Market Scheme

Why would you want to write information on paper
when you have a business card in hand?

Putting it on paper can mean a number of things. It can simply mean putting notes on the back of someone’s business card, or it can mean to take extensive notes in a notebook. Which ever method you choose, be certain that the notes can identify who it was that you were conversing with. Nothing is more embarrassing than talking to a person sometime in the future and finding out you are talking about something they know nothing about.

If you remember some of the Leslie Nielsen movies, he starts talking with a business executive about a project he is starting. He mistakenly identifies this person as the one that hired him. As you can imagine, by the end of the skit, Leslie Nielsen is trying to hide and disappear until he can find the correct individual. Name recognition in this case was the difficulty. Here is another example: a buyer from a company walks in and says he wants to order the usual and then walks out. If you do not know who he is or cannot remember his name, that order may never be filled - total embarrassment for the sale person. The same can happen to you if you do not take the time to write it down on paper. Meticulous notes are not necessary, but if you want to remember, you must put in some key factors that will jog your memory in the future. Practice going back to the person at the same event and repeat their name and go back to one of the points they made.

Also, a lot can be told from the prospects’ business cards: are they original, colorful, on good stock, informative, tasteful? Now that you have all the information you want from the other person, you should make sure that they know about you. You have given your pitch, asked your questions, collected their card, made notes and are ready to take the next step. You need to have something that will catch their attention and make them remember you. Most often that something is your business card.

Bette Daoust, Ph.D. has been networking with others since leaving high school years ago. Realizing that no one really cared about what she did in life unless she had someone to tell and excite. She decided to find the best ways to get people’s attention, be creative in how she presented herself and products, getting people to know who she was, and being visible all the time. Her friends and colleagues have often dubbed her the “Networking Queen”. Blueprint for Networking Success: 150 ways to promote yourself is the first in this series. Blueprint for Branding Yourself: Another 150 ways to promote yourself is planned for release in 2005. For more information visit http://BlueprintBooks.com/

“The meaning of life is that it stops.”
-Franz Kafka (1883-1924)

A good friend of mine graduated from Boston University Law School. At her commencement David E. Kelly gave the commencement address. As some of you may know, Mr. Kelly is the writer of many popular television programs such as The Practice, Ally McBeal, Chicago Hope and many others. He is also an alumni of B.U. Law School.

I was very intrigued by what Mr. Kelly chose to say to this class of new lawyers. He chose to talk to them about choices. He told them that even though it may look like they are heading down a predictable, unchangeable path of law firms and partnerships, it doesn’t have to be that way. He reminded them that life was about following your dreams and passions. In a short 20 minute speech he inspired us all to discover what it is we wanted from this life and to not be afraid to break out of the mold in order to get it.

Sometimes it is difficult to see that we have choices. Sometimes we feel we are trapped by circumstances or by the previous choices that we have made that have led us to where we are now. I am here to tell you that you are never really trapped. To quote an old saying “where there is a will, there is a way.” You might have to think very creatively. You may have to call upon outside resources. You may even have to make some hard choices and compromises. Ultimately, though, you have the power to choose how you spend your time, your money and your energy.

When take some time to get clear on your priorities, you will be rewarded. You will learn just how innovative you can be when it comes to figuring out how to make them a reality. Don’t let yourself get stuck in “it’s impossible” or “there’s no way” thinking. There is a way. It is possible. The answer may be very different than what you might have guessed, but it just may work. Think outside the box! After all, this is the only life you’ve got.

Is there some area of your life where you feel stuck or trapped? What would you really need in order to be freed up from this situation? Challenge yourself (and ask your friends for help!) to think of all the off-the-wall, completely out-of-the box approaches that you can. Chances are you will create a crack of possibility in the stuck feeling…you will find at least some action you can try. Don’t waste one more minute of your most valuable, and limited, resource: your life.Move forward today - don’t stay stuck, start brainstorming!

Deirdre Maigread McEachern is a personal coach who helps her
clients experience more joy in their lives. You can contact
Deirdre for a complimentary consultation at 207-439-4280 or
join her free monthly newsletter at http://www.vip-coaching.com.

There is a real revolution today among CCNA and CCNP candidates. More and more of you are turning your back on “router simulators” and putting your own CCNA and/or CCNP Home Lab together, which is the best way to totally prepare to pass these tough Cisco exams.

