What a difference two months can make! We've got economic woes, housing woes, a Presidential campaign just about wrapped up, and thousands of people asking, "What do I do next?"

Whatever the problems we read about, a lot of people out there are doing just fine, getting clients and customers, keeping their jobs, and making money.

The people who will win are those who take action now. Every expert will tell you that the best investment opportunities are at the bottom of the market, whether in stocks or housing, A lot of people are waiting right now, for the top, for the bottom, for the next president.

Remember, business is still being done, money is changing hands, products are being bought and sold. If you work smarter, create better products, stand out in your market or in your job, you will succeed no matter the market conditions.

Sometimes we look at investing in ourselves as an unnecessary expense, especially when there may not be that much money available. The opposite is actually true. Investing in ourselves is what gives us the edge when competition is fierce.

I am currently upgrading my skills in copywriting, program promotion, traffic generation, and web site optimization.

I also have almost as many clients as I can handle in my book publishing program. These clients are taking massive action to make their businesses prosper no matter what.

What are you doing to become more competitive in your market, to be more effective in your job, and to prepare yourself to go to the next level of success?

Let me know what you are doing. I may feature some of the answers in future newsletters.  

Solutions Press Protégé Program Update

We've had some incredible breakthroughs during recent Protégé Program calls. One of the most important things members can do is simply show up. By staying in the conversation, you learn powerful ways to write, no matter whether you are doing a book, blogs, articles or newsletters.

We talked about organizing your book on Monday's call. This is crucial because if you don't know what you are putting in your book and where you are putting it, you will never start writing.

This material is also vital when you are writing other items as well. Your blog post must be as carefully planned as your book. Your newsletter is for more than just communicating occasionally with your list. Plan and outline them and they will be far more effective.

Anyone who joins the program now will get access to past calls as well as all future calls. I've made it incredibly easy to participate, and risk free. Just go to www.leepound.com/protegeprogram.htm for all the details.

What Are You Writing About?

Seems like a dumb question, doesn't it?

Yet this is the crucial question you must answer before you ever put one word on paper (or computer screen).

Many new writers just pick a broad subject like leadership, economics, marketing, photography, travel, etc. and think they can write a coherent book about that subject. What usually happens is that they end up with a very superficial treatment that anyone could have written, most of it taken from other sources.

The main reason you want to write a book (or article or newsletter or blog post) is that YOU have something to say that will showcase your knowledge of the subject. That is why you must narrow your subject to a specific topic that you know very well.

You must put your ideas in the book, not just material gleaned from outside sources. You must put your personality in the book. The stories must be yours, the examples yours, the insights yours. You can only do this with a focused topic.

The other reason to focus your topic is that you can then identify your market with crystal clarity. It does very little good to write for Americans between the age of 18 and 65 even if you think you could sell to all of them. Narrow the market to a specific, identifiable group that you can target and you will be very successful.

Choosing a narrower topic will also make outlining much easier and will allow you to choose good, relevant stories the illustrate your points.

Always narrow your subject before you start to outline and you will find it much easier to write from your experience, which is what readers want from you.

News From Speak Your Way to Wealth

This year's event is over and we're starting to plan next year's. I will be August 28, 29, 30 in Southern California. We'll have some exciting announcements over the next few weeks so watch for them here.

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Books

Fifty-Seven Steps to Better Writing is my personal look at the writing and publishing business. You will learn how to choose a genre, how to select a publishing method and how to use the craft of writing to make your work sparkle.

Order this book now

Do you need help with writing and publishing?

Lee Pound  helps writers and speakers become the perceived experts in their markets by writing and publishing books. My protégé program gives you the skills you need today to succeed

Learn more about my protégé program here

Do you need a speaker?

Lee is an inspirational and motivational speaker who presents to organizations, conferences, businesses and clubs interested in learning more about skills needed to use writing and speaking as powerful marketing tools.

Learn more about my presentations

Toastmasters

Learning to speak well requires practice. The best forum to practice is at a local Toastmasters Club. You can go to www.toastmasters.org for more information. You are invited to visit my clubs at any time. Call or e-mail for further information.

Possibilities Unlimited

Carrows Restaurant on Marguerite Parkway north of Avery Parkway in Mission Viejo, CA, Monday evening 7:15 p.m. www.putm.org