The WRONG way to build relationships on social media …

On November 16, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Social Media Marketing2 Comments

Ever been in one of those relationships that just moved too fast?

It doesn’t just happen in your personal life, it happens in business … most notably(and annoyingly) on social media.

Whether you’re on the receiving end, or the instigator of this rush to get to the “altar” or “get laid,”

what applies in dating, applies on social media:

S L O W Down!

I get tons of friend requests and once I verify this person is not fake … as in, they have a cover photo, they have valuable and inspiring posts on their page instead of endless profile pictures …

I’ll accept the request and it’s not too long before I get a message like this:

“Hey, I’m sure you are going to like what I’m doing to make money, here’s my link, join me!”

There is SO MUCH WRONG with this.

This is the exact reason people are turned off and skittish about EVERYTHING on the internet.

Think back to when you were in the midst of the dating scene – or maybe you still are! (good for you!)

You make eye contact with someone at a party, in a bar, at an event ..

you smile, you walk towards them, greet them and

have a few moments of “hey, are you having fun, where are you from, you like the music here? – etc.”

The conversation was a simple ice breaker kind of chit chat to see what kind of response you’ll get … to see if there is maybe something here that could develop into something more.

And so, the small talk continues until you royally screw everything up …

by blurting out, “Let’s get married!” or “Let’s go to bed!”

What are the odds that ever works?

I’m thinking you’d get a slap across the cheek or a drink thrown in your face.

via GIPHY

Yet, that’s exactly what uninformed, untrained and desperate marketers are doing on social media platforms every single day.

Someone, somewhere told them to hustle … and they interpreted that to mean hurry up and get them to join their business.

(by the way, hustle has two meanings:
to work hard and fast or
to pull one over on someone.)

You just don’t/shouldn’t ever hustle people. NEVER!

When you hustle people, it’s like vomiting all over them with your amazing and wonderful chance of a lifetime opportunity. YUCK!

DON’T DO IT! STOP IT IF YOU’RE DOING IT NOW!

Why? Because it’s the decent thing to do. It’s the right way to network and build relationships. It’s taking the higher road and bringing professionalism to the internet marketing industry.

S L O W down and think about it …

First of all, did you really get to know the person at all?

Did you check their profile or fan page to see what they are promoting?

Did you enter into conversations with them to get to know them better … and actually find out if they had a problem or need that your opportunity or product would help solve?

Did you take time to build a real relationship rather
than the wham-bam-thank-you-maam?

No, you just assumed that your vomit would be
received like a sweet smelling bouquet of roses and
that you would be getting “married” or “laid” immediately.

via GIPHY

Ready to learn some “smooth moves” for building lasting and trustworthy relationships that could turn into customers?

Must Read

Why Why Your Online Business Might Fail

Facebook Strategy to Increase Your Network

How to Leverage Your Presence on Facebook

I suggest two books that will help you immensely:

First, “Go Pro” by Eric Worre, the master teacher of network marketing.

Worre covers all the steps you need to take from the first contact to the follow up.

This book will become you “bible” to guide you in building your business.

Get on Worre’s email list here to receive daily training videos.

The next book is Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.”

This book is just as useful today as it was when it was first published in 1937.

You will learn how to make people like you, win people over to your way of thinking, and change people without causing offense or arousing resentment.

In addition, make sure that the people who are leading you, training you and telling you how to prospect are not taking you down this road of destruction.

Find mentors who have integrity, who exemplify seeing people instead of dollar signs.

Building lasting, sustaining relationships in business takes time. It takes patience and practice to develop a “knowing” of the person who could be the perfect fit for your team.

But, rushing it, being desperate to the point of vomiting on them and hoping they will join you despite the mess you just made will never work.

Do it right, in dating and in business, and you’ll enjoy years of happy results!

via GIPHY

Here’s to lasting, fun and rewarding relationships!

Trisha
c: 573-881-6715
f: Are we connected on Facebook?

P.S. Simple Freedom teaches, trains and exalts the higher road as described in this article. Learn how to market your business on Facebook without getting slapped, without being annoying or rude like the masses do it. Free training available 24/7 here.

Quick and easy tips to SEO your wordpress blog images.

How to SEO Your WordPress Blog Images

On November 8, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Blogging, Marketing Tips, Personal GrowthLeave a comment

Make sure you do this: SEO your wordpress blog images.

SEO (search engine optimization) is important for all parts of your blog, including your images.

If you want your blog post to be ranked higher in search engine results, naming your images as you upload them will help you SEO your wordpress blog images … and it’s easy to do.

An added benefit to using the steps below is that your image will have a description readily available for Pinterest.

Assuming you have done the keyword research for your blog title, follow these steps when adding and naming images in your blog posts:

TITLE

Most images when uploaded have an unrecognizable title that Google can’t make sense of, such as Image01.jpeg.

