Awhile ago I noticed people in Starbucks with these tiny laptops. “Thats stupid”, I thought. “You can barely see the screen! Why would anybody want something too big to be a cell phone and too small to be a laptop?” Now, Im hooked, and “netbooks” are everywhere. Here are 3 reasons I converted, and 3 reviews from ones I have sampled.

1. Portability

The obvious reason to have a netbook is that you can carry it without having to have a big laptop bag.Having an internet accessible device that can also serve as a word processor is better than trying to squint and type on an iPhone.

2. Hotspot Access

If you are planning on doing alot of gaming, then netbooks arent for you. THey simply dont have enough power, screen resolution, or storage capacity to support games. Netbooks are mainly used for internet access wherever there is a hotspot (like starbucks, borders, or local restaurants).

3. Tactical Adavantage

By leveraging the portability and accessibility that netbooks give you, you are better able to stay on top of your game. Now I can publish blogs any time, anywhere then slip my netbook back into my backpack and be gone. You cant do that with a heavy laptop!

What to look for in a Netbook

There are some techincal specifics that you need to have in a netbook to make it an effective tool:
* A high performance, low power consumption processor
* 1GB or more of RAM, but of course the more space you have the better
* 2 hours of battery life – just long enough to watch a movie
* Network connectivity – Wi-Fi b/g and megabit (10/100) LAN are standard. Newer netbooks come with Wi-Fi N, Bluetooth, and soon 3G and WiMax.
* Keyboard size and spacing – this is important if you have big hands or fingers, since you might find that the keyboard is too small for you.
* Ports – 1 VGA out (for connecting to a monitor), 3 USB ports, headphone and mic ports (especially if you podcast), and SD card readers are standard. Some have fewer USB ports, while others have expansion bays and Firewire ports.

With that, here are some reccomendations to get you in the game

The ASUS 8.9″ Eee 4GB PC Netbook

This is the best and most cost effective of the netbooks that I have tried. It has a 4 GB Hard Drive, integrated video and audio with built-in speakers, an Ethernet and Wireless LAN Keyboard with TouchPad, and 50 preinstalled programs for learning, working and playing. With its Linux OS, boot up takes no time and you will be on the Internet in mere seconds from the time you press the power button. If you dont have a mobile computer, the $170 price tag should get you in the game. Available in white, black, and purple. Check it out on Amazon.

The Aspire ONE D250

Its smaller and lighter than the ASUS, but comes with less memory and fewer features, too. Here, youre really just paying for the size and style, since this netbook comes in Diamond Black, Sapphire Blue, and Seashell White, and Ruby Red. Headphones are a must, since the embedded speakers are wack, but the resolution is pretty good for a netbook (1,024×600-pixel native). There arent any bluetooth ports, but three USB 2.0 jacks make up for that. For more specs, check it out on Amazon.

Samsung GO N310-13GB 10.1-Inch

This was one of PC Magazine’s top rated ultra-portables. It has the usual three USB ports, Ethernet, VGA-Out, 802.11g WiFi, and a 1.3-megapixel webcam, but unlike other netbooks, The NB310-13GB has Bluetooth 2.1, a 160GB hard drive, and 9 hours worth of battery life. Best Buy was asking almost $500, but its available from Amazon for $424 in all kinds of colors.

There are a few items that you are going to need if you decide to purchase a netbook. One is an external CD/DVD drive. Since most netbooks lack an optical drive, it can be hard to load software from CD or DVD, playback audio CDs or even watch a DVD movie. An external DVD drive makes a great addition to just about any netbook. Not only does it allow the system to install software, but it can also allow it to play DVD movies or even burn CDs or DVDs. Also, an external hard drive can prove to be useful. Check out some of these products and buy here instead of getting ripped at Best Buy.

The Wrapup

To be effective in your hustle, youve got to be mobile. Having a small, portable, and net accessible device other than your cell phone can give you a huge competitive advantage. Bookmark this page (below) and come back to it on payday. Shop around, hit me with some reviews, and if you already own a netbook, brag about it in the comments section.

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The deadline for Mission 1 is only 2 days away. I have gotten a few submissions so far, so if you have completed the mission, email me your results at ceo@arthurpledger.com. If you didn’t even attempt, you missed out on a great opportunity and learning experience (Why is it people claim to want to get rich, but don’t apply themselves in even the simplest way…and it didn’t get any simpler than Mission 1?!)

