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Is Basic Income The Future?

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Monthly checks of $1,000 might be what we need.

Imagine opening your mailbox and grabbing a $1,000 check, courtesy of your government. No, you’re not on welfare. No, you’re not on Social Security. You’re just an average citizen living their life.

Sign at the top and drop $1,000 into the bank. Crazy, right?

Some futurists believe it’s the future.

A mixed bag of globalization and automation mean factory and labor jobs are becoming obsolete. Which means we need a way to combat unemployment while bettering the lives of people in the 21st century.

Basic income could be that backbone to the economy we’ve been looking for.

In addition to a job, those working paycheck-to-paycheck have the luxury of escaping poverty, while remaining in the realm of capitalism. People can work to save and invest in their future – as opposed to simply survive.

What about the free market?

From a capitalist’s perspective, I know you’re thinking this won’t work. You think people will abuse the system and light their cash on fire with non-necessities.

Here’s the good news – when people have free money they buy more goods and services. Which means more money for the businessman or business owner. Which means a stronger economy.

Maybe you spend that extra $1,000 on a startup. Maybe you invest in the stock market. Maybe you buy a gift for your son’s birthday. Ultimately, you’d choose what to do with it because it would feed directly back into the economy.

Of coarse, there’s still many holes to be filled.

For example: Where will this extra income come from? Will taxes be raised? How will this affect unemployment? etc.

While there’s questions to ask, basic income would provide security to poor people, give employees negotiating power for job prospects, and decrease incentive for money fraud.

Basic income is a serious prospect and people should pay attention to it – because it may well be the future.

How To Start an Online Store

I recently launched feistyflags.com and it’s been a blast. I’ve learned so much with real money at stake. I’m walking on a tightrope and as a result – it’s been fun and risky. Unfortunately, there’s many who want to kickstart their own website, but simply don’t know how to start.

While you might think setting up an online store is difficult, (I certainly did) you’d be surprised at how easy it can be.

I’m about to give you 3 steps to building your own online store and start making big money fast. Much of what I’m about to say is inspired from books like The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich and others come from personal experience. I hope you’ll enjoy:

1.) Pick a Website

For business I’d recommend Wix, Webs, or Weebly.

Wix.com: Wix is fantastic if you’re new to business. They have amazing customer service and make it fairly easy to set up. It’s fully customizable with 0 tech skills required.

Web.com: Web.com has no setup fee. That’s a big deal. If you’re unsure your business will be successful, Web is highly recommended. It’s great for sticking your toe in the water and seeing how well you can swim in the world of online markets.

Weebly.com: I’ll admit it – I’m biased towards Weebly. I’ve used them forever now and love them. They’re good people that help with bad problems. Their platform is spectacular.

2.) Find Your Niche:

“If everybody is doing it one way, there’s a good chance you can find your niche by going exactly in the opposite direction.” – Sam Walton

If you’re planning on making a store for pets or animals stop now. It’s been done before and you’ll never make any money. You want to be as specific with your customers as possible. This might go against what you’re taught and that’s okay.

The sad truth is, as kids we never wanted to be pinned down or labelled. We were distinctively independent in our perception of the world. Those days are over.

Be specific. Find people. Market towards them.

3.) Advertising:

Before buying $500 worth of T-shirts to hold in your garage, make sure you can sell them! Nothing’s worse than hoarding items that can’t sell. To test the waters, start a Google Adwords campaign. This part will involve money.

Spend about $25 a day using keywords involving your product. Just as an example, if you’re selling meme shirts, type: meme, shirt, unique, cheap. They should be common enough to generate sales but not common enough to get trampled by larger website that have already dominated your SEO.

I’ll include a link on how to start an Adwords campaign here: https://support.google.com/adwords/.

Conclusion:

I hope you found this advice helpful. I’m convinced online businesses are the future. The world has never seen people this dedicated with the kind of technology at our disposal. I look forward to seeing what you sell.

Feistyflags.com

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The Power of Positive Thinking

You’ve probably heard the importance of positive thinking before. Maybe it was at a party where you didn’t want to be present. Maybe at a rough day at work. But whenever positive thinking is brought to the forefront of conversation, everyone is suddenly a professional psychiatrist.

