Blogging Gal

We all face writer’s block from time to time, but there are some great blogs that can inspire you and get those fingers moving again. One such site is Blogging Calendar, authored by David Cooley of CyberCoder fame.

Blogging Calendar is a new blog, started in November 2007. Its purpose is to provide writing ideas related to dates coming up on the calendar. Title and keyword suggestions are also provided.

Most of us are well aware of the major holidays, but Blogging Calendar also gives information on lesser known holidays and events, as well as important dates in history. Topics featured for November and December included Black Friday, Cyber Monday, the attack on Pearl Harbor, the death of John Lennon, and the landing of the Mayflower at Plymouth, Massachusetts.

Information on the International Consumer Electronics Show and the NFL Playoffs has already been posted for January.

Blogging Calendar would make a great addition to your feed aggregator. Even if you never run out of things to blog about, there is always some interesting information on the site. Take a moment to stop by and check it out, and tell David that Blogging Gal sent ya!

In order to introduce you to some great blogging resources, I have decided to review one blog from my blogroll each week.

If you have a blog that serves as a resource to other bloggers and you would like to be added to the blogroll, please contact me. I am interested in blogs that pertain to blogging - tips, tricks, news, reviews, etc. I do ask for a reciprocal link.

The first review will be posted tomorrow.

Help me build my RSS readership, and you could win a review of your blog and a 125 x 125 pixel ad spot for one month!

All you need to do is subscribe to my feed and leave a comment saying that you’ve done so. If you’re already subscribed, leave a comment to get your entry.

The contest will run until midnight on January 31st. At that time, I will select a winner through random.org. I will post a review of the winning blog during the first week of February. The winner will also receive a 125 x 125 pixel banner ad spot on this site for the entire month of February.

Good luck!

There are a number of options for online income - paid posts, banner and text link ad sales, Google Adsense, WidgetBucks, various other affiliate programs, and tip jars. Blog contests are another great way to score a few bucks - easy money that many bloggers completely overlook.

More and more blogs are jumping on the contest bandwagon, and cash prizes are often up for grabs. Entries are usually secured by simply subscribing to RSS feeds, writing short posts about the contests, or even just by leaving comments.

I regularly read several contest blogs. I enter the contests that catch my eye, and I’ve been fortunate enough to win three prizes so far - a day planner, an exclusive list of 200 recently expired domain names along with $10 to register one of them, and Charles Trippy’s Viral Video Fever DVD set.

Here are a few great contest resources.

Blog Contests on the Net

Contest Beat

My Blog Contest

The Prize Blog

Laura Williams’ Musings

A.B.C. - About Blog Contests

By subscribing to their feeds, you’ll stay up to date on the latest and greatest contest news in the blogosphere.

When entering contests, please keep the following tips in mind.

• Check your feeds daily, so that you never miss a great contest opportunity.
• Enter only those contests with prizes that interest you.
• To avoid disqualification, read the contest posts in their entirety before entering, and follow the directions exactly.

Good luck!

I’m sure you’ve all received emails from survey companies claiming that you can earn big bucks just by sitting at your computer and filling out questionnaires. I’m here to tell you not to get caught up in the scam. I recently signed up for one such survey company. As I took the first survey, I realized that nearly all the questions were attempts to subject me to unwelcome phone calls and emails.

“Do you feel that you are paying too much for auto insurance?”

“Have you received any quotes from competitive auto insurance companies during the past year?”

Well, you guessed it. Nearly every automobile insurance company on the face of the earth is now sending me a quote.

Sure, you’ll get a dollar or two for each survey you take, but it’s not worth the hassle. Prior to signing up with that survey company, I got 15 or 20 spam mails a day. Now I’m getting 200 or more. What makes it even worse is that during the course of the surveys, you are presented with dozens of opportunities to sign up with even more survey companies, each of them promising some sort of sign up bonus. It’s an endless cycle.

That being said, I have found one legitimate survey company – Harris Poll Online. I’ve actually been a member for several years, and I’ve never received any related spam. Harris Poll Online presents you with numerous survey opportunities, each worth a certain number of Hi-Points. You accumulate Hi-points and can cash them in for merchandise or gift cards from companies such as Best Buy and Barnes and Noble. It’s not cash, but it’s the next best thing. I’ve received lots of Best Buy gift cards in exchange for my Hi-Points. It’s a nice way to add to my DVD collection without tapping into my bank account!

Professional blogger Garry Conn is really shaking things up in the blogosphere with his post entitled Smorty Offers Advice On How To Thwart Page Rank Loss. Like most other articles on GarryConn Dot Com, this one was written to pass on helpful advice to those who would like to attain the level of success that Garry has worked so hard for. In the post, Garry injected a bit of his brand of humor, comparing paid posts to prostitution.

