group: There are lots of these (Toastmasters for example). Ask other managers and executives about local clubs. Take advantage of the networking opportunities in your area.
     
   • Contact HR: Go to the Human Resources department and ask if there are any HR books or training courses you can use to help you. Read a bit about being a manager. There is a mountain of literature on the subject. Read some of the more well-known books ("The One Minute Manager" and "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" are management staples).
     
   • Help your staff cope: It's possible the people you will manage used to be your peers and that will be the cause of envy (possibly resentment) and friction. You can't prevent it but if you keep the lines of communication open it will reduce the issues. However, you must remember that you are now management and while you don't want to flaunt it, you can't let your former peers take advantage of your previous relationship. Even if they weren’t your peers, getting a new manager is always disconcerting. Address the staff and let them know your plans. Establish the manager/staff relationship early. Even if it seems a bit awkward at first do not be bashful about it... just follow the steps, be yourself, and don't forget where you started.
     
   • Don't neglect family: Your husband-wife-playmate-whatever and children, if any, and friends still need your attention just like they did before. You will have a lot more on your mind now - management is a hard transition. Keep your priorities in check. If you hear people mentioning that you're distant - take note. You don't want to let your career ruin your family relationships (you wouldn't be the first).
     
   • Don't neglect your health: OK, you've discovered that this is actually fun. The work is exciting, you're working longer hours, maybe working more at home, staying up a little later, getting up a little earlier, doing a great job handling the family and kids... are you sleeping enough? Are you sure?
     
   
   
3. Identify your goals: What, specifically, are your measured goals? Do you have hourly, daily or weekly targets your team must meet; what about your new goals such as reviewing productivity? Write down everything and post it prominently (see tips). This will be your checklist. A word of caution here, this list will change over time; it is a living document. Some things may stay the same (service levels, for example) but other things may change depending on the strategies handed down to you from the Executive Management suites. Review your list frequently, with a critical eye, and revise it when necessary.
   
4. Know your team: You need to know individual strengths and weaknesses for each team member. John works extremely fast but occasionally misses some of the details. Jane is incredibly thorough but has issues with the volume of work processed. Bill has spectacular customer relationships but can never say "no" to the clients whereas Mary has excellent technical skills but falls short in people skills. You really need to know all this very, very well. You will use this knowledge to balance the productivity of your team.
   
5. Match tasks with staff: Use the information you gleaned from the above steps to match people with work. This is termed skill-based work assignment. You want to play into each person’s strengths and minimize work assignments that would target his or her weaknesses. If you have the opportunity, put people together that have complimentary skill sets. You might put John and Jane on a project together, or have Mary and Bill consult together on a presentation.
   
6. Meet with your team members: Regular one-on-one meetings are critical to good management. These meetings have several purposes.
   
   • Give feedback on job performance: Discuss the previous week’s objectives including what went well, what areas might improve for next time and how that improvement might be obtained. This will lead into…
     
   • Outline the goals for the next meeting: These are typically referred to as "action items" and will form the basis for the next weekly production review.
     
   • Learn about staff issues: You’re going to be a bit out of touch now and you absolutely must realize that. The only way to keep track of issues that affect the performance of your team (and therefore your job) is to listen to your employees!
     
   • Ask for ideas: Your staff wants to feel engaged. Without exception, the number one motivating factor behind people leaving a job is poor management – that very often stems from feeling ignored. You will be graded not only on your team’s performance, but also on your turnover rate.
     
   • Motivation: In Peter Scholtes' lectures, he points out that people motivate themselves. The best managers find ways to get their people to become motivated to do their jobs well and with pride. Use these sessions to find out what motivates your employees and use that feedback to improve their contribution.
     
   
   
7. Be visible: You must not isolate yourself from the team. Sometimes the initial workload will seem overwhelming and you might have a tendency to sequester yourself away from the staff to keep up – especially with the new paperwork load you’ll have. You absolutely must not give the appearance of being an "ivory tower" inhabitant. If your team members don’t see their leader, they’ll develop an attitude of anarchy. Things will go very badly for you. Even if you’re managing remote staff, you need to make sure they "feel" your presence. If you manage multiple shifts, make sure you visit all shifts regularly.
   
8. Document team activities: Your personal performance review will focus largely on your team’s performance so make sure you keep a written record of issues and accomplishments. This will be especially important if there are significant issues that arise. Problems are expected; how you and your team handle those problems must be a focus of your efforts.
   
9. Reward performance: This doesn’t mean money… although money is nice, it’s not a primary motivator for on-the-job performance. Recognition is much more effective. If you have the authority, perhaps grant performance leave (an extra day off for doing something exceptional). Make the rewards regular and make them attainable but difficult. When you give a reward, make it well known (reward publicly, admonish privately).
   
10. Learn coaching: There will inevitably be times when you need to correct behavior. Learn to do this properly. If you do it correctly, you will get the results you want. If you do it poorly, things can go horribly wrong. See How to Give a Feedback Sandwich for ideas.
    

Tips

• Post your goals: When you post your goals, and your team goals, make sure it’s very visible. Your team needs to see these – all the time. "Increase service level by 5% over the next 6 months" shouldn’t be a secret. Distribute updated goals as soon as they’re available.
  
• Compliment your staff: Little things go a long way. Telling someone they’re doing a good job really, really does make a huge difference! Don’t do it so often it becomes meaningless, but do let your staff know they’re appreciated.
  
• Communicate, communicate, communicate! Your staff will feel much more engaged if you let them know what’s happening. Everybody wants to see the "big picture" sometimes.
  
• Be fair, but firm: There will come a time when you need to consider disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. This can be incredibly difficult even for experienced managers. How to discipline employees is a topic in itself and beyond the scope of this article, but there are many good references. The short answer is be consistent and document everything.
  
• Use the Human Resources Department: If you have an HR department, they are now your newest and bestest friend. They are a resource to be embraced. They can help you with rewards, help you with discipline, help you stay out of legal trouble and they really like managers that recognize that. Truly, they are on your side.
  