I’m writing this post not because I want to spout feel good nonsense. It’s because like you, I didn’t always believe in it. But the truth is, the power of positive thinking isn’t only real – it’s more real than you can imagine.

The founder of the positive thinking movement was a man called Norman Vincent Peale. He published a book in 1952 titled ‘The Power of Positive Thinking’. While controversial at the time, its lessons have never been more accurate. Unfortunately, applying these lessons aren’t as easy as it might sound.

For example, you’ve already heard all the generic bullshit phrases. “think positive!” or “keep your head up!” comes to mind. And while their intentions are perfectly good, they seldom change our mood. How can we practice positive thinking in our own lives?

Recently there’s been somewhat of a breakthrough of research on this topic. It’s important to note that it’s 100% science. There’s no ancient mysticism in anything related to positive thinking.

I want to share with an ABC article I found recently that delves deeper into positive thinking than I can hear. That being said, I’m a firm believer in affirmations and am inspired by Mr. Peale’s work. I invite you to research positive thinking and come to your own consensus.
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/allinthemind/the-scientific-evidence-for-positive-thinking/6553614

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3 Ways To Read 10x Faster

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You need to read faster.

As I’m sure you’ve noticed before, everyone has their own pace of reading. Some people read fast and some read slow. Some don’t read at all.

If you have ADD like me, you already know life can get busy sometimes. Sometimes it feels like you lack the time or motivation to lift open those pages. Sometimes distractions get the best of us. What can we do?

The question on readers mind’s is simple – how do I read faster?

Here’s 3 ways to read 10x faster.

1.) Pick up the pace.

Humans have an interesting compartment in our brains allowing us to scan over words quickly. When the first and last letters are in order, we still understand the word. For example, “It’s awseome taht we sitll udnetrnand tihs, eevn wehn the wrods are out of palce. “

We can utilize this and skip over words entirely. Words alone aren’t as important.

2.) Shut off the phone.

Shut off your phone. Put it away. Smash it with a hammer. It doesn’t matter what you do with it. The only thing that matters is that you’re not drawn back into that online world when reading. It’s not uncommon to open up a hardcover, only to find yourself watching Netflix at 2 AM. Believe me, I know better than anyone. Be the bigger person – shut off your phone.

3.) Practice Everyday

I’m going to assume that unless you’re super rich, you can’t read a book a day. There’s not enough time in a day! Luckily for us, there’s other things we can do. Start by reading 25 pages a day. A few days later, bring it up to 50. Then 75. Only stop when you run out of time.

This is because we read at the pace we’re use to reading. The only substantial way to change that pattern is by practicing.

I hope you like my list!

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Why You Need A Blender

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I lost 5 pounds in 2 weeks by drinking smoothies.

It’s not uncommon for me to have nothing but a smoothie for breakfast and be satisfied until dinner. I’m being totally serious.

In our busy lives, blenders are the best thing you can buy. And for good reason too – blenders make mundane food fun and healthy. Too often we forget we’re eating garbage. We forget just how often “healthy food” can taste amazing.

Wouldn’t it be great if “healthy food” could taste better than junk food?

That is why you need a blender. Not just for health benefits, numerous as they are; they automatically make food taste better. That’s an enormous upside.

While everyone’s raging about some secret diet or exercise, I’m enjoying my apple-ginger smoothie. I might even make myself another. It doesn’t matter how many I drink because they’re healthy.

Okay.

What about diets? Don’t diets work?

Diets are stupid. That’s because science tells us willpower, much like energy, only exists in small amounts. It’s a finite resource we need to preserve. Why waste willpower?

If you spend all day fighting back the urge to eat chocolate cake, you’ll eventually cave. If you want to consume something bad for you, you’ll always find a way.

Slice that urge out of your life. It’s just unhealthy.

With blenders, we need not worry about willpower – everything is convenient and easy.

Today as I’m writing this article, I’m spread out on my couch slugging back a concoction of yogurt, bananas, and fruits I picked up at random from my grocery store.

It tastes fantastic.

I’ll include the cheapest blender I can find down below. Don’t spend more than you need to, but for your own sake – buy it. You won’t regret it. I promise.

CLICK HERE