Monday, October 29, 2007

Issue 441 - How Far Could You Go In A New Direction?

Hi,
I hope everything is ok where you are.
I
was watching one of my favourite TV shows over the weekend, Strictly Come Dancing.
I watch loads of TV, I use it as a great niche to make money from, plus I enjoy it!

Strictly Come Dancing is something I've written about before.
It's a great format, and a huge success which the BBC had sold around the world.
Various celebrities are paired up with professional dancers, and have to learn a new dance every week.
The competition is then held on live TV, in front of 9 million viewers here in the UK.

This week there has been a big hoo-ha about the judging, but I like to watch the show to see the goal achievement/self improvement angle.
To see people who are or were at the top of their chosen profession taken totally out of their comfort zone is amazing.
It's not unusual for some of them to be physically sick with nerves before the live show, and yet they push through.

It's pure gold on the goal achievement front, because in front of your eyes you can see how commitment, action and lots of hard work can bring astonishing results in such a short amount of time.

What's also important to note is the number of celebrities who were hesitant at the beginning, but have now fallen in love with dancing.
This reflects the lesson that we adapt to change much better and faster than we think we can!
The show is a showbiz gem with lashings of sequins, and I love it!

Speaking of developing skills and seeing how far you can take them, the curling season is in full swing.
I had my first practice session at the weekend, as opposed to normal game play.
It went ok, although I was outplayed by a 13yr old girl, which seems to be a common occurence in my sporting attempts.
It happened with the pole vault and long jump, and now with curling!

Did I let it deflate me?
Of course not!
I took it as motivation.

This brings me to the challenge I mentioned last week, Curling For Gold.
I'd love to see how far I could get in the world of competitive curling, and in order to do that I need to practice much more, ideally everyday, particularly with there only being a 6 month season plus my age.

I could try and get sponsorship to fund that, but it would be hard work for such a small sport.
Plus I guess telling potential sponsors I got hammered by a 13 yr old girl wouldn't help...

Then it occured to me that I could sponsor myself, and that's what led to my new product.
It's a bundle of books, some written by me, others that I bought rights to.
As a collection they cover the favourite methods I use, plus my motivational books.
You'll get broad brush stroke principles, plus detailed specific instruction.

I'm launching the package at $67 for the first 100 copies, and it is already selling.
Once the first 100 have gone, the price goes up to $97.
Those 2 prices will get you maybe an hour or two from a plumber, lawyer or mechanic, but I'm giving you tools and ideas which will benefit you on a permanent basis.
There's also a 100% money back guarantee.

If you know me at all from this newsletter, you'll know how important integrity is to me, so I want to take all the risk away.
If you get the package and feel it isnt for you, I'll simply give you all your money back, no questions asked!
I can't say fairer than that, and stand by it.

Is it possible that some people will grab the package and then think it's not for them?
Yes, of course it is, and if that happens, I want you to be reassured that you'll get your money back.

I'm pleased with what the package offers.
Personally I'm not currently a big fan of Google Adwords, or Adsense.
I'm not a huge fan of SEO with your own sites.
As such, you won't really see these techniques detailed, but the important thing is that you don't *need* to!
I'm telling you the techniques that work for me, not for someone else.

Go and take a look at:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/curlingforgold.html

There is also a 50% paying affiliate programme.

Ok, that's it for this week - how far could you go with commitment, action and effort?

'Til Next Time,
Health and Happiness,
Gordon
P.S. If you know anyone else who you think would enjoy the Great Gordino Newsletter, please pass it on to them!

The Great Gordino's Curling For Gold:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/curlingforgold.html

Transform Your Life In 21 Days:
http://www.transformyourlifenow.com

How To Make Money From Movies:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/movies

Grab my free 8 Step Goal Achievement Plan by sending a blank email to:
mailto:transform@getresponse.com

Monday, October 22, 2007

Issue 440 - Pluto's Planetary Problems

Hi,
I hope Monday finds you well.

I'm calling this wek's issue 'Pluto's Planetary Problems', and it relates to a documentary I came across the other day.