• Become familiar with EAP: EAP = Employee Assistance Program. Most large companies have one and it can be incredibly useful. If one of your staff has a personal issue, refer them to EAP (do not try to play staff psychiatrist). If you start having personal issues (see Warnings) EAP is available to you, also.
  
• Lead by Example: A leader should focus on leading by example in all aspects of their work. Be a role model for your colleagues by exuding a positive presence. Show compassion, understanding, and respect, while focusing your tasks to be inclusive of teamwork and dedication. It is important that managers and supervisors exhibit the best possible values inside of the workplace. If you have a publicly-visible position that puts your personal life in the spotlight, understand that your entire life reflects upon this example you're setting.
  
• Hire a Coach: In addition to a mentor - hire a coach (if you have the opportunity and means). A mentor can be a great help but may not always have the time to devote. A coach is a trained professional with no agenda to pursue but yours and will help you develop your own authentic management style.
  
• Remember High Level Goals: Be consistent. Communicate clearly and make goals unambiguous. Listen. Provide frequent feedback, especially when positive. Remove obstacles to your team's success.
  

Warnings

• Do not try to do your staff’s job: There is an old saying: "If you want something done right, do it yourself." Forget that. Wipe it from your mind. You never heard it, it doesn’t mean anything, and it’s a counterproductive concept. If you want something done right, assign it to the right people and motivate your employees. If you try to be too hands-on, you’ll fall short of your management requirements. Your job is to manage. This is when it’s completely appropriate to live vicariously through others.
  
• Maintain employee confidentiality (when possible): There are some times this is not possible (certain HR issues like potential violence in the workplace) but if someone comes to you with a problem be very, very cautious with their secrets. It only takes once to destroy your reputation as a confidant and legal issues can arise. If someone tells you "this is in confidence" make sure that person knows that you, as a manager, are not permitted to keep certain things confidential.
  
• Maintain corporate confidentiality: You will learn secrets. There is often a tendency to tell secrets because that may make us seem more important. If you learn of impending staff cutbacks, and you release that information without authorization, prepare to be on the cutback list. It’s always hard to see this happen but nobody said being a manager would be easy.
  
• Be prepared for longer hours: It’s a fact. You're salaried now and the expectation is that you will do whatever is necessary to get the job done. Managers have perks and benefits that hourly employees don't have but you also have additional responsibilities. Don't be late, don't leave early. Oh, once in a while if you have something to do, of course - just like anybody else would. But do not make a habit of it. You're a leader now. Act like one.
  
• Weekly one-on-one meetings are not performance reviews. While you will review the activities of the previous week, that is not the sole focus here. You want this to be less formal and open to discussion. Do not try to control this too tightly - it's your staff's meeting just as much as it is yours.
  
• The transition to management can be very intimidating. It's not always that way but more often than not, new managers will experience a lot of stress before they become comfortable with the position. Find someone to talk with. If you found a mentor (see Step 2) that person can help. Don't keep things bottled up inside - stay alert for any unwanted behavioral changes (anger, suspicion, increased alcohol consumption, etc.)
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Give a Feedback Sandwich
  
• How to Be a Good Boss
  
• How to Accomplish More With Your Master List
  
• How to Give a Performance Review of an Employee
  
• How to Communicate Your Weaknesses
  
• How to Fire an Employee
  
• How to Reduce Employee Turnover
  
• How to Virtualize Your Workforce
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Learn to Manage People. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Realize Your True Potential

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Every human being, regardless of race, creed, sex or spiritual belief, has the incredible capacity to accomplish far beyond their wildest dreams!

Steps

1. Unlearn what you have learned. As children, we all have fantastic dreams of accomplishing what many adults believe to be 'unrealistic'. When we grow up into adults, we 'learn' the rules of the world and those dreams no longer seem possible. The first step in realizing your true potential is to cast off concrete beliefs about what you believe is possible in the first place. Take some time and actually inventory what you believe about your talents and capabilities - these beliefs were given to you through society. Identify exactly your career inhibiting beliefs. Make a choice to no longer allow these beliefs to govern you or your capabilities. Insert new convictions and beliefs that do not impose limits on your talents. Use the power in your subconscious mind, and master it over time with self-suggestion, hypnotism and constant positive input. (There are books on how to do this, its simply too much to list here).
   
2. Realize what it is you have! Inside your skull is a fantastic and extremely powerful biological machine that is, still to date, the most powerful computer on earth! Research tells us that we have over ONE HUNDRED BILLION neurons in our brain, and that each of those neurons have connections to anywhere from 5000, to 200,000 other neurons - creating an infinite number of possible thought combinations! Do you think that even for a moment, that we have this advance machinery just to 'survive'? You have this in your head right now - appreciate it and use it!
   
3. Aim High! Dream Big! Think un-realistically! The people who have achieve the most in their lives were those who had big plans and ideas and who were able to cast off the negativity of other people. You simply have to not care anymore about what others think and, to quote Nike, " Just do it "
   
4. Focus on what you can do, and other and better tools will be put in your hands as your move through your plan. People fail because they immediately fasten their attention to the negative. Change your thinking and work the part of your plan you can, do everything you can!
   
5. Shield yourself from negativity. If you are in a negative environment, get out! If you have negative friends, drop them. What is in your mind is more valuable than all the gold in Fort Knox, so protect it!
   
6. Constantly give yourself positive messages and support! Listen to self-help audio, read books and keep company that is positive. Hang up positive quotes and messages everywhere; in your office, at your home, in your car.
   
7. Never quit. Thomas Edison's most outstanding quality is the same thing that made him a success; it was not that he was so much smarter than everyone, it was just that he never quit. It took 10,000 failures to make the light bulb. Never quit.
   

Warnings

• Again, protect your mind from negative people.
  
• Never stop believing that you can do it!
  