I get hundreds of emails every month from CCNA and CCNP candidate who are putting together their first lab or adding to their existing one. I’m always glad to help with suggestions, and I thought I’d list five common questions regarding home labs here.

Do I have to spend thousands of dollars?

No! There are vendors all over the web, as well as on ebay, who sell used Cisco routers and switches to Cisco exam candidates like you every single day. They sell kits that consist of multiple routers and switches, as well as single routers and switches. You can add one piece at a time, or make a larger investment. You can spend just a few hundred dollars and put together a very nice lab.

What’s an “access server”?

It’s not what it sounds like. When I first heard the term, I thought of a typical server like we see in LANs every single day. An access server is actually a Cisco router that allows you to connect to multiple other routers and switches without continually moving the rolled cable around.

You don’t have to have an access server right away, but once you add a few more routers and switches to your lab, you’ll get tired of moving the rollover cable from console port to console port. (The console port is used to directly connect your PC to the router.) You’ll find an access server is easy to set up and configure, and will save you quite a bit of time.

What’s a “frame relay switch”?

Again, it’s not quite what it sounds like. A frame relay switch is not a switch; it’s a Cisco router that has been configured to serve as a frame relay provider in your home lab.

This is very close to being a “must” for your home lab. You don’t need it right away if your budget allows for only one or two routers to get started. To truly practice frame relay map statements and see the effect of different frame relay statements, you’ll need a Cisco router to serve as a frame switch. Again, the configuration is easy, and having a frame relay switch in your home lab will give you practice that will be invaluable on exam day.

Do I need a switch? What switch should I buy?

I recommend you get at least one switch in your lab; two if your budget allows. Make sure that at least one of your switches has an IOS; 1900 switches do not have an IOS and while they’re better than not having a switch, they’re not going to give you the practice you need to pass the CCNA and CCNP. Look to the 2500 family of switches.

I want to build my CCNP lab and then use it for the CCIE. What should I buy?

It’s impossible to tell what technologies and devices will be on the CCIE lab, even if you zip through the CCNP and then take the IE within six months. Cisco refreshing the CCIE lab blueprint every six months, and different technologies can be taken off the lab. While Cisco gives plenty of notice that these changes are going to take effect, it can be a big pain in your wallet if Cisco takes something off of the exam after you spend a bundle to add it to your lab.

As an example, Cisco is in the process of removing ISDN and ATM from the CCIE Routing & Switching lab. If you bought an ATM switch for your lab, you’ve got an expensive paperweight right now. While you may be able to practice your core protocols on a CCIE home lab, it’s going to be difficult and expensive to keep your home lab totally current with the Cisco lab blueprint.

The decision to put together your own CCNA or CCNP home lab is the best decision you can ever make - and I speak from experience. With home labs becoming less expensive every day, it’s becoming more affordable as well. Start looking into used Cisco router vendors today (ebay is a great place to find some vendors, as is Google), and you can be practicing on REAL Cisco routers and switches soon - and be totally prepared for CCNA and CCNP exam success.

Chris Bryant, CCIE #12933, is the owner of The Bryant Advantage (www.thebryantadvantage.com), home of free CCNA and CCNP tutorials, The Ultimate CCNA Study Package, and Ultimate CCNP Study Packages. Video courses and training, binary and subnetting help, and corporate training are also available.

For a FREE copy of his latest e-books, “How To Pass The CCNA” or “How To Pass The CCNP”, send a request to chris@thebryantadvantage.com today !

If you participate on a list serve for your industry or academic efforts you may wish to consider using your secondary email address if you have an auto responder, which alerts the other party that you are out of the office. Nothing can be more aggravating to other list serve users than to get five replies that; So-in-so is out of the office until Monday.

Some of the worst culprits of this are the professional parasites in our society, civilization and business world. Lawyers, accountants, government workers and such; why do they do it if they know that it upsets everyone? Well, it is simple, they could careless about anyone but themselves.

Lawyers are the worst and most self-serving when it comes to auto-responders on list serves. It seems every weekend or 3-day weekend this silly auto responder shows up and tells us all that they are out of the office? How disrespectful to the group. Little do they know they end up looking like horse’s rear-ends.

