What You Should Expect From this Guide
It's possible to write a high quality article in 7 minutes.
It has nothing to do with ability or talent. It's simply a matter of
"assembly line" methodology. I will give you the methodology
in this report.
When I refer to writing an article in under 7 minutes, I'm talking
about an article around 400 words, meant to be a general guide
for the reader, to entice them to want to seek more information,
and follow the links/resources that are provided.
I am not referring to an article designed to grab your readers by
the eyeballs and make them jump up and down, excited because
you have unveiled the biggest secret in the world.
No. That's what the sales copy and the information product are
supposed to do! :)
All kidding aside, what this guide will teach you to do will be
sufficient to become an expert at "bum marketing", or use
articles to drive traffic back to your site, or a site of your choice.
Besides that, it will offer the "got to have cash tomorrow" crowd
a way to get some money fast. Most people are happy to pay
money for the articles I write. In fact, I know I am severely
under priced for the quality I deliver, because no one has ever
complained about my price!
So you can use this process to start cranking out ghost-written
articles for cash right away.
I want you to know I don't always write an article in 7 minutes.
However, I almost never write an article in more than 10
minutes, when it is around 400 words in length. And sometimes
it's even faster than 7 minutes.
However, if it took you even 10 minutes to write an article, let's
do some math. If you were writing them for someone else, and
getting paid $4 per article, you could make $24 an hour. It will
not make you rich, but it's better than what most people make.
And you can do it from the comfort of your own home
.
$4 an article is cheap. You can charge a lot more than that.
Also, you can write articles for yourself, and with the right
keyword selection and proper business model, I have found that
each article makes me around $5-$20 depending upon the niche,
keyword selection, and a lot of factors that are out of my
control. The only downside is that it takes a while to see a
return.
To sum it up, article marketing is a good way to start making
money right away, or to start building your own business up, in
terms of valuable content and traffic. It's not the end-all solution,
but it's a great way to start the journey to creating a successful
online business.
Let me conclude this introduction with this thought. Willie
Crawford released a book called "20 ways to make $100 a day
on the Internet". Here's my schedule. From 6 am until noon is
when I try to reserve time to write for clients. Even on a bad
day, I always make over $100 just for writing for others.
That leaves me to do whatever I want after lunch. Usually that's
writing more articles for my own businesses, or taking my
money and investing it into other resources to help me build
upon my businesses.
You can use article marketing as a business model itself, or a
way to build up your capital to create an even more profitable
business model.
I'm on pace to make $52,000 this year, just from article
marketing. It won't be enough for me to post cool pictures of
cars and houses on a sales page. But it's more than my mom or
my dad make in a year. And I'm a young kid who dropped out of
college. Go figure.
What can it mean for you? Well it depends on what you do with
it. But I'm sure you can come up with a whole list of enticing
ideas on how to cash in on the ability to write an article in less
than 7 minutes!
Saturday, 30 January 2010
How to Write an Article in 9 Minutes
How to Write an Article in 9 Minutes
If you can develop content that is informative, provides a
solution, and is unique, you've solved a lot of problems that
come with making money online.
And unless you have some capital to play with, you probably
won't be able to outsource "content creation" for a while. So you
have to learn how to do it on your own.
First, let's strike down some myths. You don't have to be a good
writer in order to write good articles. Especially articles that will
get visitors to your website. Second, your articles don't have to
be comprehensive. Often times, you only need to make three
points in a 400 word article. You're not aiming to give them a
thorough education.
No.
You're aiming to give them enough information to where they
want to go further into your website... and further into your sales
funnel.
If you want to learn how to write an article in 7 minutes, you
don't need to know how to write well, only how to follow a
formula well. Let's cover that formula now.
1) Research
2) Writing
3) Proof Reading
When I'm at the top of my game, I can constantly write articles
in 7 minutes. I've tracked over 140 articles, and broken down the
time it takes me in each area. Usually, 1 minute for research, 4
minutes for writing, and 2 minutes for proof reading.
1 minute for research!? How is that possible?
Let's simplify. For almost all articles, I only need to consult
three different sources. They are:
1) Ezinearticles.com
2) Wikipedia.com
3) Google.com
So before I begin to write any article, I will open up each of
these three pages. Let's say I'm writing an article on the benefits
of breast feeding a child. Now, since I'm a 24 year old single
male, I have no personal experience or knowledge about this
topic. So I first plug in the topic to ezine articles. I'm looking for
three different articles that seem most relevant.
