10 Steps to Happily Ever After

Do you know what all happy and healthy marriages have in common? In every one of them you will find two people committed to making each other happy. You will find a man who cherishes his wife and puts her needs above his own, and you will find a wife who respects and trusts her man. We live in very selfish times. Pop-psychology messages are everywhere in the media encouraging us to love ourselves, do right by ourselves, and generally please ourselves first. If you really want a happy marriage, don't buy into that type of self-centered thinking. Instead, try these 10 time-tested techniques and experience the happiness, peace, and tranquility of a healthy marriage.

1. Make time for each other. It's so easy in our hyper-busy modern lifestyles to forget to set aside a little time to enjoy each others company. Start a weekly tradition of setting a date for the two of you to be together doing something you both enjoy. Keep it simple. Take a nice walk together. Sip coffee together in a cozy coffeehouse. Talk to each other, reminisce, and get to know each other again.

 

2. Take time off from each other. Give each other space and time to work on hobbies and personal interests. When you have an interesting project to work on, you will feel more fulfilled and you will be a more interesting person.

3. Make little romantic gestures. Remember to compliment your spouse. Leave a little love note for them to find once in awhile. Celebrate the day you first met. Send flowers for no particular reason. You should continuously make little deposits in your spouse's emotional bank account. The return on your investment will be incredible.

4. Fight fair. Don't argue in front of other people. Don't insult each other or each others families. Never threaten divorce, and never go to bed angry. Let the little things go, and don't make a big deal out of every disagreement. Before arguing, think; is this really going to matter in the long run?

5. Take interest in what interests your spouse. Watch their favorite shows with them. Read their favorite book, so you can talk about it with them. Encourage them to develop their talents.

6. Listen to your spouse. Husbands, remember that women need to express their feelings. Be a good sport and just listen. Don't interrupt, or get distracted. Empathize with her. Let her know that you can relate to what she's feeling. Ladies, please remember that the kind of talk you might like to have with your husband does not come naturally to most men. Just be patient. It's not a good idea to "unload" on him right when he comes home from work.

7. Accept your spouse for who they are. Practice total acceptance. Don't hold your spouse to your expectations; you will only succeed at building resentment.

8. Express your commitment. In little ways, you can, and should, renew your vows to each other over and over. Your spouse will feel comfortable and secure knowing that you are truly committed to the marriage. True closeness will only happen when all doubt and insecurity is replaced by confidence in the relationship. Let your spouse know that you really are in it "till death do us part."

9. Trust in each other. Don't be suspicious. Don't snoop through each others belongings. To help ensure the trust, be honest with your spouse in all things. Never keep secrets from each other, not even little ones.

10. Make it your aim to be your spouse's best friend. Appreciate your spouse for who they are. Loosen up and have fun with each other. If you are practicing the steps above, you are on your way to being your spouse's best friend the ultimate relationship in marriage.

10 Article Writing Quirks

 Much has been touted about the effectiveness of article writing in the promotion of their business. While everyone raves about its benefits I’ll look into a few quirks.

1. Too much junk- You can’t even imagine the amount of rehash material that is being passed off as something in which the reader can find valuable. Some writers rush to put out their work putting quantity over quality. It pays to be original when you are into article writing. Well, I have slack up sometimes on this one.
2. Takes Time- Due to the multitude of writers entering this field, it will probably take six months to a year for others to become familiar with you and your writing style. Once this is accomplished you can expect some fans.
3. High Readership, Low Conversion- There has been times when I have published an article that got good readership but fail to convert into respectable sales or subscribers. The resource box is key I found out if you want to improve your conversions.

If you don’t have a quality article the chances of someone reading your resource box is low and their cursor won’t make it to your website link. When you do get them to view your resource box, your message has to highlight its benefits to get that valued click thru.

4. Loss of Valuable Links- While article writing has been important in boosting my page rank, this has not always been the case as I thought. Doing some research on some of my articles through the search engines, I realized that not every webmaster provides a live link in my resource box. Failing to do so is sure to cost some valuable back links.
5. You could be a victim- Of what? Copyism. I have seen articles where the writer “lifted” a few paragraphs here and there, did a little editing and presto a new article is born. I guess there is no escaping this as it also happens offline.
6. Lack of Editing- It might take you just a few minutes to whip up that latest article but those few minutes might affect the quality of your work. Proof reading and editing can sometimes be painstaking not to mention the submission process especially if done by hand.
7. Woeful Spelings- Got that one? Proper spelling is important as too many mistakes can affect your credibility. You might get away with one but definitely not four.
8. Grammar- This is in the same vein as spelling. If your grammar sounds like that of a toddler, then don’t expect readers to be impressed. You don’t need to have the writing skills of a poet, but with a little practice and research you can vastly improve.
9. Sales copy – You know these well. Some authors write articles that belongs in the classifieds. In their articles they blatantly advertise their services with the hope of readers visiting their website. A benefit laden article will always produce the best results.
10. Too much links- Nothing peeves me than to get an article to run in my newsletter but when I read it through it is littered. These links can confuse the reader and also reduces the potential of your resource box.

5 Dynamite Ways to Generate Ideas for Parenting Articles

 

The key to selling reprints to parenting publications is the creation of dynamite ideas followed through with professional writing. Here, I’m focusing only on finding those lucrative topics.

Most topics in regional parenting publications are straightforward: finance, parenting tips, health, sports, and education. The trick is to twist them in an unusual way. 