• Keep your true thoughts to yourself. Display what the crowd/population is thinking. And remember change doesn't happen all at once. It takes small increments to obtain big results!
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Be Humble
  
• How to Be Happy
  
• How to Be Confident
  
• How to Be Confident in Starting New Things
  
• How to Be Confident and Outgoing in a Job Interview When You Are Blind or Visually Impaired
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Realize Your True Potential. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Stay Organized with a Routine

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Need some structure and consistency in your life? Here is an article on how to do just that!

Steps

1. Making a routine. Make a checklist. First start with things like "Get up at 7:10am and eat breakfast" and etc. Plan your day so you get used to it first.
   
2. After becoming accustomed to that system, get more advanced. Checklists are a good way to start a routine.
   
3. To change a routine, mix things up, add things, or take away things.
   
4. Stay organized. Clean is a key. Clean up once a week.
   
5. Make sure everything has a proper place and is in the appropriate room.
   

Tips

• Get an organizer (planner). This will help a lot!
  

Warnings

• The first time you make a checklist, number it from 1-10. Add more items after you are in the habit of dealing with the more limited list.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Be Organized
  
• How to Organize Your Locker
  
• How to Organize Books
  
• How to Get Organized and Concentrate on Your Work
  
• How to Get Work Done in a Home Office
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Stay Organized with a Routine. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Join a wikiHow Team

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

As a wikiHow contributor, you will expand your knowledge in different areas and tasks and the have the ability to share that knowledge by assisting others by joining one or more of the wikiHow teams.

Steps

1. Determine what interests or kind of contributions you enjoy doing on wikiHow. Are you someone who enjoys welcoming new members, offering assistance, reverting vandalism, or being creative?
   
2. Find out which teams are a good fit for you:
   
   • Help Team: providing one to one coaching to help people learn their way around wikiHow. This is the most general team as questions may be about how to make links inside of wikiHow, add an image to a page, or ideas of how to help out.
     
   • Awards Team: providing assistance and promoting the use of awards throughout wikiHow. This group also comes together to design awards and curb any vandalism of award misuse.
     
   • Merge Team: group of volunteer editors that comb through wikiHow articles & look for articles that can be merged to make a more comprehensive single article.
     
   • Welcome Team: volunteers whom dedicate their time to greet new users and answer their questions. This team can answer beginner's questions, for example how to create an article or how to find their way around wikiHow.
     
   • Recent Changes Patrol Team: otherwise known as "RC Patrol", this team patrols the edits that are made in wikiHow. They give cheers to regular or significant helpers and rollback or undo vandalism.
     
   
   
3. Click on the "Edit" tab at the top of the article page, scroll down to the bottom, and add the code provided in each team page.
   

Tips

• After adding yourself to the respectable team you chose, be sure to add the corresponding or matching User box to your user or talk page. This not only automatically adds you to the team category, but also identifies you to wikiHow users that you are "motivated" or knowledgeable in that specific area.
  
• If you are a minor or teenager, it's advisable not to put your age or any other real life information as you're doing your team profile. Please read the article, How to Be a Safe and Smart Kid on wikiHow for more details.
  
• If you have Firefox/Mozilla, using the wikiHow toolbar is a great help with patrolling recent changes.
  

Related wikiHows

• Contribute to wikiHow While at Work
  
• How to Find Help As a New wikiHow User
  
• How to Make Friends on wikiHow
  
• How to Import Old Public Domain Books to wikiHow
  
• How to Receive a Lot of wikiHow Fan Mail
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Join a wikiHow Team. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Cash in on Your Hobbies

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Have you ever considered turning one of your hobbies into a business? You may be surprised at how virtually any hobby can be converted into profits, and without tremendous overhead or ridiculously high start up costs. What's even better, you aren't required to have a specific product to sell! In fact, you can make your knowledge of your hobby your product.

Steps

1. Define a niche market. Defining a niche market is important, as it puts you into contact with the consumers who will most likely want whatever it is you’re selling with your hobby business. If you’re going to sell top quality baking supplies, than you will want to ensure that your advertising targets people who bake, and possibly even professional bakers. In this example, the niche market of the hobby business includes bakers and bakeries- and it would not do you much good to advertise to new parents!
   
2. Choose your hobby business. How do you pick a particular niche to set up your hobby business? If you want your business to be one in which you will honestly enjoy the time you spend working on it, and one that can fulfill your financial needs, ask yourself the following question: What do I really love? If you don’t pick a subject that you are truly passionate about, you will end up having a difficult time enjoying your work. Whether you consider yourself a salesperson or not, any businessman must invest in his or her products and services, believe in them - love them - in order to offer them to others in a way that encourages people to purchase them. As the authors of "Hobby for Profit" explain, when setting up a hobby related business, you want to "specialize deep NOT wide". This means if your hobby is comic books, you'll have a hard time being one of the top listed sites in the search engines for comic books in general, but if you specialize in a specific comic book, released during a specific year, than you would be seen as the expert on the topic, and your site would become the site people would go to for information on this particular comic book!
   
3. Know that size really does matter. How large of a niche do you want to work with? This is a vital piece of information to consider when deciding on what you want your hobby business to be. If you want to turn your antique collecting hobby into a business, you know that there are two ends to the spectrum. It's important that your niche is neither too large or too small as you will be lost in the sea of big businesses if you define your niche to broadly, and you won't have enough customers to remain in business if you define your niche too narrowly. You'll need to do your research regarding your hobby to find out whether or not there is a market for what you want to do.
   

Tips

• Defining your market and figuring out the details of your new hobby business can seem daunting at first, but the time spent on the preliminary decisions is well worth the effort. Clearly defining your niche is often the difference between a successful business and a failed business. A niche that is too broadly defined would be trying to sell everything that is considered "antique". Too narrow of a niche would be selling only one, very specific item, for example, antique chairs made in the year 1804. If you attempt to operate a hobby business within too large of a niche, you’ll be swallowed by industry giants with far greater resources. On the other hand, if you create too narrow of a niche market, you won’t have very many customers. If you wanted to sell all antique chairs made in Italy, then you’ve created a reasonable niche market within your hobby, and will have a sizable potential customer base. You will be able to position yourself as an expert in the field of Italian antique chairs- which is exactly how you want to approach your hobby business niche!
  
