Networking, Networking Networking.

I want to tell you how great networking community websites are. It all started with Myspace, Facebook etc. A new trend I am trying out is Twitter. It's all about what your doing. You can do it from your cell phone on the go. The big positive about network communities is that you drive more traffic to your website. I believe in turn you can make more money and sell more products my using Twitter. I am conducting a Twitter study of my own. I want to see how many people will "Twitter" me in the next 24hrs after I post this blog. I want to get their thoughts on how Twitter could capitalize on expanding their network.

Pumpkin Pie in July.

I thought this was a little weird. My husband went to the store in search of Pie. He knew I hate Cherry Pie, the only other flavor they had in the bakery was Pumpkin. Strange but this is the first time I have ever eaten Pumpkin Pie in July...and I probably won't do it again. It's too weird.

Bank Watch

This is a follow-up article on the original article I wrote on July 16, 2008 "Is your money safe?" This is an update of whats happening with banks. Many of these banks were not previously on the list.

Banks are supposed to be (FDIC) insured by the federal government. 90 bank watch list as published by The Bank Implode Meter, these are banks that have all been audited and written up for something. After doing a little research I found most of the banks on the watch list, many of the banks on this list are still in good standing. The ones that you will need to keep an eye on are the banks on a "Level 3". These are the banks that are in serious trouble.

Level 3 watch Bank List.

1. Washington Mutual 7-27-08 (waiting on implosion)
2. National City 7-24-08
3. Fifth Third Bankcorp 7-22-08
4. Watchovia 7-22-08 (waiting on implosion)
5. Bank of America 7-21-08
6. Merryl Lynch 7-11-08
7. Lehman Brothers 7-11-08
8. Bank of America 7-08-08
   
9. Citigroup 6-28-08
10. US Bancorp (near level 3)
11. National City (near level 3)
12. JP Morgan Chase (near level 3)
13. Wells Fargo (near level 3, may still come out alive but not in the clear)
    

FDIC Failed Bank List.

1. First National Bank of Nevada 7-26-08
2. First Heritage Bank N.A. 7-26-08
3. Indy Mac Bank Corp 7-11-08
4. First Integrity Bank 5-31-08
5. ANB Financial 5-09-08
6. Carnation Bank 5-09-08
7. St. Luke Baptist Federal Credit Union 5-07-08
   
8. Hume Bank of Hume, MO 3-10-08
9. Douglas National Bank 1-28-08
10. Huron River Credit Union 1-19-08
11. Green Tree Federal Credit Union 1-19-08
    
12. Metropolitan Savings Bank 1-19-08
    
13. Miami Valley Bank 1-19-08
14. Net Bank 1-19-08
15. Sharebuilders Federal Credit Union 1-19-08
16. Freemont General
17. Bear Stearns
18. Northern Rock PLC
19. Coast Bank

Some interesting facts about the oil industry.

With gasoline currently at $4 per gallon (higher in Utah) have you ever wondered how much the oil companies are making? Big oil companies claim they are not the big winners. The average proffit margin for oil companies in 7.6%. Currently the oil companies are saying that the demand is exceeding the supply, which is why gas prices continue to rise. Independently owned gas stations are only making a few cents per gallon. The federal government is currently making .18 cents per gallon. State Government is making .22 cents per gallon. Distributors make .28 cents per gallon. Refineries make .36 cents per gallon. Oil producers are making $2.96 per gallon. When you add all of that up it calculates to $4.00 per gallon without the independently owned gas stations taking their cut.

New ideas in upcoming seminars.

I have been talking with a few of my mentors and will be bringing some local seminars that you will be able to take advantage of. I am really excited about this because this is going to be Life Changing. Some real hands on opportunities on learning from the pros to be more profitable in your business or with your website. There will also be a range of subjects you will be able to choose from.

Stay tuned and I will tell you more.

Some good news!

Today I recently found 2 gas stations that recently lowered their prices from last week, which was $4.17 a gallon for reg unleaded. Their prices are now $3.94 for regular unleaded. Even the local Sam's club that is usually supposed to be .05 cents cheaper, is currently $4.13. These prices are very good news considering how our economy has been going.

