For an internet business, we are always talking about making the most of your time and not wasting it. We talk about not getting distracted and really focusing on what your want to achieve and how to achieve it. A lot of the key ingredients to a successful internet business are not so much major overhauls of your current ways of doing things but are sometimes just a bunch of subtle changes or minor habit replacements. Much of the time you business strategies have good principles, they just need a different focus or a little nudge in the right direction.

This time of year, everywhere you go, you are bombarded with attention to the upcoming new year. You see all kinds of advertisements trying to take advantage of people’s new year’s resolutions. One of the biggest new year’s resolutions that people make is related to fitness. Many people set new year’s resolutions of losing weight, exercising more or just being more healthy. Companies that sell weight loss programs, exercise machines, and health club contracts thrive on these resolutions and make the most of it at year’s end. Haven’t you noticed a lot more of those fancy-schmancy, super-duper, ab-crunching, muscle-building, fat-eliminating, energy-boosting, health-saving, exercise contraption infomercials claiming you will be the model of fitness if you just but their product?

Now why am I telling you, “Don’t waste your time on new year’s resolutions.” Because new years resolutions are made and broken. The intentions are usually good. It is a worthy attempt at being better. However, resolutions are normally set with a “TRY” attitude. A try attitude is a failing attitude. You cannot TRY to do something and accomplish it. Think about it a little bit. In fact, let’s do a little test. Look at an object you have sitting around you such as a pencil. Now, try to pick the pencil up. Go ahead, try to pick it up………

Did you pick it up? If you did, you did not TRY to pick it up, you DID pick it up. Do you see what I mean? Don’t try to do something, just DO IT. As the great philosopher Yoda once said, “Do or do not, there is no try.”

So, do we just throw away making new year’s resolutions all together? Not really… I’m just saying change your focus a little bit. Instead of new year’s resolutions, you need to set goals. Successful people set goals. So, set a GOAL that you want to reach by the end of the new year. Don’t just leave it at that. You will keep procrastinating and you will see the goal as too big and too far away to reach. Before you know it, you are waiting for the end of another year to come so you can set another resolution that you won’t achieve. You need to break it up into smaller attainable goals.

Maybe you want to set smaller monthly goals. You may even want to break it down into weekly goals. Once you get the goals smaller and more attainable you will more likely believe that you can reach your goals. You will begin to form good habits and you will have a sense of accomplishment with each small goal you reach. Obviously, you need to take action on accomplishing your goals. It does no good to set them and do nothing to reach them. If you do take action and don’t quit, you will soon be on your way to success.

Set your goals, break them down into smaller goals, and take action to achieve them. Don’t waste your time on new year’s resolutions.

Happy New Year!

- Hill Robertson

I’ve found that one of the best times to really get to know your kids is when they are snuggled in bed with the lights out. I like to listen to their prayers each night. You can tell a lot about their heart and what is important to them. You can also learn a lot about yourself and how you are raising them by the little things they say in their prayers.

Take the time to listen to your children. They are your responsibility and they are watching your every move and picking up on every little thing you do - both the good and the bad. Whether you like it or not, they will follow in your footsteps. Be sure the footsteps they are following are paving the way of truth, morals, and Godliness. Train them in the ways they shall go in their youth and when they are old they shall not depart from them.

You only have a few fleeting years to really mold their hearts and minds. They will learn from someone whether it is you, a daycare worker, a babysitter, a schoolteacher, a peer, or anyone else you choose to allow them to spend time with. Choose your relationships wisely. Set a good example and spend as much quality and quantity time with them as you can.

Be the best example you can to them. If you are doing the right things and living a wholesome life, that is what they will learn. If you are not living a wholesome life, then that is what they will learn. How do you want your children to turn out when they are older? The way you live today is the way they will live when they grow up. Think about it. Change your ways if necessary.

Even when the kids are fussing, screaming, and getting on your nerves, you should realize that they are a blessing. Just think about it. In 20 years or so when they are out of the house, all of the little fussing and screaming will not matter. You will be wishing they were little children again running around the house in their pajamas or underwear fussing and screaming again. You’ll actually miss those moments. You will be sitting in your quiet lonely house wishing you could do it all over again. So, enjoy it today. Enjoy all of the little times that seem so annoying… You will cherish them for the rest of your life.

- Hill Robertson

As we approach the end of another year, take some time to reflect on the past year. Take a look at the goals you set for yourself at the beginning of the year. (You did set your goals didn’t you?) Are you where you want to be? Are you where you planned to be? Did you meet your goals? Did you surpass your goals?

