How ETR Can Make You Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise
Dear Andrew, First, pay attention to the messages you get during the first two weeks of service. Those are “evergreen” issues of ETR that focus on core ideas that we come back to again and again. Any one of those ideas can change your life if you follow the…
READ MOREDirect-Mail Debate: Disguise The Envelope — Or Not?
On the disguise side of the direct-mail-envelope argument are such DM luminaries as Herschell Gordon Lewis (“The only purpose of the carrier envelope is to get itself opened.”) and Gary Halbert (“Remember, people sort their mail into two piles: the A pile and the B pile. Your goal is…
READ MOREWhat If You Were On The Bottom Looking Up?
I was fortunate in being born into a family that believed in education. But we were not rich … far from it. We were 10 people living in a small, $12,000 house. Throughout my childhood and adolescence, I wore hand-me-down clothes … drank powdered (instead of real) milk ……
READ MORE11 Questions To Ask Before Foreign Investing
To minimize the risk and help reduce the worry factor, I’ve put together the following checklist to evaluate a foreign developer or development project. I use it myself when considering a new opportunity. 1. Does the developer or landowner have clear and full title to the property in question? This…
READ MOREAre You Pampering Your Best Customers? Really?
As the world becomes more of a giant supermarket (propelled forward by the likes of Costco and the Internet), privileged treatment will become more and more rare. Most businesses, having for the first time access to the larger markets, will appeal to the least common denominator by lowering prices and…
READ MOREBecome A Millionaire By Investing Only A Dollar A Day
In “The One Minute Millionaire,” authors Hansen and Allen say there are two routes for climbing “Millionaire Mountain”: the long route and the short route. The long route is the safest and easiest. You can become a millionaire by simply investing a dollar a day (roughly $30 a month) over…
READ MOREWhen You Bang Heads With Your Boss
Your boss may be wrong. And he may be a bully. But he has the power. And pitting yourself against him in a head-to-head confrontation is a bad idea. It’s like some famous bullfighter said in response to being asked how he trains for strength: “The bull weighs half a…
READ MOREHow To Run Great Meetings
There is no question in my mind that the executive who involves his managers in the decision-making process by running meetings that are open, candid, and informal will achieve more and suffer fewer setbacks than the employer who is all output and no input. That said, it must be acknowledged…
READ MOREFollow-Up On “The Benefits of Being Global”
In Message #787 guest editor Lief Simon explained some of the benefits of buying real estate overseas. After reading that essay, Dr. John Wholihan wrote in to ask if there is any advantage to owning international properties as a corporation rather than as an individual. “For example,” he says, “if…
READ MOREThe Four Most Important Rules of Direct-Mail Copywriting
Recently, I got into a discussion about the most important elements in writing strong direct-mail promotions. This is what I said: 1. You must figure out what the prospect is most concerned about and make sure most of the copy addresses that concern and not others. 2. You must stress…
READ MOREThe Fastest Way To Become A Millionaire
In “The One Minute Millionaire,” the authors tell us that you can get your first million faster (and surer) by following this simple three-step approach: Step 1. Create a “millionaire mindset,” they say, by developing self-confidence and allowing your burning desire for wealth to grow. I’ve talked a lot…
READ MOREThe Social Security Fiasco
In the middle of January, the General Accounting Office (the auditing arm of the U.S. government) said that by 2017 Social Security will start running annual deficits. This is no surprise to ETR readers. I warned you two years ago, and last year too, that the supposed Social Security “surplus”…
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