• Join a craft society. They may already have developed a market, possibly with a bigger company and contacts with both suppliers and retailers.
  

Warnings

• Starting any business requires bookkeeping. There are also business and tax laws. Talk to your bank, and unless you are confident with your own finances, think of hiring a bookkeeper or accountant
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Have a Hobby
  
• How to Ascertain the Basics for Business Online
  
• How to Sell on eBay
  
• How to Raise Money from Banks for Your Business
  
• How to Sell Original Artwork for Profit
  
• How to Be a Good Ventriloquist
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Cash in on Your Hobbies. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Avoid Internet Addiction

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Spending hours and hours in front of the computer? Many people suffer from the addiction from the internet and have a hard time paying attention to the important things around them. Read this and then get off the computer.

Steps

1. Get a hobby or an interest. Get involved with teams, clubs, sports, music, dancing, or singing. Go for a run with a friend or exercise. Sleep instead of thinking of the internet. Keep up with the local events in your community. There may be talks, film screenings, concerts and book signings etc. that are of interest to you.
   
2. Complete your studies. Do your homework and study. This is a great thing to do the first thing when you get home and you will feel great knowing that you did your homework early. Read books or research at the library instead of browsing Wikipedia for information. Study lessons that you learned for the day, whether there's a test the next day or not.
   
3. Help with meals. Your parents will be happier that you're helping out with dinner or dishes than chatting online. This also will achieve self-accomplishment knowing that you can get off the computer for a while. Cook or bake something one night for the family.
   
4. Hang out with friends. Plan a trip to the bowling alley, mall, or ice rink. Places that have internet access such as coffee shops, may give you second thoughts about jumping online for a few minutes. Get a friend to walk a dog with you for the afternoon.
   
5. Plan family nights. Instead of watching TV or doing individual things during dinner time, eat dinner as a family on the table and plan games afterwards.
   
6. Limit your computer time. Make sure not to turn it on too many times a week. If you have a laptop, make sure to put it somewhere that you can remember, but don't come around there that often. Try keeping the lid closed when you are not using it; when the computer is not looking at you, you are less likely to use it. If you have a desktop PC, try not to go near it or put something over it like a sheet.
   
7. Call people instead of IM'ing. Call a friend and ask them to go outside for at least 3 hours a day.This will distract you from the computer.Also make your homework together. Avoid addicting sites such as MySpace, Facebook, Limewire, etc.
   

Tips

• Get your family members after you about being on the Internet too long.
  
• Think about the electric, internet and computer bills you will save without having internet.
  
• If you plan on quitting the Internet forever, do not think about doing anything with the internet.
  
• Exercise at your computer.
  
• Make a list of reasons why it's better off the computer.
  
• Try to stay off websites that are addictive such as FaceBook, MySpace, Xanga, and MyYearbook. Photobucket counts too. If you have problems getting off of these sites, just have someone else block these sites using your built in Content Advisor or if you are using Windows Vista, use the parental controls to control internet access and time on computer.
  
• Try using the computer at the library. You won't be as tempted to look at certain websites (such as porn, MySpace, etc.) and they do have a limit on how long you can stay online. Also, the library is a good place to get some good books and magazines to read, so you won't be as tempted to be on the Internet at home.
  
• When you are younger than 14, limit your time on the Internet to about 2 hours per day. You are pretty much too young to be on most sites under 9th grade, especially MySpace.
  
• Make sure to not go near it when ever you feel the urge.
  
• If you have a laptop make sure you do NOT forget where you put it.Keep a note in your office or something like that.
  

Warnings

• You may still need the computer for school/work or for a college project. That's fine, just don't overdo it.
  
• Try not to look at too much pornography; it's not so healthy and it may ruin your mind. Site such as YouTube and MySpace might get you hooked onto porn at a very young age.
  
• After about 15 mins on the computer, get up and stretch to prevent eye and muscle fatigue. Long periods of time with your hands at a keyboard or mouse can cause carpal tunnel syndrome and other serious disorders.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Enter a Webpage That Doesn't Open
  
• How to Create a Username
  
• How to Post a Parody Thread
  
• How to Put a Website on Your Desktop
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Avoid Internet Addiction. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Succeed in Life

WikiHow has given the title, 'How to be a God'. But I think the title, 'How to Succeed in Life' reads better. Don't you?

How to Be a God

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit


An editor has suggested a title change:Become Superior To Others In accordance with the title policy, titles should be the most concise, most commonly searched way to describe the content. To suggest a new title, change this template or comment on the discussion page. Notice added on 2008-02-25.

This article is a stub. You can help by expanding and clarifying it. Notice added on 2008-02-10.
Many humans were worshipped throughout history as gods. The Japanese emperors, the Egyptian pharaohs, the ancient Roman Emperors; all of them were official deities within their state religion, and yet there are very few who honor them as deities today (though a few who worship the Japanese Emperor as a deity still remain.) The main problem with these individuals is that as their state backing declined, their religious stature did, as well. Despite that, there is no reason why you couldn't follow in their footsteps. True they're just humans, but even humans can be gods...
The truth is that you cannot become a god. There is no god but god.
All those who claim to be god are liers. They will suffer the same fate as others before them.

Steps

1. Set your goals. Why do you want to be God? What is your purpose? What is your resolve? If you can't do this then don't bother.
   
2. Study. If you want to achieve power among the masses, you must at least have some sort of special intelligence or ability. Be a brilliant tactician/strategist, strive to be a resourceful and competent leader. If possible, get an IQ higher than 120.
   
3. Choose your path. Either be a sociopath and wipe out all those who you believe to be unworthy to live in this world, or be a type of leader who lets everyone be themselves with equal footing all around.
   
