Deborah

Forbes.com First-Ever iConference: All-Weather Portfolio Strategies
NOW ON-DEMAND!

Dear Deborah Lee:

Were you unable to attend the Forbes.com Investor iConference: All-Weather Portfolio Strategies on May 22nd?

If you missed it, we have good news for you.  The entire event has been archived and is now accessible on-demand!  This event is FREE to attend. Just click here to log-in.

During this on-demand period, you can:

• Listen to all six conference sessions and archived Q&A’s, including the keynote discussion between Steve Forbes and Robert Kiyosaki.
• Obtain the same valuable investment reports and information that were available during the live event at our exhibitor booths and resource center.
• Get more than 30 specific stock, ETF and mutual fund recommendations from Forbes Gurus.  
• You can even chat online with some of our exhibitors – booths are still being manned!

Here is what those who have already attended are saying about this Forbes.com iConference:

“The Forbes online iConference was better than some of the live in-person conferences I’ve attended in the past. I’d recommend this forum of learning and sharing to any investor. Great content, credible speakers and fabulous format! Thank you!!”
-B. Burke, Hillsboro, Oregon

“Forbes iConference… outstanding, delightful, and informative…. I never thought I would be attending an investors’ conference from Alaska with Steve Forbes, Robert Kiyosaki, and Jim Lowell, but I did!! Right in my own home. When is the next one???”
-J. Bauer, Soldotna, Alaska

“Much more civilized discourse than cable tv screamers.”
-D. Ahr, Frederick, Maryland

“I was impressed with the All-Weather Portfolio Strategies iConference and virtual event. The opportunity to watch Steve Forbes and listen to his opinions, predictions and advice about investing in uncertain times and in general was valuable.”
-S. Fuhr, Trevose, Pennsylvania

Click here to log-in now – it’s FREE!.

Sincerely,

Tina Russo
Editorial Director
Forbes Newsletter Group

This is specifically about stock investments. Even if you are not interested in taking action in that area right now, it may be benificial to get an overview for the future. Remember the Cashflow Quadrant? The rich put their energy into businesses and investments.

Information and a link for the event is below. (Be forewarned that there may be a product presentation involved, but usually there’s more content than sales in these types of things.)

Deborah

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Forbes.com iConference: All-Weather Portfolio Strategies 

www.forbes.com/iconference

On May 22, 2008 Forbes.com will hold its first-ever virtual investor conference that is designed to help investors navigate the current turbulent market environment.

Prospering during times of uncertainty takes more than just patience and investor fortitude, it requires smart, actionable investment advice. This day-long online event will feature Steve Forbes and an all star panel of investment advisors and experts. The event is free to all investors and is accessible via any Web-connected computer.

Topics to be Covered:
•   Politics, the Economy and Markets (Steve Forbes presentation)
•   Small-Cap Growth Stocks: Finding Tomorrow’s Ten-Baggers
•   Nanotech, Solar, Cleantech and Nuclear: Profit-Makers or Pretenders?
•   Value Investing – Identifying Buffett-Style Stocks
•   Gold & Energy Stocks: Investing for $1,500 Gold, $150 Crude
•   Options Trading for Protection and Profit 
•   Foreign Exchange: FX Options Trading Techniques
•   Are Tech Stocks the New Value Plays?
•   Global Investing – Invest Abroad or Perish!
•   401K and Retirement Planning – What are the Best Funds for Your Core?
•   Real Estate – Post Bubble Bargain Hunting

Confirmed Speakers
Steve Forbes – Forbes Chairman and Editor-in-Chief
Robert T. Kiyosaki - CEO and author, Rich Dad/Poor Dad 
Josh Wolfe - Managing Partner Lux Capital and editor, Forbes/Wolfe Emerging Tech Report
James Lowell – Editor, Forbes ETF Advisor, Fidelity Investor
James Oberweis – President, Oberweis Securities Funds, editor, The Oberweis Report
Richard Lehmann - Editor, Forbes/Lehmann Income Securities Investor, President, Income Securities Advisor, Forbes Magazine fixed income columnist
Curtis Hesler - editor, Professional Timing Service
Peter Slatin – editor, The Slatin Real Estate Report  
Dr. Vahan Janjigian,CFA – editor, Forbes Special Situation Survey and Forbes Growth Investor
Jimmy Young - FX Trading Instructor, Optionetics
John Christy III, CFA – editor, Forbes International Investment Report  

  Why Attend?
•   Get investment strategies from leading financial experts
•   Live Q&A sessions following each presentation
•   More than a dozen exhibitor booths where you can interact with gurus
•   Download free Special Reports and White Papers in our Resource Center
   Networking through chat, email, and virtual business cards
•   100% online, easily accessible from any Web browser
•   Prizes and Giveaways to be announced throughout the event, including: 
   • $500 Apple Store Gift Card 
   • Evening Cruise for two around Manhattan on Forbes Highlander Yacht 
   • One-year of Commission-Free trading via from ChoiceTrade account
   • Additional prizes to be announced throughout the event 
   • FREE to attend!   

I spent a lot of money early on buying products that seemed interesting, but were either not what they promised or not what I really wanted to do. I wish I had some of that money back now that I know that I want to do Internet marketing.

Having made those kinds of mistakes in the past has made me more cautious about who I choose to learn from. No matter what we do, we need to learn the ropes from someone whose been there. We can do everything from scratch, but it is a much rockier road.

I’ve been piecing together information for a couple of years and I have a lot of knowledge about Internet marketing. What I don’t have is a good system and a way to wade through all of the info in my head. All of the successful people will advise you to get a mentor and I’ve been searching for the right person.

A few weeks ago I got an email from a friend telling me about a free webinar on creating your own info product business. I watched it and it looked promising. They said they were the “couple next door” and not gurus. That was nice to hear.