Anyway, on with the post…

Ebay still exists, and is still a great way to make money. On your way to conquering your world and building multiple streams of income, this post will teach you to find, sell, and profit using the worlds largest eCommerce site!

I was having a discussion over the weekend with one of my fellow web workers discussing whether or not Ebay still mattered, and whether or not there is still money to be made there.  His argument was that “You can buy everything on Ebay, and everybody is trying to sell it, so how can you possibly compete with that?” Heres the answer: new products are being made every day. When Ebay was created, the ipod and all its accessories, netbooks, notebooks, Kindle: Amazon’s 6″ Wireless Reading Device
, and sidekicks didn’t exist and that was just a few years ago! By writing Ebay off on account of all the people selling and all the things being sold, you are writing off a potentially huge income stream! In order to be a successful Ebayer, you need to know three things

1. What to sell
2. Where to get it
3. How to sell in order to maximize profit

What to Sell

Figuring out what to sell on Ebay can be a huge sticking point for most beginners. The best way to decide on what to sell is by starting off with a brainstorming session. Get a small notebook  – one that you can carry with you, and for the next week, every time you see a product that catches your attention, write it down.  If you hear someone talking about a product they like, write it down. Check out tech blogs and sites like and even check out some Google Trends. Don’t rule out anything, as some of our best ideas are the first ones we come up with, and constantly be on the lookout for products to sell. Here are a few idea sources:

- Trade & hobby magazines

- If you love antiques and collectibles, visit your local stores to see if there is a certain product, or category that catches your eye

- eBay ……Spend some time browsing through eBay, just to see what is there.  Browse through several categories! The purpose of this is to help expand your mind about the enormous selling potential of a vast array of items.

- Your local classified ads – what things are being sold in the paper?  A lot of times there are products that are regularly bought and sold in your region that aren’t available in other parts of the country.

- The eBay hot list.  This list can give you an idea of what products are good sellers.
However the goal here is not to pick the number one seller and try and compete in that market. The goal for now is just to get ideas. You can find the eBay Hot List at:

http://pages.ebay.com/sellercentral/whatshot.html

You don’t have to personally like the product.  You may not be interested in martial arts, but you may find a brand of fighting gear (like Tapout) that sells very well on eBay.

Informational products (specifically eBooks) have become some of my best eBay sellers, and can easily become yours too, regardless of your level of writing ability!

For those of you who are not familiar with eBooks, an eBook is a book that is created in a Word Processor such as Microsoft Word, and then turned into “book” format using either an eBook creation program or Adobe Acrobat. An eBook requires a one time investment of your time to create it and since it is a file on your computer, can be delivered immediately to your customers over the internet.  After your initial creation there is no overhead and no shipping costs.

Most people have several potential eBook in them! The key to having a hot selling eBook on eBay is all in your subject matter. The narrower the niche of your subject, the better you will do with the book. Don’t try to produce the typical “lose weight” or “make fast money” eBook and then sell it for a dollar. This is NOT the market that you want to get into! Books on a specific narrow subject, for example, 101 Martial Arts Kicking Techniques or 15 Do It Yourself projects to Keep Your Kids Busy attract an audience of specific committed buyers who are willing to pay for information that matters to them!

Have you spent the last year explaining to all your family and friends how to use their computer? Why not create an audio or video tutorial that teaches people what you know? A PERFECT product for this upcoming tax season would be a tutorial on how to use the popular tax software programs, and since my fiancée is a tax preparer, Im planning on getting her to produce some informational products!

Or how about a CD set on your best cooking techniques? Or your grandmother’s southern recipes? You could create one for every different type of cuisine imaginable!


What is your hobby?  What are your skills? Chances are there are many other people out there
with the same interests that would love to have the benefit of your experience.

I have a friend who is a DJ and has the gift of taking something complex and making it simple. Right now I am trying to get him to make some instructional audio CDs, and I will be his first customer!

Selling theater, music and sporting events, movies and even theme park tickets can be a phenomenal way to make money on eBay! For concerts or events that you know will be sold out (because they have been sold out in the past in other places), it pays to get in on them early.

The secret to buying tickets is finding out about the event very early on, snapping up the tickets, and then reselling them 3 days or less before the concert. People procrastinate, and as a result end up spending a lot more money than you bought the tickets for. Don’t discount radio giveaways of tickets either. Your local stations are always giving away tons of tickets, and for a few minutes spent dialing, you can make a decent profit.

Where to Get It

In the first section, I talked a little about information products, tickets, and other people’s items. Where to get these things is self explanatory. But what if you want to actually sell physical items? There are sources all around you.