4. Gain allies. As much as being God of a new world, you're still human. There's a 100% chance that others will gang up on you to try and defeat you so allies are a must. But choose carefully, don't choose a complete idiot as they will become useless and don't ally yourself with a mind more powerful than you, as this will surely backfire in the future.
   
5. Learn the art of war. Every conqueror will gain enemies, so strive your best to learn how to build, manage, rule and fight with an army of your own. Master the basic skill of psychological warfare: Learn your enemy's weakness and learn to exploit that weakness. Again, be, as much as you can, a brilliant tactician/strategist as this will help in eventual future skirmishes.
   
6. Find resources. What kind of conqueror are you if you don't have funds? You're only human so you can't possibly make money just by imagining it. Invest in stocks, save money, etc. Do whatever it takes to get money... as an old saying does go, "Money makes the world go round."
   
7. Master deception. At times, your last resort would be to lie. To achieve your goals you must do everything necessary to get them. That includes elimination of your own men, etc.
   
8. Eliminate your obstacles. The second hardest to pull off, as you must eradicate any type of threat in your way. Be it a political leader, enthusiast, or just someone whom you feel as a threat, especially those who're smarter and better than you. Think two steps ahead of your opponents consider it just like a game of chess.
   
9. Retain your sanity. Finally, the hardest task to pull off, keep your head in the game. Don't lose it. Don't have pathetic delusions of being a god when you're not even close to being a government lapdog. There's a 100% guarantee that most times you will think of giving up. Don't. When you ever feel that you're losing it, overcome it. Note that some consider this optional.
   
10. Become omni-everything. This is vital to developing true deity.
    
11. Make your move. If you feel it's time to dominate and attack, then trust your instincts. Go for the win, never look back and win the war. Be the new God of your new world.
    

Tips

• You're never too old or too young to be a god.
  
• It would be smart to first get a high ranking career before trying to do anything risky.
  
• Considering the number of allies, it depends solely on you. It doesn't really matter how much as long as you have a guarantee that you can trust them.
  
• There's a lot of books out there about "The Art of War". Mostly done from Asia or Europe but they're still useful in some ways. But if you want the really useful ones, then you're on your own. These certain 'special' books were published over centuries ago during the dark times of war and misguidance and are hard to get a hold of.
  
• It would take years and years of patience to gain enough funds so just strive for it. It would really pay off once you've got sufficient assets.
  

Warnings

• It's no question that if you ever begin this conquest, you'll be shunned by many and thought of as nothing more than a crazy deluded individual.
  
• Obviously if you get somewhere and start your campaign, don't be surprised if you be accused of treason and be sent to prison.
  
• You're gambling everything once you begin this journey of god-like proportions. Think carefully and consider your luck.
  
• If not careful, then no doubt you'll end your own life.
  
• Remember, this is only an article. Just by following these steps doesn't mean you'll automatically turn into an actual god. These are only suggestions.
  

Things You'll Need

• An unquestionable purpose
  
• Unbelieveable gullability
  
• A strong will
  
• A firm desire
  
• A tenacious resolve
  
• Faithful allies
  
• Funds
  
• An insignia or emblem of sorts (optional)
  
• Intelligence
  
• Books of war
  
• Connections (if you know what i mean)
  
• Supplies
  
• Invulnerability
  
• An unlimited infinite lifespan
  
• Complete power over all things. This takes time.
  
• A coffin (just in case)
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Convince Yourself That God Is Real
  
• How to Have a Personal Relationship With God
  
• How to Love God
  
• How to Become Closer to God
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Be a God. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Make Money Online Without a Website

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

You don't need to have a website to make money on the Internet. Here is a proven strategy to make money online without a website.

Steps

1. Find Affiliate Product
   
   • Find a product to promote where you make good commission on each sale. Generally, you will get the biggest commissions on digital products. Digital products are defined as something that is downloaded directly to a customer's computer after purchasing, like electronic books or software. Since there is no extra cost per unit, no inventory and no shipping, the commissions are much greater than on regular "physical" goods. The most common commission on digital products is 50%.
     
   • Sign up as a reseller (also called affiliate) for a product that looks the most appealing to you. After you sign up, you will get a unique affiliate link where you need to send people to purchase the product. Your affiliate link will have a special code that will tell the product owner that it's you who referred the customer. The affiliate link code will allow your commissions to be tracked correctly and assigned to you.
     
   
   
2. Get Domain Name
   
   • Get a domain name to redirect to your affiliate link. A domain name is a .COM name (like yourproduct.com). You can get it for under $9 at GoDaddy.com. GoDaddy.com will allow you to redirect your domain name to your affiliate link at no extra cost.
     
   • So when someone types in your .COM domain in their browser, it will go to your affiliate link. The visitor will see the website with the product you promote, and the commissions will be tracked correctly.
     
   • The reason why you need a domain name is that it's memorable and it makes you look more trustworthy. Affiliate links tend to be too long and arouse suspicion. For example, most people would rather click on the link bestwidgets.com as opposed to abcwidgets.com?reseller=john
     
   • A domain name will make your affiliate link look like it's your own website. So basically, you will have a product to promote and a website to send people to and get commissions – without really having your own website.
     
   
   
3. Get Traffic
   
   • In order to make sales, you need to get visitors to your domain name (which will forward them to the website of the product that you resell). You can pay for advertising and hope that your profit will be greater than advertising cost, or you can use free ways to generate traffic.
     
   • The most effective way to get free targeted visitors to your domain name is by writing and submitting articles. You can write short articles on the topic related to the product that you promote. At the end of the article, you include your author bio and your domain name link.
     
   • You will then submit your articles to various websites, and allow them to publish your articles as long as your link is included. Your articles will get published in many places on the Internet, and will be advertising your affiliate link at no cost to you whatsoever. People will read your articles, like what you have to say and click on your domain name link ready to buy.
     
   • Once you start getting regular sales from your articles, you can go back to step 1 and find another product to promote using this strategy. After a while, you will build up a nice source of Internet income – without even having a website.
     
