“Gifting” Appreciated Shares of Stock to Your Older Children
“I’m proud to be paying taxes in the United States. The only thing is I could be just as proud for half the money.” – Arthur Godfrey Last week, in Message #962, we looked at ways to take advantage of the recent cut in capital-gains taxes. This week, I want…
READ MOREHow to Be Great at Anything
“What we’re all striving for is authenticity, a spirit-to-spirit connection.” – Oprah Winfrey Good writing is hard to define. As a consultant to publishers, I know that as well as anyone does. It seems as if I’m always in the middle of one debate or another about whether some particular…
READ MOREHow to Increase Responses
“The difference between the right word and the almost right word is the difference between lightning and a lightning bug.” – Mark Twain Experienced direct marketers know this — even though businesspeople who are not direct marketers find it hard to believe: The way you state your offer can make…
READ MORETurn Your Favorite Pasttime Into a Moneymaking Venture
“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.” – Reggie Leach What’s your favorite thing? Golfing? Gardening? Poetry? Sports? It doesn’t make any difference what it is, there is a way to make a living from it — maybe even a very good living.…
READ MOREUse New Tax Laws to Boost Your Net Worth, Part 1
The tax code changes almost every year. Usually in ways that are overly cumbersome and often in ways that cost you money. The most recent changes in the tax code — signed into law by President George W. Bush in late May — are different, though. These changes actually offer…
READ MOREHow to Pay Back Loans and Earn Yourself Trust and Admiration
“Creditors are a superstitious sect, great observers of set days and times.” – Benjamin Franklin Ben Franklin, in his autobiography, tells the story of Ralph, a friend of his who had an affair with a young woman whom Ben admired. When Ralph moved to London, he left this woman in…
READ MOREUnderstanding What Makes Your Customers Tick
“‘Cherry-ripe, ripe, ripe,’ I cry, / ‘Full and fair ones; come and buy’” – Robert Herrick Conventional marketing wisdom says that people buy most products and services for emotional reasons — and that the emotions that most motivate buying are greed and fear. If you can figure out how to…
READ MORE12 Business Basics I Learned From a Start-Up Company
“The process of learning requires not only hearing and applying but also forgetting and then remembering again.” – John Gray As a favor to an old friend, I’ve begun working with his start-up company. It’s low-tech — and funding comes mostly from a whopping home mortgage and several shaken-down relatives.…
READ MORE3 Things You Must Know About Mailing Lists Before You Do Direct Mail
“Experience teaches slowly and at the cost of mistakes.” – James A. Froude A common mistake made by novice direct marketers is to create a promotion and then, almost as an afterthought, look for a list to mail it to. They have it backward. The right way to do direct…
READ MOREStay in Touch and Reap the Benefits
“Think like a wise man but communicate in the language of the people.” – William Butler Yeats If you are an executive — even the CEO — of your business, consider writing a note once a week or even once a month in which you express, in the most informal…
READ MOREDynamic Indifference: The Most Powerful Leadership Technique I Know
“You do not lead by hitting people over the head — that’s assault, not leadership.” – Dwight D. Eisenhower I practice a leadership technique that might be called “dynamic indifference.” I do not try to lead — probably because I am no good at it. Instead, I merely focus on…
READ MOREThe Hidden Danger of Negative Amortization
“The cautious seldom err.” – Confucius I’ve bought properties with fixed-rate, adjustable, assumable, 30-year, and 15-year mortgages. They all have their plusses and minuses. But right now, with interest rates rising, ARMs (adjustable-rate mortgages) are soaring in popularity. So it may be a good time to spell out some of…
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