I didn’t jump right in, I decided to analyze things. I watched the webinar and analyzed their whole sales letter. With this couple, I had an advantage. We know some of the same people, so I got a personal recommendation. 

Another thing I did was use a chapter from Tracy Repchuk’s 31 Days to Millionaire Marketing Miracles to evaluate a mentor. One of the things she said was to look at the testimonials. The gurus are always cross promoting each other. What you want to look for in a mentor is someone who has testimonials from everyday people. These people have gained success from studying with the mentor, not just because of connections or past knowledge.

I did finally buy it and it is different from most everything I’ve used. It’s an 8 week course in developing your own info product and building a business around a niche. One of the biggest selling points to me was that it focused on real niche topics, not just internet marketing.

I’m working on the first week and it’s a doozy. It’s about evaluating yourself and finding the niche topics that fit you. Then it goes step by step showing how to do the market research. I have struggled to find something that would give me info on how to research a product.  There’s not a lot of preliminary prep stuff out there. Most of it is jump first, learn to swim later (or never).

What I like about what this couple is doing is that the information is given in different forms – print, video, and audio.  They are also sending assignments out weekly and there’s no telephone call! I hate those calls where you sit listening for and hour and a half and get a 5 minute Q&A because they went over. There are calls just for Q&A, but the course is pre-recorded. 

Even though I’ve got a lot of technical knowledge, I’ve noticed that they leave no stone unturned in the tutorial department. There are so many links explaining how to do things. There was even a video on how to download audio and PDF files from the Internet. It’s very user friendly.

So far it has been a great fit for me. I’ve actually taken all of the ideas that were floating in my head – at least the internet business ones – and put them down on paper. It was a great accomplishment for me.

It’s an 8 week course and if all goes according to plan I will have a product and a launch at the end of it all. I’ve banned myself from reading or responding to anything else so that I can focus my efforts only on this. I’m not going to give a chapter by chapter report on this, but I will let you know my progress.

Keep thinking and rethinking,

Deborah

PS: Oops, I forgot to tell you what the course is.  It’s by Steve and Kerry Beck. You can find it at www.my8weekprofitplan.com

First, it’s not a fit for where I am right now.  Several times over the course, Mike Filsaime mentioned that what you do for a 7 figure business is very different from what you do for a 6 or 5 figure business.  The strategies he’s teaching are focused on taking your business to a high level of structure and forward momentum.

My goals are different seeing as I am a work at home mom of a preschooler and I’m preparing for homeschooling. I’m not ready to have employees and a rented office space. My office is in a black tote bag and goes with me to the wifi enable coffee shop. (OK, not really work-at-home, but did I mention I have a preschooler)

Everything I learned from the course so far has been wonderful and they have colored my decisions and how they affect my future. I really had to weigh whether it was best for me to finish or to put it on hold until later.  I decided to put it on hold.

One complaint I have about the 7 Figure Code is that it is only on DVD. I once heard Mike Filsaime say that he does video because that’s what the people want. That may be true, but I’m going to get a lot less out of a program if the only access I have to it is sitting passively in front of a tv or computer screen.

It would be fine if there was something to see, but these guys are standing on stage talking using PowerPoint presentations. It’s good to see the slides, but I need something more portable.  If he had offered the audios in addition to the DVDs I could listen and re-listen as I am doing other things.

I walk around with my MP3 player as I’m running errands, etc. It’s a great way to get an education without having to carve out more time. If I had audios, I could listen over and over again to reinforce what I’m learning on the DVDs.

That being said, I think the content I’ve watched so far has been top notch and has taught me a lot. It will definitely be revisited when the time is right. 

Deborah

I’ve only been a preparer for a year, but I worked 12 tax seasons for my mom’s franchise in Alabama taking care of back office stuff.  I decided to take the plunge to tax pro  here in St. Louis because things have become more automated and my mom really doesn’t need me.

What I gained was an opportunity in financial education.  One of H&R Blocks great strengths is in the area of expertise.   We have to have 69 hours of tax training and pass an exam just to be able to be considered for an interview.  After that, beginning tax pros have to take another 60 hours before and at the beginning of tax season.   

Each year we have to have a minimum of 24 hours just to get rehired.  Raise that to 30 to go to another level of certification (which involves more pay).  Plus, you can’t get certification hours for a course you took in the last 3 years.

What’s my point? Well, in order to keep this level of expertise with all of the tax pros, they offer a gazillion courses in all different tax and business subjects.  The best part is we get to choose as many as we want, in a classroom or online,  for $20 a year.  Add to that all of the on the job experience and it’s a grand education in taxes and in business and marketing.

Robert Kiyosaki of Rich Dad fame says that for those who think like rich people the main  reason to get a job is for the financial education it can provide you.  If you are familiar with the Rich Dad principles, you know that rich people think in terms of assets – businesses and investments.  

Apart from the fact that taxes are fun (yes, you hear tax pros say it all the time) and H&R Block is a great company to work for with lots of advancement opportunities, working for H&R Block gives a great financial education.

Tax attorney Drew Miles (Tax Tips – Asset Protection – Pathfinder Business Strategies ) tells the story of watching Bill Gates being interviewed on a national news channel.  He was asked what was the key to his success.  He said having a “working knowledge of the tax code.”  Not the answer you would expect, is it? 

You hear a lot of people complain about how the rich get all of these tax breaks while the poor and middle class keep paying higher taxes.  The reality is that they make an effort to know about their money and how it works.  A huge part of that is knowing how taxes work for and against them. 

The poor and middle class have so many more opportunities available to them that they don’t take.  Many times because they are afraid to take them. If you are rethinking wealth in your own mind, consider how you can make better decisions in the area of taxes.  It will help you overall financially.

Deborah