It makes sense if you have an auto-responder for your profession then use a different email address when signing up for list serves and have a little respect for others and prevent yourself from looking like such a moron and scumbag. Consider all this in 2006.

Human beings seem to be born with a gene for telling stories. Stories from our families, our communities, and the media form our worldview and shape our lives. In fact, scientists have discovered that our ability to create stories is intricately connected to our ability to learn. This is because our brains seek to create meaning through relationship, which is what stories do so well.

Our storytelling faculty comes into play not only when we speak, but also when we read, which means that our brains are unconsciously seeking a well-told story in every kind of writingwhether it be a business proposal, an academic essay or the Great American Novel. When a story connects with us, it can have a powerful effect on our thoughts and decisions. When it doesn’t connect with us, however, it may leave us confused, bored, or even angry.

The question is: Why do some stories succeed while others do not?

Successful writers understand the architecture of a story

The answer lies in the architecture of a story, which at the most basic level requires a beginning, a middle, and an ending. The beginning needs a way to draw readers into the story and make them want to keep reading. The middle needs to tell the basic parts of the story in some kind of logical order so that readers can follow and understand it. And the ending needs to tie up loose ends, being sure to answer any questions that have been raised.

Successful stories are always targeted at a particular audience and use language and terminology the audience understands. They also use concrete details and strong, active verbs to add color, emotion and energy.

If any of these elements are missing from our written communications, we will confuse our readers at best and completely fail in our purpose at worst.

Let’s take a book for example

When I am browsing in a bookstore and pick up a book, I usually look at the first paragraph. If something about the writing “hooks” me, I read further. If it doesn’t, I put the book back on the shelf.

If I accidentally pick up a book in Italian–a language I do not know–I put it back immediately because I am not its intended audience. In other words, it literally doesn’t “speak” to me!

Once I begin to read the book, I expect the author to lead me skillfully through his story, giving me as much detail as I need to understand and visualize his ideas. Sometimes, however, the author’s plot jumps around so much that I have a hard time following it.

Sometimes the author’s characters are so vaguely drawn that I can’t keep them straight. The result is that I end up not caring about them at all, and I soon forget the whole thing.

Sometimes I get to the end of a book and find that the author has left me hanging, without tying up loose ends and satisfactorily answering my who, what, when, where, why and how questions.

As I experience each of these frustrations, there is a good chance that I will misunderstand what the author is trying to say, lose interest in his message altogether, or start becoming irritated with the author himself.

This is obviously not the kind of reaction any writer wants to engender. If you are writing business or academic communications, and are not a professional novelist, what can you do to ensure that your “story” succeeds?

One possible solution is to write your communication using the Story Spine technique.

Use the Story Spine to build your narrative

This technique, which is described by Kat Koppett in her book Training to Imagine: Practical Improvisational Theatre Techniques to Enhance Creativity, Teamwork, Leadership, and Learning, is especially good at helping writers build their narrative without getting lost. It consists of the following steps:

• Once upon a time…
  
• Every day…
  
• But one day…
  
• Because of that… (Repeat as needed)
  
• Until finally…
  
• And ever since then…
  

“Once upon a time” is your opening. It draws your readers into your communication in some way and introduces your setting and characters. By answering such questions as “Who?” “What?” “Where?” and “When?” it provides the context and sets the stage for your communication.

In the “Everyday” step, you present some background information and further develop your message.

The “But one day” step represents your catalyst. This is where you ask and answer such questions as: “Why is this message/idea important? What is different about it?”

The “Because of that” step represents the heart, or main section, of your story. It presents the consequences that result from your catalyst.

The “Until finally” step is the climax of your communication, where you present your most important points or results. It is what your whole communication has been building up to.

The “And ever since then” step is your conclusion. It is the place you tie up loose ends and leave your reader with a feeling of satisfaction, of completion and understanding.

Concrete details make a story compelling

Ensuring that your story follows a basic structure isn’t quite enough, however. You must also provide vivid, concrete details. According to Koppett:

Shakespeare’s structure is strong. His “because of that’s” flow from one to the other, building in intensity beautifully. But mostly, it is the language Shakespeare uses, the descriptions he employs, the way he develops his characters that makes his work a masterpiece. What makes a story compelling is not just what happens, but how it is related, the specific moments, the images and sensory impressions that are created.