It was discussing Pluto's position as the 9th planet in the solar system.
It gave a really interesting history of how Pluto was discovered in 1930, and the excitement it caused.
However, towards the end of the century, other objects were discovered near Pluto.
This started an argument amongst the scientists, about whether Pluto should still be classified as a planet, or just an object in the asteroid field where it lay.

The funny thing was, that despite science being based on specifics - facts and definitions, there was no clear definition as to what a planet actually was!
Some definitions that would include Pluto would also have to include around 20 others; some definitions couldn't include Pluto, but either way the idea of just 9 planets could not be sustained.

In 2006, the International Astronomical Union, which makes the decisions in such matters, eventually came up with a definition.
Without getting too technical, the upshot was that Pluto was demoted to a new classification of 'dwarf planet', and there are now officially 8 planets in our solar system.

The reason I'm telling this story is a goal achievement.self improvement one.
The main reason a lot of people wanted Pluto to remain a planet, was simply because it had been like that for 60 years, and people were used to it!

I always enjoy it when scientists challenge previously accepted theories, and most scientists do too, because otherwise all you do is verify what's already known.

This idea of 'leave it because it's always been like that' is easy to relate to self improvement and goal achievement - not only is it easy to assume you won't do something simply because you haven't done it in the past, it's what most people *will* think unless they take positive mental steps to correct that way of thinking.

Sometimes it only takes the smallest step outside your comfort zone to unleash change and progress beyond your imagination.

Before I go, if you fancy taking a look at my developing new site, then the link is here:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/curlingforgold.html

It's not live yet, but it will have an affiliate programme, and I thought I'd throw it out there for opinions.

Ok, that's it for this week, and I'll leave you with this thought - are you leaving Plutos where they are in your life just because they've always been there?

'Til Next Time,
Health and Happiness,
Gordon
P.S. If you know anyone else who you think would enjoy the Great Gordino Newsletter, please pass it on to them!

Transform Your Life In 21 Days:
http://www.transformyourlifenow.com

How To Make Money From Movies:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/movies

Grab my free 8 Step Goal Achievement Plan by sending a blank email to:
mailto:transform@getresponse.com

Monday, October 15, 2007

Issue 439 - 25 Years Of The CD

Hi,
I hope everything is ok where you are.

I had to smile this morning when I read Martin Avis's newsletter - he has the sniffles at the moment, and is subject to some derision in his female dominated household - the dreaded word 'manflu' is being bandied about!

He says he doesn't like that word, but I actually do like it - it's an efficient way of summing up the idea that some men (not Martin of course!) claim they have the flu when in fact they just have the odd sniffle.
To take the idea further, it's something that only men do, that women are much more capable of having the sniffles and just getting on with it.

Personally I think it's to do with childbirth - if a woman is capable of going through a process which I liken to passing a medicine ball, then the odd sniff is not something to get worked up about.

I mentioned that to a friend of mine who is a mother, and she said my concept of passing a medicine ball was way off the mark, that it was more like trying to pass a television!
Widescreen.
Plasma.
With legs.
Turned on.

On the subject of women, I must just note that next week a space shuttle is due to go up with only the 2nd woman commander.
It will dock with the space station which has itself just seen a newly arrived woman commander.
It's the first time both vehicles will be commanded by women, and although the women in the space programme say it's nothing really worth noting, the fact that it's the first time makes it worthy of note by definition.

Ok, today's subject is a self improvement one, to do with change, the forcing of it, the acceptance of it, and the lasting effects of it.

Oct 1982, the first CD is sold.
Technology is normally credited as born when the first sale is made, but some quarters argue that it's the first production.
If I stick with October, the general consensus is the 25th anniversary of the CD in 2007.

Sony had lost a technology war when the Betamax video lost out to VHS in popularity, so really needed its' new CD to take hold.
The idea behind it was that it produced a much clearer sound on a much sturdier product, and was aimed at the classical music market.