1. If you’re a parent, what do you wish you knew about a topic? Write down questions that you have as you go through the day. When I was driving the other day, I complained to myself about bad teenage drivers. Then I wondered, “What can parents do to encourage good driving?” If you already know the answer to the question, it won’t make a good article unless you’re an expert on the subject.
2. Take a generic topic and make it seasonal. Choose a season about four months away, because the lead-time for parenting publications is 2 to 6 months. Four months from now is April. What happens in April (or would be published in April) that I can combine with a topic like health? In April, parenting publications start printing their summer guides to camps. What can parents do to make sure their children stay healthy at camp? What are the traits of a safe camp? Change to camping plus another topic like education or finance to create unique articles.
3. Who do you know who has an unusual or remarkable story – something that affected children? What did the parents learn? Write an article using the anecdote as an introduction to the information you want to give. A great anecdote can sell a story.
4. Visit online parenting forums and read the questions people ask. Use some of these as a basis for your article ideas.
5. When you research a piece and talk to experts, look for what you don’t know. “Joe says insurance is important for families,” won’t make an article interesting. Too many people know that insurance is important. But a quote like, “Joe says disability insurance is the most neglected area of insurance, but it protects young families from the biggest threat to their security,” will make parents keep reading.

If you give editors timely articles that readers will want to read, you’ll sell your work over and over again.

Sample Interview Questions With Answers

   Sample interview questions of the common type are listed below. Answers are included. But perhaps suggestions for tailoring your responses is a better way to put it, since specific answers are impossible to provide. Practice answering these sample interview questions out loud to yourself or ask a friend or relative to help you.

Don't feel that you have to answer right away. Interviewers know that you're nervous and expect you to think a bit, so do think carefully before you answer. But don't hesitate too long or it'll appear that you're stalling. Interviewers will ask open-ended questions to see where you'll go with them, so try not to ramble while you're thinking of a real answer.

Q.
Tell me about yourself.
A.
This is the dreaded, classic, open-ended interview question and likely to be among the first. It's your chance to introduce your qualifications, good work habits, etc. Keep it mostly work and career related.

Q.
Why do you want to leave your current job? (Why did you leave your last job?)
A.
Be careful with this. Avoid trashing other employers and making statements like, "I need more money." Instead, make generic statements such as, "It's a career move."

Q.
What are your strengths?
A.
Point out your positive attributes related to the job.

Q.
What are your weaknesses?
A.
Everybody has weaknesses, but don't spend too much time on this one and keep it work related. Along with a minor weakness or two, try to point out a couple of weaknesses that the interviewer might see as strengths, such as sometimes being a little too meticulous about the quality of your work. (Avoid saying "I work too hard." It's a predictable, common answer.) For every weakness, offer a strength that compensates for it.

Q.
Which adjectives would you use to describe yourself?
A.
Answer with positive, work-oriented adjectives, such as conscientious, hard-working, honest and courteous, plus a brief description or example of why each fits you well.

Q.
What do you know about our company?
A.
To answer this one, research the company before you interview.

Q.
Why do you want to work for us?
A.
Same as above. Research the company before you interview. Avoid the predictable, such as, "Because it's a great company." Say why you think it's a great company.

Q.
Why should I hire you?
A.
Point out your positive attributes related to the job, and the good job you've done in the past. Include any compliments you've received from management.

Q.
What past accomplishments gave you satisfaction?
A.
Briefly describe one to three work projects that made you proud or earned you pats on the back, promotions, raises, etc. Focus more on achievement than reward.

Q.
What makes you want to work hard?
A.
Naturally, material rewards such as perks, salary and benefits come into play. But again, focus more on achievement and the satisfaction you derive from it.

Q.
What type of work environment do you like best?
A.
Tailor your answer to the job. For example, if in doing your job you're required to lock the lab doors and work alone, then indicate that you enjoy being a team player when needed, but also enjoy working independently. If you're required to attend regular project planning and status meetings, then indicate that you're a strong team player and like being part of a team.

Q.
Why do you want this job?
A.
To help you answer this and related questions, study the job ad in advance. But a job ad alone may not be enough, so it's okay to ask questions about the job while you're answering. Say what attracts you to the job. Avoid the obvious and meaningless, such as, "I need a job."

Q.
How do you handle pressure and stress?
A.
This is sort of a double whammy, because you're likely already stressed from the interview and the interviewer can see if you're handling it well or not. Everybody feels stress, but the degree varies. Saying that you whine to your shrink, kick your dog or slam down a fifth of Jack Daniels are not good answers. Exercising, relaxing with a good book, socializing with friends or turning stress into productive energy are more along the lines of the "correct" answers.

Q.
Explain how you overcame a major obstacle.
A.
The interviewer is likely looking for a particular example of your problem-solving skills and the pride you show for solving it.

Q.
Where do you see yourself five (ten or fifteen) years from now?
A.
Explain your career-advancement goals that are in line with the job for which you are interviewing. Your interviewer is likely more interested in how he, she or the company will benefit from you achieving your goals than what you'll get from it, but it goes hand in hand to a large degree. It's not a good idea to tell your potential new boss that you'll be going after his or her job, but it's okay to mention that you'd like to earn a senior or management position.

Q.
What qualifies you for this job?
A.
Tout your skills, experience, education and other qualifications, especially those that match the job description well. Avoid just regurgitating your resume. Explain why.

Q.
Why did you choose your college major?
A.
The interviewer is likely fishing to see if you are interested in your field of work or just doing a job to get paid. Explain why you like it. Besides your personal interests, include some rock-solid business reasons that show you have vision and business sense.

 I hope success would always follow you after reading this