So, again, we come back to our brain’s need for meaning and connection. To ensure your writing succeeds, keep in mind that you are, in effect, telling a story. Ask yourself, “Has my story met my audience’s needs and expectations?” If you can answer “yes” to this question, your results will show it.

Clarice Kyd Dankers is a freelance editor and learning coach in Portland, Oregon, who works internationally with business and academic clients. To learn more about her services, or to sign up for her free monthly newsletter, go to: PolishYourWriting.com

Living a creative life is often very closely connected with our feelings and emotions. It is no coincidence that those of us who are creative also tend to share traits of being emotional, sensitive, and good at communicating with others.

To be able to use creativity as a means of connecting with other people then, it’s essential to be able to tap into our own deep feelings and experiences within, and then convey them in an articulate way to our intended audience.

It might seem at first that this idea only relates to a specific form of creativity and is only relevant for writers, musicians, painters and so forth, those who are in the “Creative Arts”.

For example, an author writing a new crime thriller may be trying to communicate feelings of excitement, danger, adventure and fear. The quality of the writing determines how successful they are in conveying these emotions to their readers.

But think more carefully. Anyone who uses their creativity in their career or projects is in some way essentially seeking to communicate.

A fashion designer with their new range of teenage fashions may be wishing to communicate feelings of fun, sophistication and style.

A photographer with their exhibition of 1950s style black and white pictures may be trying to inspire feelings of nostalgia, childhood and a loss of innocence.

A graphic designer with their new magazine cover may be trying to appeal to their target market using intelligence, wit and a sense of individuality. They may be seeking to attract a readership who consider themselves to be intelligent, witty and individual.

A museum curator, when creating a new exhibition on the history of space travel may seek to communicate feelings of awe, wonder, excitement and man’s ability to achieve the seemingly impossible.

All of these examples share one thing in common. They are people using their creative abilities to communicate with their intended audience on some emotional level.

The motives may of course be different, and each individual may use a variety of methods and techniques from project to project, but the aim throughout is constant - to engage their audience and arouse an emotional reaction. And by doing this they make a lasting impression, enough that their audience wants to read their next book or visit their next show.

Think about your creative projects. When you create do you begin with an aim, motive or intended outcome on an emotional or connecting level?

When we do, we can create work that has more impact and therefore lasts longer in the memories of our audience. By having our intentions clearly outlined before we set about creating, it can help us stay focused on the outcome.

It doesn’t mean our creativity will be hindered or suppressed, in fact quite the opposite happens.

For example if you were asked to write a story that has an emotional impact you may take some time to come up with any ideas about the kind of emotions you want to convey and then take longer to choose one and begin to develop it.

But if you were asked to write a story that recounted a deep loss for example, it’s likely you’d very quickly be able to call upon your own experiences of memories of that feeling in your own life and use your creativity to compose a piece of writing that effectively communicates these feelings to your reader.

So for your next creative project, whatever it may be, give careful thought to the emotion and the communication behind the creativity.

Remember ultimately that the work we all most connect to, hold most dear and remember longest, is that which speaks to us on a deep level of feeling and emotion.

© Copyright 2006 Dan Goodwin.

Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin is the author of “Create Create!”, a FREE twice monthly ezine for people who want simple and powerful articles, tips and exercises to help them unleash their creative talents. Sign up right now and get your FREE “Explode Your Creativity!” Action Workbook, at http://www.CoachCreative.com

To make money in the stock market, setting stops is an imprecise science and involves a lot of trial and error, but it is an integral part of being a successful trader. A good analogy is to compare stops to buying insurance for your business. Should you avoid insurance altogether just because you’re not sure exactly how much you need, or because it will cost you a little money? No. Instead, you estimate and do the best you can, and in the end it will be well worth the effort.

Where insurance limits risk of loss through disasters, stops limit your risk of loss on bad trades. Stops make it possible to take small losses and get out when a stock goes against you, protecting your capital. Yet, some traders find that they are unwilling to take a loss on any stock. They don’t want to admit that they made a mistake.