The title of your image should be the title of your blog post, which includes the keywords you have chosen.

ALT TEXT

The alt text simply refers to a text alternative for images when a web browser can’t properly render them. Have you ever received an email that included an image you couldn’t view?

If you take time to write a descriptive, keyword-rich alt text, your readers will have added description of the content you are sharing.

Additionally, if you are using Pinterest to market your blog, the alt text will be added in the description on Pinterest automatically, so you don’t have to take that necessary step when pinning.

FINDING THE RIGHT IMAGE

If you have your own pictures to you, that is absolutely the best way to protect yourself from copyright infringement.

But, sometimes, you need an image to convey the right message and none of your own images are appropriate.

My favorite source for free images that are Creative Common licensed come from Pixabay. You can search for images by typing in a subject or a color, emotion, gender, event, etc.

The images from Pixabay are high quality and available in various sizes to download.

Set up your free account and start searching! You’ll be amazed and relieved to find such a vast amount to choose from.

Be careful of grabbing images from Google. There have been countless reports of lawsuits filed against bloggers who innocently thought it was okay to use any image from Google.

The general rule of thumb is this: if the image isn’t Creative Common licensed or you didn’t buy or create it, don’t post it.

What to blog about when you can’t think of anything

On November 5, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Blogging2 Comments

What to blog about?

Does this sound familiar? You are staring at a blank screen, your hand poised over the keyboard and there is NOTHING trickling down from your mind to your fingertips.

It happens. You hit a wall. You feel uninspired. You just can’t come up with anything you think is worth writing about.

If this happens to you, jump back in the saddle, grab the reins and hold on … this one blog post idea will have you up and running again.

via GIPHY

Let’s peel back the layers of your amazing life to find gold to write about with these five questions:

First question: did you read anything recently that made you go, “hmmmmm,” or made your heart beat a little faster, or smacked you in the head like the V-8 commercial?

Write about it!

Hint: read every day from books that challenge you, inspire you and provide motivation and inspiration to change your life.

Second question: did you listen to training hangout or event and took tons of notes because what they were teaching was exactly what you needed to implement in your life or your business?

Write about it!

Hint: you’ll always be learning something new (or you SHOULD be!) Take time to share what you are learning. Always remember, you learn from those who are farther ahead on the journey but there are many who are far behind where you are right now. Share with them what you are learning to help them move forward.

Third question: have you changed a habit recently? Decided to do something differently or to stop doing something? Could be anything. What’s the experience you are having … is it difficult, are you slipping back into the old habit, or are you sticking with this?

Write about it!

Hint: People love reality. I mean look at all the ridiculous reality TV shows. Be real about your goals, your struggles, your successes.

Fourth question: what is your dream? You know, the one that has been a lifetime resident in your heart and keeps kicking against the door to get out and become REAL?

Write about it!

Hint: People are inspired by others’ dreams and the stories shared about the journey to make those dreams come true. Be someone’s inspiration.

Fifth question: if all you had was today to live, what would you do?

Hint: I’m guessing if you just had today to live, you would forget writing a blog post – right? So, what would you do?

Write about it!

Now you’ve got PLENTY to write about! Get busy!

via GIPHY

One more thing before I go …

Once you’ve created that amazing blog post, now it’s time to use that content in as many ways as possible. Create it once – expand your reach – is the idea of content marketing.

In this video, I share how content marketing works:

If you received some value from this blog post – leave a comment below! I love hearing from you!

As always, reach out to me with any questions or ideas you have!

Trisha
p: Text or call: 573-881-6715
f: Message me here on Facebook

No one wants to hear it or believe it, but Social Security is going to fail. What can you do to protect you and your family?

No longer a conspiracy theory – Social Security is going to FAIL

On November 4, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Middle Class Revolution, Quit Your Job, Work From AnywhereLeave a comment

Social Security is going to fail.

We’ve been dancing around this issue for years, not wanting to believe it will happen, hoping it was just all a conspiracy theory but in this recent report, Simon Black gives the grim news.

Black writes:

Social Security’s various trust funds currently hold about $2.7 trillion in total assets; yet the government itself estimates the program’s liabilities to exceed $40 trillion.

In the 2015 report of the Social Security and Medicare Board of Trustees they state very plainly:

“Social Security as a whole as well as Medicare cannot sustain projected long-run program costs…”, and that the government should be “giving the public adequate time to prepare.”

Time to prepare? What does that mean for you and your family?

Pretty much, it’s time to take control of your future.

It doesn’t matter if you are twenty, thirty or sixty … Social Security should not be your plan for financial support when you retire.