   
   

Related wikiHows

• How to Create Income With Your Web Site
  
• How to Package Books for Shipping
  
• How to Make Money Online With Resale Rights
  
• How to Spot eBay Automobile and Computer Scams
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Make Money Online Without a Website. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Be Smart

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Much of our media looks down on smart people. Sometimes it almost seems to be unpopular to be smart. Such an attitude will not fare you well in the real world. Cultivating your intelligence, not just faking it, is one of the most important things you can do to ensure your happiness in life.

Steps

1. Work on your vocabulary. Read good books, read and use a few definitions from the dictionary each day, or subscribe to a "word-of-the-day" service online. You can also take the vocabulary tests in Readers Digest or buy a book on increasing your working vocabulary.
   
2. Further your education. Get good grades if you're in school, you don't have to study all day long. Just make sure that you finish your home work. Believe it or not teachers will change your marks, depending on your behavior with them. If you're not in school, consider going back. Study hard. Do your homework. Show that you're willing to invest into your greatest capital-- your mind.
   
3. Watch the news and talk about recent things that have happened around the world.
   
4. Cultivate an interest in subjects like current events, interesting facts, funny and inspiring quotations, good books and movies, scientific studies and interesting inventions. Even educational television is a great way to learn about new things. People who have something to talk about other than their own internal problems and worries appear far smarter than most, and probably are.
   
5. Read good books. They will make you both appear and actually be smarter and reading really is fun. Keep your reading diverse by reading books of all genres including non-fiction. Make sure the books are interesting to you. As you read more you will soon learn that, just like movies, some books are better than others. Keep searching out the ones you think are good.
   
6. Be organized. Get a notebook or small digital planner to write down your homework assignments and write down the due dates. Get a weekly planner with your class schedule and plan your activities. Get a monthly calender to write down birthdays and big events. Write down what classes you have, when to do homework and what your homework is, dates, when you are hanging out with friends etc. in your planner.
   
7. Learn to listen carefully to others' opinions about controversial things, or things they know about and you do not. You do not have to agree with them but remember everybody has something to teach you. Keep an open mind.
   
8. Be nice to people. They may call you a nerd, a freak, a geek, or use a racial or homophobic slur, but in this case they really will only be jealous. Being nice to most people is also a sign of maturity and intelligence. Keep it up and people will notice, and so will you. Sometimes a good tactic is to go along with their mockery, and laugh at yourself. Stand up for people who are getting bullied, even if you might start getting bullied. Never insult anyone, gossip or hurt someone physically. Don't make offensive jokes.
   
9. Be friends with smart people who do all of the above. It will boost your self-esteem and your confidence, make you less likely to be teased, prevent depression, help you study harder, make your life happier and otherwise enrich your life. You can also make studying fun with your friends.
   
10. Know how to solve the Rubik's cube. It is easier than it appears if you learn tricks in visualizing the cube's geometry.
    
11. Learn how to do mental sums or speed math. There are all sorts of tricks for doing complicated math in your head that will amaze others.
    

Tips

• Do not hesitate when someone asks you a question to which you don't know the answer. Instead ask the person back.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Exercise an Open Mind
  
• How to Be Organized
  
• How to Be a Nerd
  
• How to Improve Your Memory
  
• How to Become an Excellent Student
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Be Smart. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Create a Forum

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

At one time, you needed special knowledge about web programming languages (PHP, ASP, etc.) in order to create a forum online. However, there are now ways of creating forums for feedback without any idea how to program. Follow these steps and get all the feedback you want!

Steps

1. Get a free PHP hosting such as www.byethost.com.
   
2. Register yourself and a domain name here.
   
3. Go to www.phpbb.com or www.simplemachines.org and download their php forum software. (Another great one to download is Integramod. This is a standard copy of phpBB, but it comes with many mods. You can get it here: www.integramod.com)
   
4. Download an FTP-client and upload all the php content to your host.
   
5. Create a mysql-database on your host (through the cpanel) and a username+password for it.
   
6. Go to yoursite.yourhost.com/forumdirectory/install.php
   
7. In your FTP-client, go to Config.php, go to properties and set the CHMOD settings to 666(if you are using phbb2).
   
8. Follow the instructions on install.php
   
9. After finishing installation, go to the CHMOD settings of config.php again and set them to 644(if you are using phbb2).
   
10. Delete the Install and contrib directories.
    
11. Go to yoursite.yourhost.com/index.php
    
12. Login and go to the admin panel to customize your forums.
    

Tips

• If you are not very technical, register yourself at www.takeforum.com or www.smfforfree2.com or another site. Then it will be created for you.
  
• Of course make sure you really can't follow above steps, because it sure is more fun.
  
• If you aren't too adept with this sort of thing, you can get one that is freely run.
  
• If you want to run the forum on your own computer for development reasons, testing, customizing..etc then see how to Install Apache, MySQL, PHP, and phpMyAdmin on a Windows PC
  
• if you use Mozilla Firefox as your browser then go to http://fireftp.mozdev.org/ for your ftp add-on.
  

Warnings

• All forum software are at some point vulnerable to hacks.
  

Things You'll Need

• A website host that supports PHP and MySQL, http://byethost.com and www.zendurl.com are both good.
  
• http://www.verio.com is great for large forums.
  
• A basic idea of FTP, your hosts control panel and how to read.
  
• Plenty of time
  
• Knowledge of how to chmod.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Use an Internet Forum
  
• How to Create a Forum
  
• How to Install SMF Forum PHP Software on Your Server
  
• How to Get More Members on a New/Empty Forum
  
• How to Market Through Forums
  

Sources and Citations

• http://www.phpbb.com/
  
• http://www.punbb.org/
  
• http://www.simplemachines.org/
  
• http://www.mybboard.com/
  
• http://www.yabbforum.com/
  
• http://www.free-webhosts.com
  
• http://www.host4free.info
  
• http://jamson.cykit.net
  
• http://www.vbulletin.com
  
• http://www.webringamerica.com - Free PHPBB Forum Hosting with No Ads
  
• http://www.proboards.com (not ad-free, may be difficult to code because of updates to the software)
  
• http://forumsarena.com multiple forums in 1 account
  
• http://www.smfforfree2.com/ (not ad-free)
  
• http://www.forums-free.com/ (Free phpBB3, 1GB, 40+ Themes, 30+ Languages, Personalization...)
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Create a Forum. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Combine Songs on Your Computer

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

The article explains how to put multiple songs into one .mp3 on a computer, with Audacity.