Another key to make money in the stock market, what often separates a good trader from a bad one is the ability to take small losses. Your goal, as a successful trader, is to take small losses and make big gains. If you do this, you’ll be profitable. But, you ask, what if you stop out of a stock you still want to trade? Well, you can always buy it back later, and likely at a better price, if the trade still has potential.

Besides limiting risk and helping you take small losses, stops are valuable because they protect profits on winning trades. As I discussed in a previous article, you must lock in your profit when you trade, or you can lose it. You can ensure that you keep your profits by using trailing stops. A trailing stop is a stop order you place below the current price of a long position, progressively moving it up as the price of the position increases so that the stop follows the position up. For a short position, to make money in the stock market you set a stop above the current price and then move it progressively down, following the position as it trends downward.

This means that once you have a profit, you move your stop nearer to the current price so you’ll stop out with most of your profits intact if the position moves against you. If the stop executes and you decide you want to trade the position again, you can buy it back at a better price than you sold it for and then ride it up again. That’s how a good trader makes and keeps money, make money in the stock market by taking small profits multiple times, rather than risking too much waiting for a big win.

Discover BIG profits from the market by downloading your FREE copy of David’s new Ultimate Stock Trading Systems course. http:/ /www.ultimate-trading-systems.com/stocks.html

For any great novelist, defining your cast of intriguing characters is the key to the success of your story. So how do you maintain the image of your characters―both their physical attributes and their personality? It’s easy! Build a Character Wall…paper by paper.

A Character Wall is simply a character profile wall. It displays letter-sized pieces of paper featuring photos and key points on the cast of characters in your novel or story. It enables the writer to visualize his or her characters more fully, to give each cast member a face and to bring them to life. It ensures that the basic facts of each character’s existence are easily accessible. And it keeps the author consistent with those facts.

There is nothing worse than reading a novel and having the handsome hero’s hair color change from sandy brown to black, midway through the story. Or visualizing a ragged z-shaped scar running down the left side of his face in Chapter 2, only to see it miraculously change into a c-shaped scar running across his lower lip in Chapter 15. Of course, we hope that the editor catches these inconsistencies, but in essence, the author would be better off to have an easy and accurate reference. The Character Wall is exactly that!

Let’s look at the key elements of building a Character Wall:

* You will need a wall―any large blank space near your computer where you can tape up letter-sized pieces of paper for each key character in your novel.

* Label each paper with one character’s name.

* Find photos of actors who you think physically resemble your characters, and add a small photo to each paper.

* Label the papers with each character’s key attributes: profession, age/birthday, marital status/children, best friends and personality traits.

* Label each character’s physical attributes: height/weight, color of hair/eyes, scars/tattoos, speech impediments/physical disabilities, speech/tone.

On the Character Wall, keep the main character(s) in the center. As you add the major secondary characters, try to position them in order of their relationship to the main character. Only add a character if they are important to the story or if you need background information or need to create a history, etc. Minor characters like the pharmacy clerk or the gas attendant won’t be necessary unless they are truly part of the story. Consider them extras or background actors, unless they speak more than three times. Sometimes it is helpful to add a strip of paper leading from one major character to another, to help clarify their relationship to each other. Be sure to make notes on the strip.

Some authors have a difficult time naming their characters. Use the White Pages of your telephone book if you run out of ideas for unique names. Figure out whether each character has a nickname or shortened version of their name and note that on their paper. Pick names that fit each character and their specific role or personality. If your lead character is a tough, butch-like cop, don’t name her Isabella Maria Fiori. This name would be more suited to the dead swimsuit model that your cop finds in the Presidential Suite of the Fairmont Royale.

Choosing the photos of the actors to play the roles in your novel isn’t always easy either. Most often writers already have a clear picture in their head as to what the character looks like. If you can draw, then go ahead and create your character. If not, then go online and search the celebrity sites. Pretend you are a casting agent. Whom would you cast in the role of the mad scientist in your conspiracy theory novel or the dimwitted secretary in your murder mystery? One of the easiest ways to find your actor is to simply watch television. If you are looking for a face to play your private eye, then check out some of the detective shows. If you need a child, watch a good family show―if nothing else but to find that face. Find the face that inspires you, that makes you believe “Yes, she is Del Hawthorne!”