The take up was slow though, as people were firmly entrenched in the concept of vinyl and tape.
The idea that people would replace their vast collections with a new version was not widely accepted.
In fact I still have well over 600 hundred vinyl LPs, and still believe that the artwork of a 12 inch cover was far better than on a tiny CD cover.
I was not alone, and the CD had a hard time trying to be accepted, and when I started working at EMI Records in London, at the end of 1987, this was still the case.
(Incidentally, that story of how I got the job is also in my 'Transform Your Life' book!)

As the decade ticked by into the 90s, I noticed something strange.
The music industry was not prepared to wait any longer for a natural change, so decided to force the issue.
They would release new albums by major artists with a limited supply of vinyl.
Then they could point to the sales figures, and show a rise in the sales of CD, and a drop in the sales of vinyl - of course without mentioning that those sales had been manipulated by limiting the supply of vinyl versions available!

Was it effective?
Absolutely!
The consumer didn't like it, but if they wanted the music they had to go with the CD.
It had taken many years, but the concept stuck, and of course the CD is now as taken for granted as the telephone, so much so that it would hard to imagine life *without* the technology of the CD.

The self improvement angle is an easy one to spot.
Sometimes we don't want change, sometimes it is forced on us, but just as often the result of the change isn't as bad as we'd predicted, and we adapt to it surprisingly well.
If we can get used to forcing change onto ourselves, we can speed up change in our lives that we might have thought impossible.

Ok, that's it for this week - are you scared of change, or do you just have the self improvement version of manflu?

'Til Next Time,
Health and Happiness,
Gordon
P.S. If you know anyone else who you think would enjoy the Great Gordino Newsletter, please pass it on to them!

Transform Your Life In 21 Days:
http://www.transformyourlifenow.com

How To Make Money From Sport:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/sport

Monday, October 08, 2007

Issue 438 - You Probably Won't Understand Me

Hi,
I hope Monday finds you well.

Spoilt for choice with newsletter topics again this week, and I've called this issue 'You Probably Won't Understand Me.'

I got married 18 years ago this week, and I know for a fact my wife didn't understand me.
She also used to tell me I was nosey. Well she didn't actually tell me, I read it in her diary.
Not really.

I remember the day clearly, it was like a fairytale - Grimm.
Not really.

The vicar said 'Do you take this woman?'
I answered 'Would you? No! So why try and palm her off onto me then?'
Not really.

We had arranged for the organist to play Vivaldi's Four Season's, but when we got there he was playing 'Happy Talk'.
Really.

The reason I based this issue on understanding is not in fact about my ex, but about my writing style.
I tried a new site during the week that allows you to submit work for customers to buy.
My first article was rejected, then my 2nd, and eventually all the first 15 articles were rejected!
Having never had my writing rejected before, I knew something was up, so I enquired further.

It turned out that my writing was seemingly full of incorrect grammar, particularly with my use of the comma, and I consistently failed to express my ideas clearly enough.
Now I admit my writing style is loose and conversational, but that's deliberate, and I happen to think it *helps* rather than hinders clarity.

However this site was having none of it, and even after I submitted rewrites, it was still rejected because I 'needed to be clearer.'

Hmm....
Ok, at this point I had 3 options -
1. Throw my toys out of the pram, demand they accept my work, and do my best to make trouble for them.

2. Rewrite my work over and over until it fitted their requirements.

3. Accept that it's their site, I can't force them to accept it, and move on.

Guess which one I chose?
I chose the 3rd option, because after having done 3 rewrites on the same piece, it was clear that my style was not going to work at that site.
I had tried, but could now move on without getting involved in any negative, and pointless, debates.

I've always assumed my newsletter is understandable, but if it isn't feel free to let me know.
Although if I haven't expressed that clearly enough, you won't have understood!
Sometimes you have to find a new way to express yourself, to make the same point in a different way, without blaming someone else if they don't grasp what you mean first time around.

Ok, haven't talked about wealth creation for a while, and I want to promote a book that's been released today.
I have a new project in the works myself, but this one does a good job.