The best articles are ones that are a list of tips, contain "how to" in the title, or seem to indicate it will be easy to pick up somequick facts from.
For most articles, I only need three main points. I find them as
quick as possible. If I can't find them in ezine articles, I then go
All articles have three phases: go to wikipedia. And finally google.
For each main point I find, I then jot down two or three single
words/short phrases for each point. These are reminders of the
things I will cover to support the main point.
Once I get two or three key ideas from each point I go to work
on writing the article.
I won't lie. It might take you a while to get good at being able to
grab the right key points right away. But not as long as you
think. It took me about a week to get really good at it. That's it. I
used to spend 8 minutes researching a topic, and after only a
week of writing articles, I cut it down to one minute. Are you
willing to put in a week's worth of effort to see this
improvement?
If not, you're hopeless.
Moving on.
The writing process is next. Before you write ANYTHING, you
should have your three main points, and two to three sub points
to back each point up. Now it's simply mechanics. We're aiming
at around 400 words per article. Here's how the articles break
down. One paragraph for the intro, one paragraph for each main
point, and one paragraph for the conclusion.
Each paragraph will be about 70-85 words apiece.
Let's start with the introduction. Here's how it works. Start with
an opening sentence. I usually like to use a generic IF/THEN
approach. For example, "If you're looking for 3 amazing health
benefits of breast feeding, then you will want to read this
article." Almost every article I write starts off like this. Unless I
have a better or more creative way, that doesn't require any
pause for thinking, then I will use an IF/THEN opener.
Next, I describe what my three main points will be in one to two
sentences. Then I sum it up with what the reader will be able to
do after reading this article. Something simple like "After
reading this article, you should be able to breastfeed your child
with peace of mind." You don't have to get crazy here.
Now we move onto main point number 1. Here's our aim for our
three main points. Write without having to stop. After about a
week of practice, you should almost never have to stop to think
about what you're going to say next. Think about it. If you type
at 80 words per minute, in order to write the content in your
article in 4 minutes, that means 320 words is the best you can
do.
The best.
Which leads us to our next point. If you can't do over 80 words
per minute, you either need to become faster at typing, or get
voice recognition software.
Now here's a misunderstanding. Voice recognition software is
not a magic pill. I use it, and I can get about 170 words per
minute with 95.1% accuracy.
(http://www.typequick.com/ttest/start.asp). However, I do find I
pause more to think. This is because when I am typing an
article, I can think while I go throw the mechanical process of
typing. I'm thinking of my next point while I'm typing. Can't do
that as easily with voice recognition software.
The second caveat is that instead of taking 4 minutes to write,
and 2 minutes to proofread, it usually takes 3 minutes to write
and 3 minutes to proof read. I have to correct more mistakes
when I use voice recognition software.
To bring it back to our main point. Voice recognition software is
NOT required in order to write a 400 word article in 7 minutes.
But, good touch typing abilities are required. I would
recommend that you start your first week or two typing your
articles, and timing yourself. This way you can get better at the
process, and realize how much of your time is going where.
Then you can decide whether you want to invest in some voice
recognition software. I use dragon natural speaking, it's probably
the best on the market and only costs about $75. You can get it
at http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking. WARNING: It
will take you a bit to get used to the software, and to get your
accuracy up to 95% or higher.
So back to the formula. Your goal when writing your whole
article is to never pause to think. That's why you created your
outline, and wrote down you main points and sub points. Just
keep them by your side and glance at them, and keep writing.
After working this formula for a few days, you'll pick up some
stock phrases you can use ANYTIME you're stumped on what
to say next.
You'll develop your own "swipe file" so to speak
.
So after your introduction, you write on your first main point.
You make a general statement about it. Then you make a more
specific statement about it, as it relates to your sub points. Then
you simply communicate each of your sub points. And you
close out the paragraph with a summary of the points, and/or a
transition to the next paragraph.
This gives you 4 to 5 sentences per main point. since the average
sentence is around 15-20 words, you'll get about 85 words per
paragraph. Which is perfect for an article around 400 words in
length.
Then you close the article out. Make a closing statement about
your subject. Then sum up each of your three points. Now tell
you reader what they should be able to do after they have
finished reading your article.
Now, I want you to know I don't always follow this formula to a
T. If I come up with a unique way to present the article, while
I'm doing the research, then I'll go that route. However, if I am
in doubt, or have to pause and think, then I will stick with the
formula as a back up.