(Salt Lake City Area near point of the mountain)

Exxon Located on Bangerter Highway and west of I15
711 Located on Bangerter Highway and west of I15

The Power of Positive Thinking

We have lots of bad news going on in the world today. How you deal with that information is completely up to you. We may not be able to change the world, but we can always make the best of the situation by having a positive outlook and finding out how you can make your life or someone elses better. Positive thinking is one of the greatest powers that a human has. Negative thinking can only bring you more misery. With the power of positive thinking when things look hopeless to someone else, you have the power to think outside the box to find a solution. To create something better and to think of a better way of doing things. I firmly believe that the power of positive thinking can get you through anything. It's that one small thing you do for someone else that can change someones life.

The key to making money is Advertising.

As my ongoing campaign to help people make money, I really want to help everyone make money. I feel by doing this it will give people some hope and a way for everyone to make some money in our downed economy. I have blogged about different types of advertising. I thought I would take a slightly different approach to get the message out. The key to making money on the internet and getting noticed is advertising. This does NOT have to be PAID advertising. You just need to get the word out to get your site noticed. To key is to get on as many sites as possible with the most exposure possible. The second thing you need of course on your site is content. It has to be interesting enough that people will want to read it. The third thing you need is the correct key words to get noticed when plugging in your site. This can be the most difficult in generating the best key words to get you noticed that won't produce allot of junk. Here are a few FREE websites you can get signed up with that will help you to get noticed. I recommend signing up with all of them. Of course there are many other ways and sites to get noticed.

1. Twitter
2. Technorati
3. Compete
4. Alexa
5. Google
6. Blogz
7. RSS
8. Zimbio
9. Blog Explosion
10. ISEdb
    
11. YouTube

Is your money safe?

I have never been the type of person that got involved in politics before. I feel the widespread panic going on in our nation is caused by our economy along with the monopoly being played with oil. I have a very big and new concern. Is your money safe? Banks are already in trouble. Are we headed for a recession as big as the 1920's? This is what I read on the front page of the morning paper. Look at today's headlines.

Stemming a Bank Crisis: Regulators, Banks Try to Calm Nation

Seeing Bad Loans, Investors Flee From Bank Shares

Economic angst: Could your bank be the next to fail?

Recession Watch: 5 Reasons Banks Face More Trouble

Banks are supposed to be (FDIC) insured by the federal government. 90 bank watch list as published by The Bank Implode Meter, these are banks that have all been audited and written up for something. After doing a little research I found most of the banks on the watch list, many of the banks on this list are still in good standing. The ones that you will need to keep an eye on are the banks on a "Level 3". These are the banks that could be headed for serious trouble.

Level 3 watch Bank List.

1. Merryl Lynch 7-11-08
2. Lehman Brothers 7-11-08
3. Bank of America 7-08-08
   
4. Citigroup 6-28-08
5. Watchovia (near level 3)
   
6. US Bancorp (near level 3)
7. Washington Mutual (near level 3)
8. National City (near level 3)
   

List of Failed Banks.

1. IndyMac BankCorp
2. Carnation Bank
   
3. First Integrity Bank
4. ANB Financial
5. Hume Bank of Hume, MO
6. Douglas National Bank
7. Miami Valley Bank
8. Net Bank
9. Metropolitan Savings Bank
10. St. Luke Baptist Credit Union
11. Huron River Credit Union
12. Green Tree Federal Credit Union
13. Sharebuilders Federal Credit Union
14. Freemont General
15. Bear Stearns
16. Northern Rock PLC
17. Coast Bank

Budgeting your money.

Sticking to a monthly budget is very important in keeping yourself out of debt. I have developed some spreadsheets that are designed to keep you on task. I look at them every Monday morning. These spreadsheets were designed to help you keep track of every penny going in and coming out. They can be easily customized to fit your specific financial situation. In addition if will help you keep track of interest rates and rebates you may receive.

Balance your monthly statements. Are you afraid to open the envelope? Do you hate doing it and put it off until its time to file your taxes? I have found by using my spreadsheet I don't hate accounting so much. I actually enjoy knowing where all of my money is going. This is a simple and easy organization method of budgeting your money. You use this in conjunction with your accounting software such as Quicken, Quickbooks, Microsoft Money. If you would like a copy of my FREE financial budget sheet, please send and email. This will be in Microsoft Excel spreadsheet format. If you need another format please specify.