It's called '20 Ways To Make $100 In A Day'.
It's a 247 pager, not a flimsy report, and written by 20 internet marketers who are the type that happily talk to their clients, not the aloof ones that wouldn't answer your email.
It costs $27, which can't be bad to show you 20 ways to make $100 in a day.

The idea is that the huge figures that some gurus throw about just put people off, but the figure of $100 is nice and workable, and can make huge changes in someone's life, achieveable quickly and easily, and can also be done around busy life schedules.

I have another new product looming, about the 3 most devious tricks Internet Marketers use on a customer in any niche to ethically grab their money.
It's so new I haven't even decided the price yet, but if you grab '20 Ways...' from me, then I'll give it to you for free.

Sound fair?
Here's the link for '20 Ways To Make $100 In A Day':
http://pathway100.com/?e=thegreatgordino

Ok, I reckon that's about it for this week - if someone doesn't understand you, are you trying hard enough, and how does $100 a day sound?

'Til Next Time,
Health and Happiness,
Gordon
P.S. If you know anyone else who you think would enjoy the Great Gordino Newsletter, please pass it on to them!

Transform Your Life In 21 Days:
http://www.transformyourlifenow.com

20 Ways To make $100 A Day:
http://pathway100.com/?e=thegreatgordino

Grab my free 8 Step Goal Achievement Plan by sending a blank email to:
mailto:transform@getresponse.com

Monday, October 01, 2007

Issue 437 - Do You Have Enough Fun?

Hi,
I hope everything is ok where you are.

Another week of having difficulty picking my subject - I know I have the theme, which is about smiling and having fun, but I have lots of angles I could go for.
Plus it's the 25th anniversary of the CD, plus the Christmas stuff is in the shops....plus the curling season starts this week...plus a new marathon record in Berlin of 2 hours 4 minutes...where to start...

Ok, I'm just going to go with one, to do with the adventure of life.

With all the talk of a possible snap election here in Britain, I can't help thinking of when I stood in 2005.
I came a solid 5th, and in the run up to the election I got a phone call from a man called George.
He said 'My name's George', which was helpful, 'and I'm calling from Japan,' which was interesting.

My name had been passed to him by a mutual friend, and he was interested in the idea of standing.
George lives and works in Japan, but is thinking of coming back to Britain, and was over for a visit, so I went to see him last week.

He showed me his potential election flyer, and on it it says that he is in the Guiness Book of World Records 8 times!
One of them is for the longest unbroken march, when he walked across the Western Hemisphere!
As you can imagine that made my eyes light up!
Not only sharing my ideas about independant MPs, but taking my ideas about life adventure way beyond what I would do.

His name's George Meegan if you fancy searching his story.

A friend passed away this week gone, who I knew from the local music scene.
Chrissie had battled illness for a long time, but in the time I knew her, she was one of the most genuinely friendly people who genuinely liked watching and making music.

She encouraged me as much as anyone when I took up the bass, and laughed loudest at the fact that I still only use 2 strings, over 2 years later!
She booked up and went on several music based courses, simply because she wanted to, and it gave the end part of her life a huge amount of pleasure and fun.

You can see my direction here - go with your ideas in life, none of us know when life will end, and following our fun ideas, however far out they may seem, can make our time here rich and full.

Talking of fun and smiling, my brother sent me a youtube video which made me smile when I saw it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IOyEw9bT8yQ

This takes some serious practice, and I wouldn't be surprised if the chap concerned is single like I am!

Ok, that's it for this week, maybe I'll cover the CD's 25th plus the Christmas shopping next week, and remember this week's thought - are you denying yourself fun and adventure?

'Til Next Time,
Health and Happiness,
Gordon
P.S. If you know anyone else who you think would enjoy the Great Gordino Newsletter, please pass it on to them!

Transform Your Life In 21 Days:
http://www.transformyourlifenow.com

How to make money from sport:
http://www.gordonbryan.com/sport

Grab my free 8 Step Goal Achievement Plan by sending a blank email to:
mailto:transform@getresponse.com