As a Canadian author, I have written three novels using the Character Wall method, and I recommend this useful tool to all fiction writers. I selected Charlize Theron and Johnny Depp as the Character Wall models for my most recent novel, The River, a nail-biting techno-thriller that is scheduled for release in late September 2005. In fact, if I have my way, Theron and Depp will become the actual actors in the movie version of my novel. My advice: “Put your Character Wall papers into a binder after the novel is finished, for easy reference and sequel info.”

During your novel’s progression, there will be many tidbits of information that you can add to each character’s profile―secrets from their past, important dates and more. Don’t forget to list any bad habits your character might have. If she is a compulsive hand washer, make a note. If he’s a nose picker, the note on his paper will act as a reminder and keep you consistent. As each character develops, continue to add any new information to each sheet. Plots change and characters mutate. They grow, they learn things, they react. List anything important to the story.

The advantages of building a Character Wall:

* Not only will a Character Wall help to keep your characters organized and in your face, you will start to really see them. And once an author can see her characters, there is a better chance that the reader will visualize them also.

* Choosing an actor to represent these characters will give them a voice, a stance, a personality, and life. No novel can survive without characters with depth, heart, soul and spirit.

* For anyone writing a novel that might spawn a sequel or could become a series, the wall will act as a condensed information booth. Papers can be compiled into a folder or binder, and stored for future reference.

* And last but not least, you will have at your fingertips an entire casting list for the movie version of your novel―once Steven Spielberg gets a hold of it and reads it!

A Character Wall is an invaluable tool that will assist you in staying focused and on track. It will keep you true to the personalities and physical attributes of your novel’s cast of characters. And like Rome, it won’t be ‘built in a day’, but will evolve over the duration of the creation of your novel. If you build it, you will see your characters, hear them and breathe with them. So build that Character Wall―paper by paper―and watch your characters come alive.

* * * * * * * * * * *

Cheryl Kaye Tardif, a Canadian mystery author, is the author of three published novels: Whale Song, an emotional mystery; Divine Intervention, a scorching psychic suspense; and her newest release, The River, a terrifying techno-thriller. http://www.cherylktardif.com or Email Cheryl Kaye Tardif

©2005 Cheryl Kaye Tardif

I’m betting that that 3 out of 4 of you who are reading this don’t have a good-quality photo that you could give the media if a reporter called you today.

I check the EzineArticles.com website at least once a week, looking for articles for The Publicity Hound, my subscription newsletter on how to generate free publicity. When I find an article my readers would like, I email the writer and ask for a photo. More times than not, I’m disappointed. Three out of four people have poor-quality photos or none at all.

Writing articles to position yourself as an expert in your field, sell more products and services and pull traffic to your website is admirable. But don’t stop there. You need a good-quality above-the-shoulders photo for publishers like me who want to use it online or offline and give you lots of free publicity.

If you’re among the 3 out of 4 who don’t have one, stop being a media mutt and start acting like a true Publicity Hound. Here are tips on how to get an inexpensive, good-quality photo.

Use a professional photographer

If your cousin has a new digital camera, or a cell phone with a camera, and offers to take your photo to save you money, use a professional instead. Trust me, the expense will be well worth it.

Many of the bad-quality photos I see are too dark, out of focus, grainy, scanned incorrectly, or taken against a busy backdrop–often by amateur photographers. I’ve seen photos that look as though people have plants growing out of the tops of their heads. One writer gave me a photo that shows him with his eyes closed. A woman gave me a photo of her in a sleeveless blouse, with her bra strap showing.

Some people offer snapshots that show them with friends and family members. Most editors won’t bother cropping out babies, husbands or friends. They just won’t use your photo.

A standard, above-the-shoulders color photo is the bare minimum. Prices vary from market to market, but you can usually get a professional business portrait for less than $75 from a professional photographer.

To find a photographer in your price range, start with the Yellow Pages. Or ask people you know for recommendations. Even photo studios at places like Sears and J.C. Penney can often produce inexpensive photos that are better than the ones taken by your cousin.

Tips for looking your best

Here are tips to follow if you’re having your portrait taken:

–Wear your usual hairstyle. Don’t try anything new.

–Make sure your hair is styled the way you want it before you arrive at the studio.

–If you need a haircut, have it done one or two weeks before your photo session.

–Wear clothing appropriate to your profession. If you’re a gardener, don’t have your photo taken in a suit and tie.