Either way, almost all well written articles follow the paragraph
breakdown. Main point introduced. Specific point made about
the main point. 2 or 3 items to back up the main point. Next
paragraph.
Let's be realistic now. Will you write an article in 7 minutes
after you read this guide? Not likely. But when were you able to
do things perfectly the first time you tried them?
Heck, as a kid it took me two months to learn how to tie my
shoe, and I didn't get my drivers license until I was 22.
When I first decided to start writing articles, I would take more
than 1 hour to write an article. My articles were a bit higher in
quality, but not enough to make a difference in the marketplace.
That's when I decided to sit down and study the whole process.
And that's when I mapped out the formula I outlined above.
The first time I put it to use, it took me 30 minutes to write an
article. Not bad, 100% increase in productivity! I was actually
aiming for a goal of 15 minutes per article, and figured it would
take me a month to achieve. But with a bit of discipline and
focus, I achieved 15 minutes in 3 days!
So learning this formula intuitively didn't take near as long as I
thought it would. And literally, within 7 days I wrote my first 7
minute article.
If you can develop content that is informative, provides a
solution, and is unique, you've solved a lot of problems that
come with making money online.
And unless you have some capital to play with, you probably
won't be able to outsource "content creation" for a while. So you
have to learn how to do it on your own.
First, let's strike down some myths. You don't have to be a good
writer in order to write good articles. Especially articles that will
get visitors to your website. Second, your articles don't have to
be comprehensive. Often times, you only need to make three
points in a 400 word article. You're not aiming to give them a
thorough education.
No.
You're aiming to give them enough information to where they
want to go further into your website... and further into your sales
funnel.
If you want to learn how to write an article in 7 minutes, you
don't need to know how to write well, only how to follow a
formula well. Let's cover that formula now.
1) Research
2) Writing
3) Proof Reading
When I'm at the top of my game, I can constantly write articles
in 7 minutes. I've tracked over 140 articles, and broken down the
time it takes me in each area. Usually, 1 minute for research, 4
minutes for writing, and 2 minutes for proof reading.
1 minute for research!? How is that possible?
Let's simplify. For almost all articles, I only need to consult
three different sources. They are:
1) Ezinearticles.com
2) Wikipedia.com
3) Google.com
So before I begin to write any article, I will open up each of
these three pages. Let's say I'm writing an article on the benefits
of breast feeding a child. Now, since I'm a 24 year old single
male, I have no personal experience or knowledge about this
topic. So I first plug in the topic to ezine articles. I'm looking for
three different articles that seem most relevant.
The best articles are ones that are a list of tips, contain "how to" in the title, or seem to indicate it will be easy to pick up somequick facts from.
For most articles, I only need three main points. I find them as
quick as possible. If I can't find them in ezine articles, I then go
All articles have three phases: go to wikipedia. And finally google.
For each main point I find, I then jot down two or three single
words/short phrases for each point. These are reminders of the
things I will cover to support the main point.
Once I get two or three key ideas from each point I go to work
on writing the article.
I won't lie. It might take you a while to get good at being able to
grab the right key points right away. But not as long as you
think. It took me about a week to get really good at it. That's it. I
used to spend 8 minutes researching a topic, and after only a
week of writing articles, I cut it down to one minute. Are you
willing to put in a week's worth of effort to see this
improvement?
If not, you're hopeless.
Moving on.
The writing process is next. Before you write ANYTHING, you
should have your three main points, and two to three sub points
to back each point up. Now it's simply mechanics. We're aiming
at around 400 words per article. Here's how the articles break
down. One paragraph for the intro, one paragraph for each main
point, and one paragraph for the conclusion.
Each paragraph will be about 70-85 words apiece.
Let's start with the introduction. Here's how it works. Start with
an opening sentence. I usually like to use a generic IF/THEN
approach. For example, "If you're looking for 3 amazing health
benefits of breast feeding, then you will want to read this
article." Almost every article I write starts off like this. Unless I
have a better or more creative way, that doesn't require any
pause for thinking, then I will use an IF/THEN opener.
Next, I describe what my three main points will be in one to two
sentences. Then I sum it up with what the reader will be able to
do after reading this article. Something simple like "After
reading this article, you should be able to breastfeed your child
with peace of mind." You don't have to get crazy here.