Analyze what you did (or didn’t do) throughout the year and why you surpassed or missed your goals. Take notice of how closely you followed your plan throughout the year. Be honest with yourself. If you make excuses to yourself, you will not learn anything from this past year. Even if you did miserably, if you are honest with yourself, you can see why. Don’t make excuses about anything. You are where you are because of the choices you made.

Whatever your results were this year - good or bad - they don’t matter for the next year. If your results were less than what you wanted, you can change your behavior to get better results. If your results were what you wanted, you can’t just sit back and relax, you need to follow the same type of plan that worked for you. You can even work on improving it this coming year.  Just don’t think the work is done.  There is more work to do.  You are just now building the momentum.  You need to keep adding to the momentum.  Don’t relax and lose the momentum.

Keep pushing forward no matter what happened in the past. Any “failures” are just one more way that doesn’t work. It means you are one step closer to something that WILL work. Never give up. Focus on the positive.

Start planning the coming year now. Set your goals and break them down into smaller attainable goals that you can build on. Be ready to hit the ground running on Jan. 1st. Make it the best year you have ever had. You can do it. Plan on it……

- Hill Robertson

I wanted to wish everyone a wonderful Merry Christmas!

May you and your family have a blessed and safe Christmas. Spend some time with your loved ones and let them know how special they are to you and how much you appreciate them. Focus on the positive things and think of others first. Count your many blessings. Don’t worry about what gifts or how many you receive for Christmas, focus on all of the many blessings you already have and be a blessing to others.

Now go enjoy some turkey with stuffing and gravy… Have a little sweet potatoes and top it off with some pumpkin pie and whipped cream! But most importantly, spend some quality time with your family, friends, and loved ones.

Merry Christmas!

- Hill Robertson

This evening I was at the local mall doing some Christmas shopping with my kids. While they were looking at the different toys, I noticed a mother with her two children. (I love to observe people - especially during the Christmas season). One of her kids was asking about one of the toys she was looking at. The mother quickly snapped at the child and with a fairly loud tone exclaimed, “I heard you the first 5 times you asked me.” She then followed it up with, “This is miserable!” as she stomped off with her children in the shopping cart.

I was quite surprised at how she acted to her children. She must have been having a frustrating day and was probably not happy dealing with the Christmas shopping traffic and crowded stores but there was no reason for her to treat her children that way. Sure, they may have been getting on her nerves, but to yell at them and say how miserable she was does not help the kids in any way.

We must realize that we are an example in all that we do to everyone around us. I’m sure she didn’t realize that I saw what had happened but she was being an example and I knew I would not want to be around someone with an attitude like that. She was also being a horrible example for those kids.

I always try to look at the good side of things. The good side of this incident was that it made me appreciate my family more and to even more realize that our every action is closely watched by our children and they will follow in our footsteps when they get older.

Are you setting a good example for those around you? Are you doing positive things that lead to success in all areas of life or are you focusing on negative things and bringing people down? Think about your attitude and actions and what impact you have on others. You will have an impact whether it is positive or negative. You are the only one that can control your attitude and actions. Focus on the positive for your own sake and for the sake of everyone around you.

- Hill Robertson

Some of the same people that complain to me about not having time to build a business are the same people that watch 3 or 4 hours of television every night. The truth is, most people just to the least amount of work to get by (if they even do that much). They usually just go to work and do the least amount of work possible until the end of the work day. Then, they go home, and plop themselves down on the couch or their favorite recliner and waste the evening away watching television.

For the most part, there is not much benefit at all to watching television. It basically robs us of valuable time that could be much more productively used on spending quality time with family or building a business. Most of the television programs promote immoral activities or at best provide empty entertainment.

There is a time and place for relaxation and entertainment but don’t squander away quality opportunities now and regret it in the future. Just think about it…. You can use that 2 or 3 hours (or more) per night that most people waste on mindless television on creating a successful internet business. After working diligently at it for a while, you can generate an amazing income that will allow you to do anything you want to do. It is your choice what you do with your time. You can sit in that recliner every night and work at your job for the rest of your life and have nothing to leave to your family when you die or you can shut off that future-robbing television, build a successful internet business, make your wildest dreams come true and pass on some wealth to your family when you pass away.

Only YOU can decide your future and you WILL make the decision…… One way or the other….. Whether you want to or not…..

- Hill Robertson

There are a lot of things that make having your own business very attractive. Having your own internet based business can have even more advantages than your own “traditional” business. It can give you a tremendous confidence about your future and a great amount of joy as you fulfill your wildest dreams.