Start by scanning the newspaper and the net for “Going Out of Business” sales (I made a killing when Circuit City went out of business last year).  You can buy up the failing company’s inventory for pennies and resell it for below market value and still make a lot of money.

Also, offer to sell products online from mom and pop stores and street salesmen. Here in Louisville, we have an area called the Highlands where street artists sell their wares on the sidewalk. I am in the process of negotiating an agreement whereby he sells me his goods at half off and I resell them. Better than him standing in the rain with no buyers! Or you can simply negotiate under the following terms:

You let me photograph and list your products for sale. Once they sell, I come in and pick up the item, you make money for doing nothing. If the item doesn’t sell, you lose nothing.

You make money without having to spend any of your own, and without having to carry an inventory!

Another idea: Everyone has “junk” laying around that they want to get rid of. I stumbled on a $200 Television that my barber was about to throw out, bought it from him, and resold it for a 130% profit online. Ask relatives, friends, and coworkers to inventory their houses for items they don’t need and want to get rid of. Agree to split the profits with them and you have just made money!

If you have scanned eBay before, you may have noticed “Lots for Sale” (large quantities of one item) as being advertised as “Perfect for first time eBayers”. This is NOT perfect for you, since every other beginner is buying up lots and reselling them, effectively flooding the market. Go out into your area and find unique products or situations to take advantage of.

How to sell in order to maximize profit

Pictures are mandatory! The problem with buying things online is that you cant physically inspect your purchase. Therefore, take quality pictures, and have the picture included in your page listing (for instance, if you go to the eBay site, you will see listings with pictures and without. Don’t be one of the listings without!). Set your digital camera to display the date on the photograph, so shoppers know the pic is recent.

If you are going to auction goods off, you will make more money by starting your bid at $0.99 than at $10. People will be in a feeding frenzy to snap up your product and will drive the price a lot higher than if you had set a high opening bid.

Be honest about any damage, and show that damage in the photograph. That will lower the chances of people leaving you negative feedback, and will prevent fraud (I had a guy buy some speakers from me, punched a hole in the side, then tried to get all his money back. Since I had the date on the photograph and a clear pic of the side of the speaker, he lost his claim. With that being said, include the statement “Not responsible for damage incurred during shipping” in your listing!)

Lastly, offer a money back guarantee. If you are selling legit products and are honest, you wont have to worry about too many returns. People will always buy an item with a money back guarantee over one that doesn’t have one. With online buying, anything you can do to earn trust is a good thing!

This little bit of advice should be enough to get you started with building your eBay Empire. You will, of course, learn many more lessons and have many more questions as you get involved, so just hit me with them at ceo@arthurpledger.com or in the comments section. Or if you have tips of your own, hit me with them here, as this will probably become a series!

For further reading, check out eBay For Dummies
and Internet Riches: The Simple Money-making Secrets of Online Millionaires

Popularity: 18% [?]

The problem with listening to a hustler is that you have to assume youre always being hustled. While educating myself in the Art of Hustling, I had to seek out examples of men whose words have produced real results, not just great hype (since most hustlers talk a great game and leave you feeling good with empty pockets and nothing to show from it!)

But these 4 men embody what I call the African American Dream: Starting out from nowhere with nothing, rising to prominence despite obstacles that most urban youths face, and making it to the top of their game in a legal way

Andre “Gorgeous Dre” Taylor

You might remember Gorgeous Dre from the groundbreaking Hughes Brothers documentary American Pimp. Born to a prostitute and pimp, his life was destined to be one of violence, crime, and distorted reality.  At the end of the documentary, he was arrested for on several serious state charges while in Nevada. Primary amongst them was aggravated kidnapping. Facing a lifetime sentence and a constant negative media blitz, most men would have been crushed, but after coming through his ordeal victoriously, Dre left the street game, became an author and distinguished speaker, and spearheads a project called Operation Andre Taylor.

From Gorgeous Dre, we get two lessons:

1. Redemption is possible. No matter who you used to be, you can change your character, actions, and destiny. Most people in the street husltle think there is no way out; its all they know. This site is meant to change that, to show those men and women that there is a much more productive and fulfilling path that anyone can travel. If a street hustler and former pimp can now give lecture at universities and coach executives, theres no reason why you cant do the same

2. Learn from your mistakes. Instead of going right back to the street game, Andre developed a new skill set (public speaking) and started a life coaching business to help men avoid falling into the same trap that he did. Even though he beat his charges, being in jail was a wakeup call, and he saw the lifelong disaster that would result in staying down with the streets.