There are currently 51 comments on that post, with the majority of them being personal attacks on Garry. It has gone far beyond expressing opposing viewpoints. Readers apparently have nothing better to do than to scrutinize Garry’s blog and point out spelling and grammatical errors. Frankly, I am disappointed and ashamed at the level of immaturity displayed.

I recently signed up for SponsoredReviews, but when my readers began to warn me about the dangers associated with paid reviews, I chose not to participate. Garry’s article has convinced me that I made the right decision.

Perhaps Garry’s humor didn’t come across as he intended, but the article is informative and full of great advice. Those who choose to look at the photo instead of reading the article have missed the point.

On a personal note, Garry is a great friend of mine, and I’d like to point out that there are few in the blogosphere who can match his kind and caring nature. In addition to the advice he posts on Garry Conn Dot Com, he works with a number of bloggers on a more personal level, giving valuable tips without asking for anything in return. I am proud to call him a friend.

If you’d like to see what all the controversy is about, I encourage you to read Garry’s post and its comments.

Garry, thank you for continuing to pass on your wisdom!

The recent release of John Motson’s e-book, Domaining Manifesto, has created quite a stir in the blogosphere. In addition to teaching you everything you need to know about buying and managing domains for your personal use, Domaining Manifesto explains how to make a hefty profit through the business of domaining. Though many consider domaining to be an unethical practice, I commend John and the many others like him for recognizing opportunity and seizing it.

You can read a few reader opinions of domaining in the comments of my last post. Those comments prompted Garry Conn to write Domain Name Hijacking Makes Money But Is It Ethical? I encourage you all to read Garry’s post and share your own opinions.

I’m not particularly interested in breaking into the domaining business myself, but I love to learn about the issues affecting today’s bloggers, and like it or not, domaining is a hot topic! I have been reading Domaining Manifesto and plan to finish it tonight. It contains a wealth of information about domain names. Buying, selling, transferring, and parking are but a few of the topics covered. If you have ever purchased domains, or have plans to do so, I highly recommend this book.

John has made a very special discount available to my readers. Click here to purchase Domaining Manifesto. By entering coupon code tish, you’ll receive $10 off the retail price of $57.

My good friend John Motson of DNXpert.com has just released his new e-book, the Domaining Manifesto. In the book, John shares his secrets of successful domaining - “the business of buying, selling, developing, and monetizing Internet domain names.”

If you’re interested in building an impressive domain portfolio to generate a guaranteed steady stream of income, this book will teach you everything you need to know.

I am about halfway through the Domaining Manifesto myself, and I’m very impressed. The book is written in easy to understand language that is perfect for beginners as well as those more experienced in the business of domaining. It is well worth the investment.

For more information on the Domaining Manifesto, or to purchase the book, click here.

Like many of you, I spend entirely too much time online. Managing email, surfing the web, and writing for three blogs easily consumes several hours per day. I justify my Internet usage by the fact that I’m doing something productive, not harming anyone in the process, making a few extra dollars, and darn it - I’m just having fun! But when does “fun” cross the line and become an addiction?

I recently read an article about Internet addiction in HR Magazine, a publication of the Society of Human Resource Management. As an HR professional, I am quite aware of the growing concern of Internet abuse in the workplace, but I had never really thought of Internet use as being a legitimate addiction that can severely disrupt both professional and personal lives. When I read about Renae, a state government analyst who spends six of her eight daily work hours surfing the net, I decided to do some further research on the topic.

According to a 2006 study by Stanford University School of Medicine, one in eight Americans exhibits signs of Internet addiction. The typical affected individual is a single, college-educated white male in his 30s. He spends approximately 30 hours per week on “nonessential computer use.” Elias Aboujaoude, Clinical Assistant Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, and Director of Stanford’s Impulse Control Disorders Clinic, believes that Internet addiction is not unlike substance abuse or other impulse-control disorders. Sufferers experience “a repetitive, intrusive and irresistible urge to perform an act that may be pleasurable in the moment but that can lead to significant problems on the personal and professional levels.”

The Center for Internet Addiction Recovery defines the warning signs of Internet addiction as:

• compulsive use of the Internet
• preoccupation with being online
• lying or hiding the extent or nature of online behavior
• inability to control or curb online behavior

Forms of Internet abuse include cybersex and cyberporn, online affairs, eBay, online gambling, compulsive surfing, and multi-user role playing games. I find it interesting that blogging wasn’t mentioned.

National surveys indicate that more than 50% of Internet addicts also suffer from some other form of addiction - usually drugs, alcohol, smoking, or sex. Many of them also battle emotional problems such as depression and anxiety. Female internet addicts focus their online efforts on chatting and shopping, whereas men participate in games, porn, and gambling.

The Center for Internet Addiction Recovery offers a number of services and resources, including a Recovery Blog and a podcast, to help those suffering from problematic Internet use. If excessive Internet use is creating problems in your daily life, please take a moment to check out the links I have provided.

As for me, I have no time for that. I still have several hours of blogging left to do!