The average monthly benefit for someone who starts taking Social Security at age 62 in 2014 is roughly $1,992 — not even enough to keep them above the federal poverty line.
[full article here]

It was never designed to be a main income source, but according to the U.S. Social Security Administration, nearly one in five married retirees and one in two unmarried retirees say they rely on Social Security for the bulk of their income.

It is definitely time to do something to protect your future.

But what?

Create your own streams of income that are not dependent on the government or job security or 401ks or pensions.

We call that entrepreneurship.

Becoming your own boss. Creating your own income.

It’s never too late or never too early to start.

Must Read

25 Percent of Americans Have No Net Worth

How to Be An Entrepreneur late in Life and Why You Should

Why Most People Die Young

Over 50? According to the Kauffman Foundation’s Index of Entrepreneurial Activity, 23.4 percent of entrepreneurs are between the ages of 55 and 64, up from 18.7 percent a decade earlier. [full story here]

In your thirty/forty something years? According to the recently released Global Entrepreneurship Monitor’s 2013 United States Report, the best time to become an entrepreneur is between 35-44. [full story here]

In your twenties? Hold on, this will motivate you. Some of the most successful entrepreneurs started in their 20s:

Founders of Google Sergey Brin (25) & Larry Page (25)
Founders of Apple Steve Jobs (21) & Steve Wozniak (26)
Founders of Microsoft: Bill Gates (20) & Paul Allen (22)
Founder of Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg (20)
Founder of Wal-Mart: Sam Walton (26)
[full story here]

No matter your age, just do it.

Forget what’s happening with Social Security. That’s a done deal, it’s going to fail.

Instead, step into your greatness and create, design, innovate and build a business to fund all that you desire in life.

Here’s a great way to get started now:

Social-Security — It’s the only way to protect you and your family’s future.

Whatever you dream of doing when you retire … do it now. Life is too short to wait.

Trisha
c: 573-881-6715
f: Are we connected on Facebook?

Alarming statistics ... what can we do? Plenty! Start here: http://freedownload.nakedhippiesteam.com

25% of Americans Have No Net Worth

On October 22, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Middle Class Revolution, Work From AnywhereLeave a comment

25% of Americans have no net worth is an alarming statistic.

So that means …

“If you’ve no debts and have $10 in your pocket you have more wealth than 25% of Americans. More than 25% of Americans have collectively that is.” -Simon Black

Read full article here.

But, hey … look at the example set by our government:

The U.S. has a net worth of NEGATIVE $60 TRILLION.

(How many zeros is that?)

It’s an unfathomable amount.

Unfortunately, it’s also become an accepted and expected way of life … consumer debt.

Here are the latest statistics of what American consumers owe as of October, 2015:

$11.85 trillion in debt
- An increase of 1.7% from last year
$890.9 billion in credit card debt
$8.17 trillion in mortgages
$1.19 trillion in student loans
- An increase of 7.1% from last year
  [Source]

And the wheels just keep on turning. Or maybe it’s more like Americans stick their heads in the sand to ignore or avoid the grim reality.

We can’t do much about the stupidity of the government.

But we can do something for our own families.

First: GET RID OF CREDIT CARD DEBT.

The average U.S. household credit card debt: $16,140.

Stop buying STUFF. Start paying off your cards.

Second: RENT, DON’T BUY

This goes against the American dream, doesn’t it? You were taught to invest in a home to build equity. It DOESN’T work that way now.

Investing in a home is a financial drain. James Altucher, editor, Top 1% Advisory states: “Besides mortgage debt (most of which can’t be written off), property maintenance, taxes (which go up with inflation and are almost never considered in the price of the house), closing costs, buying costs, title insurance, property upgrades, etc.,you’ll spend close to $1 million in the lifespan of the $500,000 house. Or even twice that.”

Third: Don’t Take Out Student Loans for a College Degree

(Heck, reconsider college)

Again, when I advise young people to NOT go to college, people look at me like I’ve lost my mind. After all, how will you get a decent job without a college degree? Again, what USED to work, DOESN’T work that way now.

The average U.S.household owes $31,946 in student loans. Young college graduates are sucked into a lifetime of being owned by the government. These debts are not dismissed by bankruptcy. If you owe student loans, the government OWNS you.

In addition, college degrees are no longer a guarantee of a better job. There has been a steady increase of “underemployed” college graduates since 2001.

“There’s a word for someone who has a job that does not require the degree they hold: “underemployed.” In 2008, over 35% of college graduates were underemployed; by June of last year, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York reported that a whopping 44% of graduates were underemployed.”

[Source]

It used to be an advantage to get a college degree. But what happens when more and more degrees are earned? The market is flooded and graduates have to take jobs that are nowhere near their specialty or interest … in order to pay back the student loans.