Steps

1. If you don't already have Audacity, a sound manipulation program, then download it, it's free.
   
2. Load up Audacity.
   
3. Open up the songs you want to combine.
   
4. Select (highlight) the waves you see in the second song.
   
5. Go to Edit-Copy (or press CTRL-C)
   
6. Position your cursor after the waves you see in the first song.
   
7. Go to "Edit - Paste" (or press CTRL-V)
   
8. Go to "File - Export as MP3". If you do not have Lame_Enc.dll it will inform you at this point that you need it and will ask you to direct you to it.
   
9. Fill in the fields (this is optional).
   
10. Wait until it is done
    
11. Congratulations, you have combined the songs! Enjoy!
    

Tips

• If you wanted the songs to play at the same time as each other, you can skip step 6 and instead click outside a track.
  
• To do this successfully, you might have to use "Project - Change Pitch" and "Project - Change Tempo"
  

Warnings

• When trying this with large audio files, the export stage can take a long time. Be patient.
  
• Sometimes it might even seem to lock up your computer, so be careful.
  

Things You'll Need

• A computer
  
• Songs
  
• Audacity
  
• You will also need a file called Lame_Enc.dll if you want to save the new file as an MP3.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Record Sound Produced by Your Sound Card
  
• How to Record on an iPod for Free
  
• How to Make an Mp3 or Wav out of a Midi for Free
  
• How to Agree on Which Songs Your Band Will Play
  

Sources and Citations

• Audacity
  
• Lame_Enc.dll
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Combine Songs on Your Computer. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Get a Guy to Know Your Email

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit


This article is a stub. You can help by expanding and clarifying it. Notice added on 2008-02-09.
want a hot or guy you have a crush on to know your email so you can get to know him and talk to him other than school then read below to find out how.<3 u thats why i want to help!!!!!!

Steps

1. Pick a boy that you want to know your email. Think it over.I mean REALLY think about it.
   
2. Tell him you would like him to make you an account on a website.You can always change the password.
   
3. Write down what you want your username,email,and password to be.
   
4. Have fun on it!
   

Tips

• Always ask for his e-mail if you can have it to talk to him and chat!
  

Warnings

• No warnings just get your courage up and do it. I belive in you viewers.
  

Things You'll Need

• Place on internet to be able to make a e-mail address(have in mind when going to ask the boy to make one for you)!:)
  
• Boy
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Find an Email Address
  
• How to Email a Person Who Never Gave You His or Her Email Address
  
• How to Send a Video Email
  
• How to Sound Cute but Not Desperate in an Email
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Get a Guy to Know Your Email. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

How to Draw T.V. Characters (the Easy Way)

from wikiHow - The How to Manual That You Can Edit

Do you want to draw cartoon characters that you see on the T.V.? Well, read this.

Steps

1. Find a show that you really appreciate. Whether it be live action or animated, you need to first have the skill to draw. If you're not very artistic (yet) then I suggest starting of with animated shows. Most animated shows have less details than a live action show would require you to have. (Unless of course, you're taking your own spin on the character, but that should be a different article)
   
2. Start looking through other fan art of the character. Don't rip any of this art off, this is just to get a feel of how the character is portrayed by others, and to give you a better insight to how this character can be drawn.
   
3. Grab your gear. There are endless possibilities to the media you can create art with. You can use markers, pens, pencils, a stylus on the computer--anything. Whatever your choice, be sure to know that certain media have disadvantages. (Markers and pens can't be erased, pencils smudge easily, digital art sometimes turns out rough if you're not skilled at using a stylus.)
   
4. Use a reference image if you like. If you plan to do this, have it ready! If you choose not to use a reference image, then begin to plan out how you want this character to look. What kind of pose should he or she be in? What kind of background do you want? So on and so forth.
   
5. Start drawing your base image (i.e. the shape of the head and body). If you're using pencils, you can use primary shapes to help plan out the structure of the body. A circle could form the top of the head, and the triangle could form the jawline. A square could form shoulders, and an upside down triangle could form a man's chest and waist.
   
6. Start adding the details. Often, people find that eyes and noses are difficult, so don't be frustrated if you don't get the eyes perfect on your first try. Keep practicing.
   
7. Check for any missed details or lines that don't fit. Make sure that everything is proportional (the eyes may be too small for the face, or the nose may be too large). Check your reference image or just a picture of that character to make sure you've got everything right.
   
8. Share your art! If you're proud of your artwork, you can definitely post it online at an art website. There are plenty out there for you to explore.
   

Tips

• Don't get frustrated, and throw it away, just keep at it and you'll have it exactly.
  
• Be sure to stay focused on your task. It's hard to finish drawing something if you start drawing something completely different in the middle.
  

Warnings

• Always ALWAYS give credit where credit is due. Never claim a television character as YOURS. You may have put your own spin on the character, but the person who created the character is the owner.
  

Things You'll Need

• Paper (if you're drawing by hand)
  
• Stylus (if you're making this art digital)
  
• A utensil with which to draw (a pen, a pencil, a marker...even a crayon works)
  
• A source image.
  
• A plan for how you want your drawing to look.
  

Related wikiHows

• How to Create a Cartoon Using a Windows Computer
  
• How to Draw Mickey Mouse
  
• How to Draw a Caveman
  
• How to Draw Cub Simba
  

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Draw T.V. Characters (the Easy Way). All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.