Now we move onto main point number 1. Here's our aim for our
three main points. Write without having to stop. After about a
week of practice, you should almost never have to stop to think
about what you're going to say next. Think about it. If you type
at 80 words per minute, in order to write the content in your
article in 4 minutes, that means 320 words is the best you can
do.
The best.
Which leads us to our next point. If you can't do over 80 words
per minute, you either need to become faster at typing, or get
voice recognition software.
Now here's a misunderstanding. Voice recognition software is
not a magic pill. I use it, and I can get about 170 words per
minute with 95.1% accuracy.
(http://www.typequick.com/ttest/start.asp). However, I do find I
pause more to think. This is because when I am typing an
article, I can think while I go throw the mechanical process of
typing. I'm thinking of my next point while I'm typing. Can't do
that as easily with voice recognition software.
The second caveat is that instead of taking 4 minutes to write,
and 2 minutes to proofread, it usually takes 3 minutes to write
and 3 minutes to proof read. I have to correct more mistakes
when I use voice recognition software.
To bring it back to our main point. Voice recognition software is
NOT required in order to write a 400 word article in 7 minutes.
But, good touch typing abilities are required. I would
recommend that you start your first week or two typing your
articles, and timing yourself. This way you can get better at the
process, and realize how much of your time is going where.
Then you can decide whether you want to invest in some voice
recognition software. I use dragon natural speaking, it's probably
the best on the market and only costs about $75. You can get it
at http://www.nuance.com/naturallyspeaking. WARNING: It
will take you a bit to get used to the software, and to get your
accuracy up to 95% or higher.
So back to the formula. Your goal when writing your whole
article is to never pause to think. That's why you created your
outline, and wrote down you main points and sub points. Just
keep them by your side and glance at them, and keep writing.
After working this formula for a few days, you'll pick up some
stock phrases you can use ANYTIME you're stumped on what
to say next.
You'll develop your own "swipe file" so to speak
.
So after your introduction, you write on your first main point.
You make a general statement about it. Then you make a more
specific statement about it, as it relates to your sub points. Then
you simply communicate each of your sub points. And you
close out the paragraph with a summary of the points, and/or a
transition to the next paragraph.
This gives you 4 to 5 sentences per main point. since the average
sentence is around 15-20 words, you'll get about 85 words per
paragraph. Which is perfect for an article around 400 words in
length.
Then you close the article out. Make a closing statement about
your subject. Then sum up each of your three points. Now tell
you reader what they should be able to do after they have
finished reading your article.
Now, I want you to know I don't always follow this formula to a
T. If I come up with a unique way to present the article, while
I'm doing the research, then I'll go that route. However, if I am
in doubt, or have to pause and think, then I will stick with the
formula as a back up.
Either way, almost all well written articles follow the paragraph
breakdown. Main point introduced. Specific point made about
the main point. 2 or 3 items to back up the main point. Next
paragraph.
Let's be realistic now. Will you write an article in 7 minutes
after you read this guide? Not likely. But when were you able to
do things perfectly the first time you tried them?
Heck, as a kid it took me two months to learn how to tie my
shoe, and I didn't get my drivers license until I was 22.
When I first decided to start writing articles, I would take more
than 1 hour to write an article. My articles were a bit higher in
quality, but not enough to make a difference in the marketplace.
That's when I decided to sit down and study the whole process.
And that's when I mapped out the formula I outlined above.
The first time I put it to use, it took me 30 minutes to write an
article. Not bad, 100% increase in productivity! I was actually
aiming for a goal of 15 minutes per article, and figured it would
take me a month to achieve. But with a bit of discipline and
focus, I achieved 15 minutes in 3 days!
So learning this formula intuitively didn't take near as long as I
thought it would. And literally, within 7 days I wrote my first 7
minute article.
Article Writing Cheat Sheet
Article Writing Cheat Sheet
TITLE of ARTICLE
If you want to learn about MAIN SUBJECT, then you'll want to
read this article. Specifically we'll discuss MAIN POINT 1,
MAIN POINT 2 and MAIN POINT 3. After reading this article,
you should be able to INSERT MAJOR BENEFIT HERE.
MAIN POINT 1 is introduced in the first sentence of the article.
Then, use this second sentence to describe something more
specific about MAIN POINT 1. Show how SUBPOINT 1 relates
to the main point. Support it with SUBPOINT 2. If you have
something left you want to include, do so with SUBPOINT 3.