–Avoid high-neck clothing that obscures your neck.

–Avoid sleeveless clothing.

–It’s risky to wear prints that draw attention away from your face. When in doubt, be safe with solids (but not black or white).

–When applying make-up, pay special attention to your eyes. That’s what people see first.

–Eye shadow adds depth. Avoid iridescent colors. Stick to neutral.

–If you wear glasses, ask your optometrist if you can borrow a pair without lenses. That way there won’t be any glare.

–Powder reduces shine and helps eliminate shiny foreheads and noses.

–Be sure to tell your photographer the photos are for publicity so he knows what kind of backdrop to use. And tell him not to use a “soft focus” lense. Your photo should have sharp tones with good contrast.

–Don’t have your photo taken when you have a dark suntan or it will look like your face is oily.

–Don’t forget to smile! If you don’t, you might come off looking bored or sad.

When I have my photo taken every two or three years, I splurge for a hair and make-up artist who primps me until I look my best, then stays with me during the entire photo shoot. Her fee is about $150, and the results are worth every penny. But you don’t need to spend that kind of money if you don’t have it. Just follow the tips above and you’ll be fine.

Pay for as many shots as you can afford so you have a good selection of images from which to choose. Also, ask the photographer if the photo shoot can include one or two wardrobe changes.

In addition to the head shot, you might also consider a storytelling photo that shows you with “props” related to your event. A toy train collector who will be featured at a train show, for example, might be photographed behind his model train display. Weekly newspapers that don’t have photo staffs would welcome these types of photos.

Ordering your photos

Most print and online publications use electronic photos, but some don’t. So you should have several wallet-size photos and at least one 4-by-5 print on hand just in case someone asks for it. If you’re mailing prints, attach a label to the back of the photo. It should include your name, address, phone number, email address and the year the photo was taken.

Never write on the backs of photos with a pen or felt-tip marker. If you are mailing more than one photo, slip a blank piece of paper between them. Sometimes the pressure of the post office’s mailing equipment can cause the back of one picture to rub off onto the front of another.

I advise Publicity Hounds that when sending prints to publications, don’t ask editors to return them. It makes you look cheap. Besides, you want to encourage them to keep the photos in their files for use months or even years later.

Make electronic versions available

If you’re posting your photo to your website, you can scan it at 72 dots per inch and it will look fine.

But editors who want to use the photos in print publications will need the photo scanned at 300 dots per inch, at the size they want to use the photo or larger. That means you can’t take a thumbnail-size headshot, scan it at 300 dots per inch and offer it to an editor who wants to use it at 2-by-3 inches. That editor needs at least a 2-by-3 photo scanned at 300 dpi. So make several sizes available. I make four sizes available scanned at 300 dots per inch. You can see how I offer it to editors by clicking here.

For most flexibility, offer a 4-by-5, color jpg scanned at 300 dpi. Any professional editor or publisher will be able to work with that. Some may use it in black and white, some may make it smaller, and some may lower the resolution.

I suggest you include your photos under a “Media Room” button on your home page so it’s easy for editors to find what they’re looking for.

And remember to smile!

Joan Stewart, also known as The Publicity Hound and a contributor to EzineArticles.com, writes a blog at http://www.PublicityHound.net and also publishes “The Publicity Hound’s Tips of the Week,” a free ezine on how to generate thousands of dollars in free publicity. Subscribe at her website at http://www.PublicityHound.com and receive free the handy checklist “89 Reasons to Send a News Release.” She is writing an ebook on how to use photos and graphics in a publicity campaign.

During the coffee break of one conference I attended, whispers and giggles could be heard within the conversations of small huddles of delegates. Without asking, I knew what they were all talking about because our little group were talking about the same thing.

The presenter that had just been speaking had given an excellent talk, but it seemed that the only thing that we had remembered was his dress and grooming, or lack of it. Without exaggerating, this man was wearing a suit that was so crumpled it looked like rags. There wasn’t a section in it that was not badly creased. If that wasn’t bad enough there was a large stain on his tie, apparently from something he had spilled earlier in the day. He truly looked a mess, and he was oblivious to this fact.