Having your own business of any type can give you a great sense of control over your future and potential security that you may not have at a JOB. You can better control your income (and your own raises) once your business is thriving. If it is built properly, you can eventually have more flexibility in the hours you work. You can even design it where you work less hours and earn more money! With your own business, you can gain great freedoms that you will never achieve in a typical JOB.

With an internet based business you will probably have extremely low expenses compared to traditional brick and mortar businesses. You also have the flexibility of running your business from anywhere in the world (that has internet access). Typically all you need is a laptop and an internet connection. You can also have more flexibility in the hours you work. If you are a night owl like I am, you can do your email communications in the wee hours of the morning instead of having to be right by a phone during “normal” business hours in many cases. This can be a huge advantage to your family life. You can spend the day with your family during their “normal” hours and run your business at night while your kids and spouse are asleep. This is what allowed me to start my internet business without having to sacrifice quality family time.

A lot of the online tools and services you need to run an internet business are very affordable and can be very automated saving you time and money so you can focus on the important details of your business.

Your potential customers are limitless. Virtually the entire world is online and more and more people are using the internet for all types of products and services with more and more people getting online every day.

An internet business can bring you joy and freedoms you never before imagined. You can even start one up in your spare time to see if it is something you would enjoy doing without spending much money at all.

Do you want to start up an internet business? Do you want to earn an extra income in your spare time? That’s what this blog is all about. Subscribe to this blog by filling out your name and email on the right side of this blog to get the latest updates and information on running a successful internet business.

- Hill Robertson

As I walk out my front door each morning, a fresh crisp nip is in the air. My nose catches subtle scents of nearby chimneys quietly permeating the air as families are nestled in their cozy homes to the warmth of a relaxing, crackling fire. There is a stronger sense of love and compassion with everyone you meet. You can hear an extra special excitement in the laughter of children as they play all around the neighborhood.

The warm glow of a fireplace with yummy toasted marshmallows and roasted chestnuts brings back memories of many youthful past Christmas seasons with many loved ones gathered around. Some of those precious people are still with us and remind us of the “good ol’ days” while others have already passed on leaving us with their memories and stories to pass on to our young ones.It is a time of joy, sharing, caring, tradition, and fond memories.

It is a time of smores and hot chocolate. It is a time of bells, bows, and mistletoe. It is a time of playing mall tag team with your spouse as one of you handles the kids while the other buys their gifts and hides them somewhere hoping that the kids will not find the gifts before Christmas. It is a time when your children make cardboard ornaments for the tree and finger paintings for the fridge. It is a time for receiving Christmas cards from every one you know and forgetting to get your Christmas cards done in time to send out.

It is a time for focusing on what is really important in your life and maybe getting a glimpse of your purpose in life. Even though it is an extremely busy time, you somehow find a way to enjoy the peace and serenity of the season and you get to spend quality time with your family and make some special memories to last a lifetime. You will see the innocent excitement in your children’s eyes and you will feel the need and love in the touch of their little hands. Your heart will melt as you want to be a better parent and you want to spend more time with them.

You will renew your love for your spouse all over again and you will remember why you love them so much and why you fall in love with them over and over again. You will realize you need to spend more time with your family.

As you think about these things and get caught up in the moment, think about what you can do to spend more time with the ones you love most. Make the necessary changes to do what is most important. It is your family and your life. It is your choice.

- Hill Robertson

Well, I’ve been a little bit behind updating this blog over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend. My wife’s mom was not able to make it over for our planned Thanksgiving lunch because she thought she ate something bad. She had a lot of stomach pain and was in no shape to be eating turkey. So, we were going to go over to her place that evening for a Thanksgiving dinner if she felt better which she did. We went to her house and had some great turkey, mashed potatoes, rolls, and of course, pumpkin pie (with a lot of whipped cream…. Yum…..) We had a great visit and went home and went to bed. We had planned taking the kids and having a family day together on Friday (away from the mad shopping rush at the stores). But our plans changed.

We got a call that my wife’s mother did not do well through the night and was taken to the hospital. It turned out that she had appendicitis (and the hospital staff was slim due to the holiday). By the time she got into surgery, her appendix had ruptured. Fortunately, the doctors caught it in time. She had to stay in the hospital an extended amount of time (she should be out tomorrow). We are blessed that it wasn’t worse.

So, we are especially thankful during this time of Thanksgiving. Take time to think about your loved ones and be thankful for them. I know holidays can sometime be stressful and some of your relatives may be ones you don’t necessarily get along with. But, they too probably have something positive you can be thankful for. Focus on the positive and the good in people…… At least during this holiday season…….

- Hill Robertson