Listen up Googbies - Simple Rules for Online Success

With all of the cyber-whining going on in blogs, webmaster forums, and at virtual water coolers all over the net I thought it might be helpful to post some of the highlights from an excellent post I discovered from Ahmed Bilal entitled '10 Simple Rules for Online Success':

Rule #1. Stop Whining
My translation:
Your whining about things you can't control and I can't help you control isn't helpful to you, me, or anyone else. So stop yer bitchin'!

Rule #2. Channel Your Energies
My translation:
IF you have a setback, or someone pisses you off, don't expend a lot of negative energy dwelling on it. Deal with it. If it's something you can correct go about correcting it. If it's water under the damn, wave goodbye to it and move on. Focus your energies on positive things and actions that will move you towards where you want to go.

Rule #3. Focus
My translation:
Focus on the tasks you need to focus on to succeed in reaching your goals. What separates highly successful people from those who never achieve their goals is in part their ability to focus on accomplishing the tasks necessary to succeed. Stop letting distractions interfere with progress. Stop letting friends, online and offline, throw you off course. We all want to be happy and enjoy our friendships, but you need to control your own time and be sure to invest enough of it towards meeting your goals.

Rule #4. Find Yourself and Your Target
My translation:
Identify appropriate targets to aim for. Know your strengths and talents and be sure they're harmonious with your business objectives. Set goals. How much do you want to earn a month? What do you need to do to reach your goals? Do what you need to do to reach your goals.

Rule #5. Self Discipline
My translation:
Success requires work. Work takes time. Yes, I've heard that working smart is better then working hard, but even working smart takes time. Set a schedule for your work (smart work or otherwise) and stick to it. If you prefer to "be your own boss" then start bossing!

Rule #6. Consistent Effort
My translation:
If you're confident your goals and targeted objectives are spot on then keep working towards succeeding in getting the job done. Don't give up. Don't get thrown off course. Keep plugging away.

Rule #7. Other People's Resources
My translation:
As much as we all want to get things 'just right' by doing them ourselves we need to learn to outsource certain tasks to people who can do them better, faster, or cheaper. Don't spend $50 an hour time doing $5 an hour work. Don't do design if your design talent is non-existent.

Rule #8. Always Improve
My translation:
Constantly trying to improve, even small improvements, is necessary to succeed in life, business, and relationships. Sure some of the 'improvements' will be steps backwards, but overall constant efforts to improve will be recognized by those who matter and will be rewarded.

Rule #9. Share
My translation:
Share what you know, your opinions, your ideas. This can also be called networking and it's invaluable to succeeding.

Rule #10. Act Now
My translation:
Act now!

Rule #11. Read #1 again!

Blogosphere News

Came across this site and found it pretty useful. Blogosphere News offers links to articles covering topics dear to Googbie hearts like page rank, design, internet marketing, etc....

I followed one link to the article 'The Significance of Page Rank' and found it particularly interesting.

As most Googbies are aware there are a lot of blogs out there with page rank that they're envious of. Well it seems the recent Google attack on sites' page rank wasn't limited to just web directories, the attack was part of a web-wide assault on all types of sites including blogs. Apparently a lot of blogs got whacked by Google every bit as hard as web directories like Alive Directory, Aviva Directory and my very own Big Guide and Web Directory got whacked.

On a side note I was quite surprised that a blog of mine that I had all but forgotten actually had it's page rank go UP. I have no idea why, but the PR of my Security Software Stop blog went from a PR2 to PR3. While it's like finding a $20 bill in a winter coat not worn for 8 months what I dislike about the change is not having any clue what caused it to increase! Seems the way to get page rank is to place a site in a dark closet and completely forget about it.

Google Acquires GrandCentral

Google has acquired GrandCentral, a company offering innovative voice communications services to Googbies and others who like to stay on the forefront of technology that actually does make living life easier.

GrandCentral allows you to have one permanent phone number that rings up to 6 different phones or combination of your choosing. It also allows you to listen to voicemails while they're being left so in effect you can screen your calls. Ever lose a voicemail because it expired? Their service lets you save voicemails indefinitely.

For a complete picture of what GrandCentral's services entail visit their Website at GrandCentral.com. Their blog also expands on their service.

Did I mention it was free? It is. For now you can reserve a spot in line and hopefully before too long we'll get an email inviting us to join and get access to their free service.

Pagerank Predictors

If you find yourself entering your URLs into a pagerank predictor tool like a little kid shaking a Christmas present on Christmas eve... I have bad news.

They are not accurate. Stop wasting your time.

I don't have scientific proof of this, but I did read a few dozen old posts by googbies where they proclaimed their pagerank was predicted to be "5" or "6".... After visiting these sites I can say with certainty that the tools simply are not accurate. In only a few cases the pagerank was as high as had been predicted. Not coincidentally these same googbies had in many cases become far less active in the forum where they had been beating their chests.

My advice: Don't waste your time using a pagerank predictor tool. Use that time to post something useful in a forum or your blog. And of course continue adding your site's link to directories and other Websites so google sees growth.

Googbies is born!

Gather round fellow googbies for we have a place to call home now.

Not sure if you're a googbie? Here are some signs that you are indeed one of us. If you:
- have more then one Website
- have google, alexa, del.icio.us, or any other tool loaded into your browser's toolbar that you actually use
- immediately check a Website's pagerank when you visit it for the first time
- find it hard to focus on any one task for long periods of time
- wake up and check the pagerank of your Websites before you do anything else during the much anticipated pagerank update period

If you can relate to the above you're a googbie my friend. Welcome home.