Tariq King Flex Nasheed aka Tariq Elite

This man should need no introduction.

Tariq moved from Detroit to Birmingham, Alabama in the early 1980s in his early teens, but due to slow pace and boredom of the social scene he purchased a $125 plane ticket and decided to leave Birmingham for Los Angeles alone at age 17. He was known as an infamous hustler and street legend in the Los Angeles area during the late 90s.

Since then, he has gone on to author several books (including a New York Times bestseller), he has done lectures at Yale, was featured on MTV’s Made, is the host of The Mack Lessons Radio Show (available on Itunes or his website), and publisher of the best pay per view specials on the internet. Tariq is building a multimedia empire centered around a very specialized niche: developing men and manhood via the art of macking.

From Tariq Nasheed, we get two lessons:

1. You dont need to sacrifice your “self” for success. Tariq has remained true to the game and true to himself since before he published the Art of Macking (his first book). I cant claim to know him personally aside from his podcasts, but his image and outlook on the rest of the world has been full of integrity and honesty. People might not always agree with you, and haters will follow you all the way to the podium at Yale, but by staying true to yourself, you will develop a following more dedicated to building you up than the haters that try to tear you down.

2. If your area is dry, leave. By dry, I mean devoid of opportunity or resources. If youre living in Kentucky, Utah, or Nebraska and you want to get into Hollywood then you need to pack your bags and get on the next flight to LAX. If you want to break into the music scene, Atlanta, Chicago, New York and Miami are where you need to be – not Sioux City, Iowa. Had Tariq never left his humble places of origin, would he be who he is today? Doubtful. Dont settle for sleepy towns. Opportunity will find you easier if you are average in an above average city, than it will if you are above average in a no-name village.

Farrah Gray

Raised in the impoverished South side of Chicago, Dr. Gray defied the odds and became a self-made millionaire by the age of 14. In his rise from poverty to national and international prominence as an entrepreneurial icon and pre-eminent power speaker, Dr. Gray has inspired millions around the world.

At age seven, he was carrying business cards reading “21st Century CEO.” At eight, Gray became co-founder of Urban Neighborhood Enterprise Economic Club (U.N.E.E.C.) on Chicago’s South side. U.N.E.E.C. was the forerunner of New Early Entrepreneur Wonders (NE2W), the flagship organization he opened on Wall Street. NE2W enlisted, educated and engaged “at-risk” youth by creating and developing legal ways for them to acquire additional income. Gray is the youngest person to have an office on Wall Street.

“My message is not business,” says Gray, who also serves on the board of the Southern Nevada United Way. “My focus has been on making the best investment, which is yourself.”

At the age of 21, he received an Honorary Doctorate degree of Humane Letters from Allen University. This was in recognition of his ingenious economic mind and distinguished commitment to the development of values such as leadership, integrity and scholarship. He was also named as one of the most influential Black men in America by the National Urban League’s Urban Influence Magazine. At the age of 24, he has achieved more than many achieve in a lifetime. Now whats your excuse?

Farrah Gray’s example teaches us 2 lessons:

1. Creativity is Key! One of his first ventures was Farr-Out Foods, “Way-Out Food with a Twist,” aimed at young people. His company produced a Strawberry-Vanilla syrup product that resulted in Farr-Out Foods generating orders exceeding $1.5 million. By combining two simple products into a novel concept, Farrah increased his net worth considerably.

2. You dont need to know everything, but you do need to learn. In 2004, Gray purchased an 80 percent stake in Inner City Entertainment, a magazine extension of New York radio station 107.5 WBLS. After Gray signed the Inner City contract, he started devouring books like The Magazine from Cover to Cover and The Editor in Chief: A Practical Management Guide for Magazine Editors. He says he’s invested at least $2,000 at the newsstand, snatching up every youth/music/entertainment/pop and urban culture title he can find. And he has “studied everybody,” from Wenner Media CEO Jann Wenner to Teen People managing editor Barbara O’Dair. Learn as you go, and dont let ignorance be your excuse!

Sipp the Surgeon

I have featured Sipp as a living legend before in The Millionaire Barbers. Sipp managed to avoid all the pitfalls that overtake youths growing up in Mississippi to become wealthy by refining his specialized knowledge. Not only does he cut hair, he also customized barber chairs and host “Hair Wars”, events targeted specifically at barbers and stylists. If you havent checked out his myspace page or his coverage in Against the Grain Magazine, go back to my article on The Millionaire Barbers and you will see why he was included in this list.