Then SUM up the points and/or transition to MAIN POINT 2.
Follow the above for the next two main points.
Now for the CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH, make a general
statement about the information above for your first sentence.
Then, mention again the three main points you discussed above.
Now tell your reader what they can do with the information
you've provided.
On the next page is a sample article that follow this same template.
TITLE of ARTICLE
If you want to learn about MAIN SUBJECT, then you'll want to
read this article. Specifically we'll discuss MAIN POINT 1,
MAIN POINT 2 and MAIN POINT 3. After reading this article,
you should be able to INSERT MAJOR BENEFIT HERE.
MAIN POINT 1 is introduced in the first sentence of the article.
Then, use this second sentence to describe something more
specific about MAIN POINT 1. Show how SUBPOINT 1 relates
to the main point. Support it with SUBPOINT 2. If you have
something left you want to include, do so with SUBPOINT 3.
Then SUM up the points and/or transition to MAIN POINT 2.
Follow the above for the next two main points.
Now for the CONCLUSION PARAGRAPH, make a general
statement about the information above for your first sentence.
Then, mention again the three main points you discussed above.
Now tell your reader what they can do with the information
you've provided.
On the next page is a sample article that follow this same template.
The Only 3 Things You Need to Know About Time Management
The Only 3 Things You Need to Know About Time Management
If you want to increase your output, get more accomplished in
your life and fulfill your ultimate destiny, there are only three
concepts you need to know. They are clarity, productivity and
flexibility. I will explain each of these concepts in this article,
and show how you can leverage them to create your own
ultimate time management system.
Managing your time is only worthwhile if you have clarity as to
what you want in life. Otherwise, why put in the effort? You'll
have a lot more time, but that time will not be used for any
useful purpose. Time management will only work if you create
compelling goals that motivate you. To gain true clarity, you
need to set a goal that is measurable, obtainable and has a
deadline attached to it. Only after you have done this should you
try to become more productive.
Increasing productivity is actually easy once you have clarity. It
becomes ever easier if you understand the 80/20 rule, which
states that a majority of your results on any task will come from
a few, key actions. For example, 80% of crimes are committed
by 20% of criminals, 20% of people control 80% of our wealth,
and 80% of crashes are caused by 20% of drivers. To use the
80/20 rule in your life is simple. Just isolate and focus the
majority of your effort on those few critical actions that give you
most of the results that you desire. If you are not sure what those
are, you must experiment until you discover them.
Experimentation requires flexibility. Flexibility is key to time
management, because while you're goal is clear, the path you
take to get there isn't. Just like a heat seeking missile goes left
and right before hitting it's target, you must also make midcourse
corrections as you shoot for you goal. Naturally, you're
going to take chances, and most of them will not work. That's
OK. Just look at each experiment as a way to get feedback, not a
failed attempt.
Clarity will put you on the path toward your goal. Increasing
your productivity will speed up the process by which you reach
your goal. And being flexible will not only assure that you don't
get off course, but it will also allow you to discover better
approaches to manage your time. Put these principles to use in
your life today, and enjoy a more fulfilling tomorrow!
This article was written off of the outline I created below, based
on my research. Notice how I used each main point and sub
point in the article.
Main Point 1: Clarity
Sub point 1:Time for what?
Sub point 2: Compelling goals
Sub point 3: Goal definition
Main Point 2: Increasing Productivity
Sub point 1: 80/20 rule
Sub point 2: Examples
Sub point 3: How to apply it
Main Point 3: Flexibility
Sub point 1: heat seeking missile example
Sub point 2: goal > path
Sub point 3: Feedback, not failure
***Note: If I were submitting this article, I would break up the paragraphs and do some formatting to make it more inviting to read. I have only kept them intact so they are easier to follow along with, when comparing them to the template.
If you want to increase your output, get more accomplished in
your life and fulfill your ultimate destiny, there are only three
concepts you need to know. They are clarity, productivity and
flexibility. I will explain each of these concepts in this article,
and show how you can leverage them to create your own
ultimate time management system.
Managing your time is only worthwhile if you have clarity as to
what you want in life. Otherwise, why put in the effort? You'll
have a lot more time, but that time will not be used for any
useful purpose. Time management will only work if you create
compelling goals that motivate you. To gain true clarity, you
need to set a goal that is measurable, obtainable and has a
deadline attached to it. Only after you have done this should you
try to become more productive.