It’s been the unofficial policy of many leaders, political and otherwise, to champion higher education as a universal good. Not because they’d studied the demand for certain types of educated workers, but simply as a catch-all solution. The market has long since adjusted to this, but the advice hasn’t: it’s still selling people indiscriminately on a level of education that employers don’t seem to be asking for.

[Source]

Not convinced yet? Take time to watch this:

FOURTH: Start Creating Your Own Cash Flow

Now is the time for everyone of us to begin to take back our lives. We’ve been suckered into building someone else’s dream; we’ve been financially strapped by taxes; we’ve seen layoffs, pensions disappear, social security vanishing …

it’s time to rise up:

It’s time. It’s YOUR time. It’s MY time. It’s time to say, “enough is enough.”

25% of Americans have no net-worth, but I’m betting that there are more than 25% of Americans who have enough self-worth to rise up and take back their freedom.

Which 25% group do you belong to?

Trisha
c: Text me here 573-881-6715
f: Find me on Facebook

P.S. Click the picture below to download this free ebook that will help you see HOW to begin the change.

how-the-middle-class-got-screwed.1 — Are you fed up? Me, too!

The Naked Hippies’ Pickup Gets Naked … one step closer to our Vanabode!

On October 16, 2015June 4, 2016 By Trisha BarnesIn Travel, Vanabode Dream, Work From AnywhereLeave a comment

Ready to see the Naked Hippies’ pickup get naked?

It’s about time, don’t you think? Ha ha!

We have lived and traveled in this Big Foot camper since 2010 … and have never taken the camper off our Dodge Ram pickup.

pickup-gets-naked-naked-hippies-roadtrip — We haven’t been everywhere, but it’s on our list!

Now, as we prepare for the switch from a pick up camper to the Vanabode stealth camping lifestyle, our truck had to get naked.

We had to remove the camper so we can sell the truck separately from the camper and still have a place to live while we modify and set up the Vanabode.

I have to admit, I was pretty nervous about doing this. After all, it’s our HOME and the camper has been resting on the truck for over five years. All kinds of what ifs started spewing from my mouth.

What if the support legs won’t hold the camper up?
What if we can’t get the camper back on the truck if we need to?
What if the camper tips forward because we sleep and get a bit rowdy on the front end where there is no support?

If this had been a reality show, you would have watched me stand close by with furrowed brow and an anxious look.

You would have seen Bruce read the instructions for removing the camper. (By the way, we were extremely grateful to find these instructions in the truck’s glove compartment! Can you say lifesaver?)

And, you would have seen Ron, our dear friend, pull out the necessary tools and gadgets from his magic storehouse and just tackle the job without worrying about the what ifs still pouring from my mouth!

Uh oh! The hydraulics aren’t working.

“I knew it!” Trisha mutters under her breath.

A quick call to another dear friend in Eureka Springs, who is the official Naked Hippies mechanic provided the solution … get some oil and a plastic squeeze bottle to add the oil to the hydraulic canisters.

That’s all it took!

Bruce and Ron cranked the hydraulics to lift the camper off the truck.

And now … Our Naked Hippies’ pickup gets naked!

I swear it kinda shimmied and shook when we “undressed” it!

We piled into the cab of the truck and took off for Home Depot to get concrete blocks to sit the camper on.

At first, Bruce was a little disoriented driving the truck without the camper on its back and without all that weight! He had to get used to have a 360 view of all traffic again!

It was totally weird to not have Big Foot with us.

Now we’re wondering what kind of mileage the truck will get. It’s been pretty awesome in spite of the weight. Bruce was getting nearly 20 mpg WITH Big Foot!

Lowering the camper onto the concrete blocks was a breeze. A successful job!

(AND, there IS support up front under the bed, too!) WHEW!

Who wants to buy a Naked VINTAGE 1989 Dodge Ram pickup 350 with a Cummins Turbo Diesel? This truck will run forever, or so we’ve been told by many mechanics.

Stay tuned … more adventures ahead!

Must Read

Visualizing Our Vanabode Dream

Vanabode Camping Practice Run

Living Off the Grid the Vanabode Way

Naked Hippie Roadtrip Fun — We LOVE our life!!

Trisha
c: 573-881-6715
f: Connect with me on Facebook

P.S. Everyone always asks … how do you afford to live and travel full time? As long as we have our smart phone and internet … we can work on our online business. We love the freedom! Get our free ebook that tells the story of how the Naked Hippies came to be … and how we just didn’t give up on living this dream. If we can do this, so can you! Grab the free ebook here: http://trishahippie.com

The Naked Hippies Way

Category: Work From Anywhere

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Make sure you do this: SEO your wordpress blog images.

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25% of Americans have no net worth is an alarming statistic.

The Naked Hippies’ Pickup Gets Naked … one step closer to our Vanabode!

Ready to see the Naked Hippies’ pickup get naked?

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