Sipps example teaches us 2 things specifically:Leverage your Specialized knowledge and diversify your streams of income.

Create new industries and new ways to make money from the industry that youre in. This man went from giving $10 haircuts to selling $10,000 barber chairs and hosting events that net him thousands more than that! No matter what industry you are in, you can create a brand new niche (a restaurant server could set up a website and become the local expert on dining out, or become a “dining consultant”. A sales representative in a retail store could sell his/her services as a personal stylist on the side (assuming he or she even has style, LMAO!)

The Wrap Up

If you want to be a doctor, you study to become a doctor. If you want to become a lawyer, you study law. If you want to be a successful man or woman, you must study other successful men and women. Follow the examples of these living legends, seriously apply the lessons that their lives have presented, and one day you too may be known as a living legend.

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If you are a regular follower of this blog, you will notice a lapse of discipline. Usually I post every Tuesday and Thursday, but that hasnt been happening. The reason? Burnout.

I have been taking an all around active approach to getting money and getting things done. This is the stupidest way of going about things, since you cant do everything on your own.

Active Income and Accomplishment

Active income is  received as a direct result of the work you do. If you wait tables, build cars, or program computers, your income is active (If you have any doubts as to whether a given income is active, just ask yourself: If I don’t do the work, will I get paid? If the answer is no, it’s active income.)

On a side note: Active income is the worst kind, because if you get sick, hurt, or fired-your money stops. You lose your house. Your kids dont eat. Youre done! Anybody who isnt working towards passive income is basically taking a massive risk!

An active approach to getting things done means you create a list of things to do, and go through the entire list on your own.

The benefits of taking an active approach is that you are in direct control of the outcome. You dont have to pay anyone, nor is anyone accountable to you. The problem with taking an active approach to getting things done and making money is that your time and energy are limited. You cant focus on your job, read the necessary amount to keep you on top of your game, get things done, and maintain a family/personal life. But that doesnt mean things must be left undone.

Passive Income and Accomplishment

Passive (or residual) income is money that you receive regardless of whether you work or not. This principle was first brought to the public’s attention by Robert Kiyosaki’s Rich Dad, Poor Dad
and The Cashflow Quadrant. Examples of passive income include

• An insurance agent who gets commission every year when a customer renews his policy
• A network marketing or direct sales rep’s income from her direct customers when they reorder product every month
• An aerobics instructor who produces a video and sells it at the gyms where she teaches
• A marketing consultant who creates a workbook and sells it in e-book format on the Internet
• A photographer who makes his photos available through a stock photography clearinghouse and gets paid a royalty whenever someone buys one of his images
• A restaurant or retail owner who has grown to the point of hiring a trustworthy manager

For more on this subject, read Multiple Streams of Income: How to Generate a Lifetime of Unlimited Wealth

Practical Application

To figure out what I can shift from the active to the passive side of my to-do list, I listed a number of things that I have to do today under active tasks:

Wash and clean car

Optimize this blog for search engines

Market this site across social networks like myBloglog and Twitter

Pay bills (gas, credit card, car note, Best Buy, etc)

Ok, by applying the principles that I have talked about here, I am able to come up with the following passive equivalents:

Take car to full service wash (While theyre cleaning the car, I can catch up on some reading)

Hire a freelancer to optimize this blog and market it across social networks (while thats getting done, Im gonna go see a movie with wifey)

Automate bill payments using my debit card (so I dont have to hear bill collectors pitch me on why I should pay more of my bill off)

The benefits of passive management are obvious: less stress, more time to actually live my life, and more energy, since Im using other peoples energy to accomplish my missions. The problem with passive approaches are expense (since youre hiring other people to do work that you could do), and lack of control.

Ultimately, you will have to take a step back and figure out what is too important to be passive on (you cant passively take the kids to the park or attend meetings with a new vendor) and whats too trivial to be active on (actively cleaning your inbox of spam is a big time waster). When it comes to your income, do you want to continue working 50, 70, 100 hours a week the rest of your life? Or do you want to check your bank account every morning to find out you made $1000 overnight (IT HAPPENS!)

The Wrap Up

You must be strategic with what you decide to actively take on. Like my man Booker says, “Time is greater than money”. Save time by shifting your income and activities into the passive category, and get on with living a life worth living!

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