While that example was somewhat extreme, poor dress and grooming is not uncommon, and the example demonstrates the point that audiences notice what we are wearing, and they judge us accordingly. It’s amazing what people will conclude about us from this aspect alone before we utter a word. Interestingly, the tendency is also to judge the company or organisation we are representing in the same way. In the example just mentioned, our little group included negative comments about the company the presenter was from, because he was rightly seen as a representative of that company. Imagine that - one person has the power to convey a positive or negative image of the company they work for.

The importance of your appearance does not just relate to your clothes being clean. The last thing you want as a public speaker in any circumstance is for your clothes to out stage you. The purpose of the audience being there is to listen and learn, not to be distracted by your appearance. Bear in mind that this can apply to both extremes of the appearance spectrum. Just as dirty, creased and smelly clothes leave a bad impression, someone who goes overboard with cutting edge or flamboyant fashion can just as easily leave a bad impression. Why? Once again, the audience will be focusing on and talking about the unusual clothes rather than the content of the presentation.

The best advice for what to wear is to make it suitable for the occasion. In a fairly informal setting it might be appropriate to dress in a smart casual style - a tie or suit may be unnecessary. In a high profile banking meeting, it would be normal to dress in a high quality suit, with shirt and tie. If in doubt, check with the organisers to confirm the dress code of presenters, and if there is still any doubt, take some alternative clothes with you, just in case.

It should also be noted that what you wear should be acceptable to the geographical locale. Different regions of the country and certainly different countries have different customs as to what is considered proper dress. In some warm climates a tie would be deemed ridiculous, in others it is considered essential. Do your research about local customs, and prepare accordingly.

Avoid any extremes in what you wear, including jewellery and accessories. It’s good advice not to be the first one into a fashion, or the last one out of it! We are all affected by fashion to some degree, and some people live for buying new outfits, but in the public speaking environment, unless you are deliberately trying to get a reaction from your clothes as part of your presentation, don’t try and stand out by what you wear. For example, in some there has been a recent trend to wear extremely bright coloured suits, almost to the point of being fluorescent. The trouble is that speakers who wear that type of clothing lose credibility when they are trying to speak on a serious subject.

We mentioned accessories too. On one occasion, a speaker was seen wearing an extremely expensive gold watch, as well as having numerous large rings on his fingers. Perhaps unwittingly (or maybe not), he held his hands in such a way so that everyone noticed his ‘treasure’. As it happened, not only did everyone notice the jewellery but every time it got caught in the focus of the spotlights someone in the audience would be temporarily blinded by the glare bouncing back off the rings. It was not very considerate of the speaker, who was so full of his own self importance that he would probably not have cared about the distraction even if he had been told. If you wear a lot of jewellery, don’t fall into the same trap!

Your shoes speak volumes about you. It’s often been said that the cleanliness of a persons shoes directly relates to their overall cleanliness and personality. It seems to make sense that someone with scruffy, dirty shoes lacks interest in their appearance, and perhaps that attitude is reflected in other areas of their work. On the other hand, someone who takes the trouble to ensure their shoes are polished and well kept obviously takes a pride in their overall appearance.

Let’s briefly talk about personal hygiene. To be presentable, you need to be free from body odours, with clean teeth and fingernails. Your hair should be neatly combed, and if you normally shave, you should be clean shaven. Although this sounds obvious to most people, sadly it’s a real problem amongst many public speakers. Yes, many. An audience member sitting in the front row can see the presenter’s teeth and fingernails, and they can even tell if the presenter has a problem with body odour. In a more confined environment it is even more noticeable. Wouldn’t it be terrible if your message was rejected because of poor hygiene? It happens all the time.

Aftershave or cologne can be used, but in moderation. It’s a subtle factor that should add to your professional image, not overwhelm the audience. Some people have allergies to colognes.

If a suit is appropriate, a high quality suit, the best you can afford will give you more confidence and will make you appear more professional to the audience. In choosing a tie, be guided by what you see other successful people wear, rather than opting for that Simpson’s cartoon tie, just because it was a gift.

Paul Daniels is often described as The Johnny Carson of England. In his home country he is a household name due to his more than 20 years of prime-time TV shows that have been broadcast to 41 countries. Paul’s course: The Stress Free Guide To Public Speaking and Presentations is the International best selling speaking course - visit: http://www.stressfreepublicspeaking.com for more information.