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

Whether writing an article for your blog or writing an article for other ezines, you can write unique articles that people will want to read. It is not as difficult as you might think. When I first started thinking about writing articles, I thought I didn’t have enough to say (although my wife will tell you I talk too much). I kept thinking that I was not a writer and I don’t know all of the big fancy words that make you sound intelligent. But the truth of the matter is, many of your readers won’t know those “fancy” words either and they really aren’t needed for a good article.

It is all about the content. If you know more about something than someone else, you are an expert. All you need to do is write an article about it. Write some of the details about what you know and explain the details as if your reader was sitting right in front of you and you were having a conversation.

Don’t worry about it being perfect. If you do, you will rewrite your article to death and you will never be happy with it. You will probably never publish it either. So, just write what you have to say and publish it. Don’t think about it too much. You will never be perfect. I’m still not a professional author by any means but I keep getting better each article I write. As long as the information is interesting for your readers, they will enjoy it and come back for more.

People are constantly searching for information. They are not looking for a perfectly written manuscript with flawless grammar and punctuation, they just want to find out about information they are looking for. Give it to them in a way they can understand and relate to.

- 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

Looking back on decisions I have made in the past and why I failed or quit at anything was quite often due a quiet little creeping creature called doubt. It usually isn’t obvious at the time but its grip is strong and deadly. Doubt will absolutely kill anything worth while if you let it.

Doubt creeps into your thoughts saying things like “you can’t write a good article”, “you’re not an expert”, or “no one will ever buy your product”. If you listen to doubt, you will never succeed. You will always come up with a reason not to do something. However, all of these reasons are just excuses. Nothing will ever get done when you dwell on what you can’t do.

Remember one of the most important rules is to “just do it”. If you wait to long or you try to make everything perfect, you will start letting doubt creep in and you will start focusing on the negatives and you will paralyze yourself and you won’t do anything. You will convince yourself that it wouldn’t have worked anyway. Once you realize you are sliding down the slippery slope of doubt, STOP IT! Focus on the positive and JUST DO IT!

- Hill Robertson

I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!

Take some time to spend with your family and loved ones. Think about all of the blessings you have. We take so many things for granted each and every day. Appreciate all the little things in life……..

Have some turkey and pumpkin pie. Enjoy spending time with your family and friends.

How would you like it to be like Thanksgiving every day? To be off from your JOB every day…. To spend time with your family every day…… You can have it that way if you build a successful Internet business……

If you haven’t already, sign up for this blog and start learning how to be financially free……

Happy Thanksgiving!

- Hill Robertson

Every time I talk to people about how they can become financially free with a successful Internet business, I get all kinds of excuses as to why they can’t do it.  I constantly hear the same old excuses like “I don’t have any time to run a business.”  The interesting thing is that the excuses given are always REASONS to have an Internet business.  If you don’t have time now, you probably never will.  Just make the time and build the business.  Then, the business will give you financial freedom from your current situation and you will have MORE time to do what you want.  Just take your excuses and realize that they are reasons to build the business.  If you don’t have enough time with your family, build the business and then you will have more time with your family.

When I started my Internet business, I did not have time.  However, I knew that I would never have the time if I did not do something.  I did not want to take away any family time so I basically just gave up some sleep every night to build the business.  One of the great things about an Internet business is that you can do it anytime around the clock.  So, my daily schedule was to get up around 7AM and help get the kids to school, go to my JOB for most of the day, come home and eat dinner with my family, play with the kids and help with their homework, give them baths, put them in bed, and have a Bible lesson and prayers.  Then I would spend time with my wife for a couple of hours until about 10PM when she would get tired and go to bed.  Then, that’s when I would start on the Internet business until about 2AM.  I would then go to bed and start the process again the next day.  So, really the only thing I missed out on was a little bit of sleep - not a big deal.  Also, if I was really tired at work one day, I would go take a quick nap in my car during my lunch break if I needed it.

Your situation is probably different than mine so you will have to find what works for you.  So, stop making excuses and look for reasons to start your Internet business and your journey to freedom.  Subscribe to this blog if you haven’t already to be notified with updates.

- Hill Robertson

As we begin the week of Thanksgiving, use this time of thankfulness and spending time with family and loved ones to make note of the things that are really important in your life. Think about what makes each person in your life special. Focus on your blessings and forget about your problems. Thanksgiving is a great time to get away from your JOB and many times get away from your normal routine and environment. This can greatly help you focus on what is really important.

Take the time to really analyze what you are doing with your life and where you are going in your future. If you don’t like where you are or where you are going, make positive changes now so you can begin following the path to your dreams. Plan out how you are going to reach your goals and break it down into smaller realistic goals so you can take it one step at a time.

Be sure your list your priorities and make sure that your priorities are what the SHOULD be. Then do what it takes to spend your time, money, and efforts according to your priorities. Keep moving forward toward your goal. Don’t give up or become to lazy to improve yourself. In a year from now around next Thanksgiving, take another look at yourself and see how much closer you are to your goals.

Where will you be next year? Make the decision now or you may be in the same situation next year……

- Hill Robertson

Have you ever noticed that the more successful and seemingly wise a person is, the more they seem to listen instead of talk? One of the first things you learn in relationship building is to listen to the other person whether you are selling a product or just being a friend. You will learn a whole lot more about them and their needs (and how you can meet their needs) by listening to them. They will eventually tell you what they want in some way or another. Don’t talk too much, they are generally not interested in hearing all about you, they want you to know their “pain” in hopes that you can help them. They don’t want to hear how you have helped other people and what your new fancy-shmancy product is, they just want to know how you can help remove their pain. Nothing else matters to them.

Let them tell you their pain in their own words. Just ask some simple questions to them and then listen to their responses and you will soon know how to help them with their pain. Ask them leading questions like, “What do you want to do about it?” and “How does that make you feel?” They will sell themselves and be excited to do business with you since you listened to their needs and didn’t try to push some product on them.

This principle is also highly recommended to be used between you and your spouse. If your wife wants to talk to you about something, you need to listen. She is usually not wanting advice or especially criticism at that time. She probably just wants you to acknowledge her issue or possibly vent her feelings to the most important person in her life - YOU. You’ll certainly not bode well if you respond in any harsh or potentially non-caring way. Show your genuine interest by listening intently, asking proper leading questions and you will quickly find out her pain and you should know how best to respond.

For successful relationships whether professional or personal, listen first and don’t speak too quickly. Think before you speak. In other words……….

Shut Up and Listen!

- Hill Robertson