A Thought for Today :

City-light[2] by Paolo Nao

from Public-Domain-Photos.com

(www.public-domain-photos.com)

The question is no longer between violence and non-violence;

it is between non-violence and non-existence

- Martin Luther King, Jr

Grateful thanks to Paolo Nao and Public-Domain-Photos.com

for freely providing the above photo.

Eyecatchers-75: "Writing Right!" by Pankaja Srinivasan

WRITING RIGHT!
Just looking at something the other way round can make all the difference.

Pankaja Srinivasan

I hope you all read The Tale of the broken pot (The Hindu, page 20, May 13). The story is narrated by a mud pot. The article is all about literacy in ancient Tamil country.

Most of us would have dismissed it as ‘Boring’. But, just by moving away from the usual way of writing, and making a mud pot do the talking, the writers Iravatham Mahadevan, an expert on the Indus and the Brahmi scripts, and S.Rajagopal, an archaeologist, made it an enchanting tale that entertained as well as educated. That is what imagination and originality in writing is all about. That is what makes J.K.Rowling, Sukumar Ray, Roald Dahl and all those wonderful story tellers so special – the ability to make even the ordinary sound extraordinary.

Here are a few things that should help you in making you next writing project exciting.

- Try and keep a diary handy. Jot down things that catch your interest; it could be an odd-shaped nose someone has, or the cockroach that emerges from the crack in the wall, exactly the same time every day.

- When you are watching television, reading or just hanging out, some ideas are sure to pop up in your mind. Whether you know what to do with them at the moment or not, write them down. You could always use them later.

- I have often written down funny words or sentences that I have liked the sound of. It could be something you always thought of saying, but did not know how. Write them down! Otherwise, they will vanish from your head.

- If you are good at drawing or sketching, then have a scrapbook for your drawings. Who knows you may be publishing your doodles down the ages when you become a famous cartoonist or artist!

Courtesy: ‘Young World’, Supplement to The Hindu, May 27, 2008.

Grateful thanks to Ms Pankaja Srinivasan and The Hindu.

Eyecatchers-74: "South Koreans go for 'Naver'"

South Koreans seldom “Google” a topic. Instead they “Naver” it, thanks to a real-time question-and-answer system involving tens of thousands of daily responses from the general public.

According to a research firm, Naver accounts for 76% of Internet services here.

NHN (Next Human Network), the company that runs Naver, attributes its success to a product tailored to Korean society. “NHN shows not only web-based texts but also other types content about news, blogs, online communities, books, shopping, dictionaries and even weather – all one by one,” an NHN spokesman said here. “NHN has been blended well into the Korean culture where people like seeing various types of content in a neat manner at one single viewing.”

The company says Naver – named after “navigator” – averages 12 million visitors a day, with 130 million queries keyed every 24 hours. Its most successful feature is the question-and-answer database service.

Introduced in 2002, the “Jishik(knowledge) IN” platform has become a hug hit. “It was a breakthrough, through which Naver has since maintained its lead in the industry,” the spokesman said “Like Wikipedia, it is a participatory service where ordinary people can post what they know on the web, ask questions and answer them online.”

User-generated data now totals around 92 million queries – an exclusive treasure source for Naver – AFP.

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, May 28, 2008

Grateful thanks to AFP and The Hindu.

Letters-19: "Toast to Monsoon"

The editorial on monsoon (The Hindu, May 24, 2008) may be able to give some comfort to the Prime Minister, who is worried about the rising inflation rate. But prediction of the monsoon may become more and more erroneous as climate change triggered by the emission of greenhouse gases makes statistical models inaccurate. The research done by climate scientists shows that there could be unexpected rains and drought. The recent summer rains in Kerala damaged the crops contributing more to the inflation rate than comforting the ministers. No one seems to take the climate change issue seriously. – R.Venkita Giri, Thiruvananthapuram (Letter to the Editor, The Hindu, Madurai, May 27, 2008).(I share the anguish of Mr.Giri along with people like me).

Grateful thanks to Mr.R.Venkita Giri and The Hindu.

For an interesting article on "Climate Change" from Wikipeida:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_change

"Bio-diversity and Climate Change" from World Conservation Monitoring Centre of United Nations Environment Programme:

http://www.unep-wcmc.org/climate/default.aspx

"Why and how scientists study climate change in the Arctic: Some important research concepts used by scientists to study climate change" from NOAA's Arctic Theme Page:

http://www.arctic.noaa.gov/essay_bond.html

Grateful thanks to Wikipedia, UNEP and NOAA.

S&T Watch-7: "New Powerful Insect Repellants"

American researchers have identified several potential insect repellants that are three times more potent than DEET, the active ingredient in most tick and insect repellents, a study released on Monday said.

In laboratory tests, the new compounds protected human volunteers from mosquitoes for periods two to three times longer than DEET (n,n-diethyl-m-toluamide), which has served as the gold standard of repellents for more than 50 years.

While DEET repellents offer broad-based protection from a variety of insects, mosquitoes continue to spread diseases such as malaria, and some mosquitoes can bite through an application of DEET, the paper said.

“It would be good to have more effective repellents that protect against a greater number of insect species,” said Ulrich Bernier, a research chemist with the Mosquito and Fly Research Unit of the U.S.Department of Agriculture (USDA), who worked on the project.

Back in the 1940s, it took USDA scientists a decade to screen 40,000 chemical compounds in a search for new and more effective insect repellents. That quest ultimately led them to DEET.

USDA investigators were able to screen thousands of potential compounds using a drug discovery computer program that uses information about chemical structures and insect receptors to predict repellents’ effectiveness against mosquitoes.

The program allowed the scientists to winnow a field of 2,000 compounds down to just 34, which they then tested on human volunteers in the laboratory. The volunteers were exposed to mosquitoes for 17.5 days, some of the new compounds lasted up to 73 days. - AFP

Courtesy: The Hindu, Madurai, May 27, 2008

Grateful thanks to AFP and The Hindu.