Increasing productivity is actually easy once you have clarity. It
becomes ever easier if you understand the 80/20 rule, which
states that a majority of your results on any task will come from
a few, key actions. For example, 80% of crimes are committed
by 20% of criminals, 20% of people control 80% of our wealth,
and 80% of crashes are caused by 20% of drivers. To use the
80/20 rule in your life is simple. Just isolate and focus the
majority of your effort on those few critical actions that give you
most of the results that you desire. If you are not sure what those
are, you must experiment until you discover them.
Experimentation requires flexibility. Flexibility is key to time
management, because while you're goal is clear, the path you
take to get there isn't. Just like a heat seeking missile goes left
and right before hitting it's target, you must also make midcourse
corrections as you shoot for you goal. Naturally, you're
going to take chances, and most of them will not work. That's
OK. Just look at each experiment as a way to get feedback, not a
failed attempt.
Clarity will put you on the path toward your goal. Increasing
your productivity will speed up the process by which you reach
your goal. And being flexible will not only assure that you don't
get off course, but it will also allow you to discover better
approaches to manage your time. Put these principles to use in
your life today, and enjoy a more fulfilling tomorrow!
This article was written off of the outline I created below, based
on my research. Notice how I used each main point and sub
point in the article.
Main Point 1: Clarity
Sub point 1:Time for what?
Sub point 2: Compelling goals
Sub point 3: Goal definition
Main Point 2: Increasing Productivity
Sub point 1: 80/20 rule
Sub point 2: Examples
Sub point 3: How to apply it
Main Point 3: Flexibility
Sub point 1: heat seeking missile example
Sub point 2: goal > path
Sub point 3: Feedback, not failure
***Note: If I were submitting this article, I would break up the paragraphs and do some formatting to make it more inviting to read. I have only kept them intact so they are easier to follow along with, when comparing them to the template.
Article Headline Swipe File
Article Headline Swipe File
Below are some templates you can use to generate ideas for
articles and article titles. This is not a generic knock-off of Vic
Schwab's “100 greatest headlines”, or some poor attempt at
trying to pass off sales letter headlines as article headlines.
These are handpicked headline templates that I believe work best for articles, which are very different in nature than a sales letter is.
I will give you the template as well as some examples of how to modify the template to fit a variety of different situations.
The Truth About _________________________
The Truth About Hearing devices.
_______ You Should ____________
6 foods you should avoid giving to your baby
5 Coffee Franchises you should invest in immediately
The Warning Signs of _____________
The Warning Signs of Gout
The 6 Warning Signs of a Stroke
The Amazing Secrets of (person/place/thing)
The Amazing Secrets of Trout Fishing
The Amazing Secrets of Colorado Ski Resorts
The Amazing Secrets of the best Disability Lawyers
How to _____ like the pros/insiders/experts
How to cook fish like a world class chef
A _______'s guide to _________
A Knitter's guide to 10 minute scarfs
A man's guide to long term relationships
A dog lover's guide to healthy canine diets
The Joy of ___________
The Joy of a Clutter-free Home
Cures for ____________
Cures for Hot Flashes
Natural Cures for Depression
The Perfect ________
The perfect way to shop for engagement rings
The perfect gifts for under $22
Are you ________? Test Yourself
Are you ready to invest in the hottest new business
opportunities? Test Yourself.
Are you ready for marriage? Test Yourself
The basic elements found in every _________
The basic elements found in every stress-free work environment
Do You Have the Courage to ________?
Do you have the courage to lead a debt free life?
What every ______ should know about ________
What every shrewd investor should know about the stock market
What ______ Won't Tell You About _______
What your family doctor won't tell you about depression
Don't read this if _________
Don't read this if you're happy with your marriage
Don't read this if you're not worried about the impact of global
warming
Is it wrong/bad to ______ ?
Is it wrong to eat after 8 p.m.?
Is it wrong to access someone else's background information
online?
Protect ______ from _______
Protect Your Money From the Government
Protect Your Children from Skin Cancer
Best ______ of ________
Best marketing books of all time.
Best hip hop albums of 2007
Break the _______ Cycle
Break the ear-infection cycle
________-proofing checklist
Baby-proofing checklist
Debt-Proofing cheklist
_______ Breakthrough(s)!
Pancreatic Cancer Breakthroughs!
Couple Counseling Breakthrough!
The _________ you should do when _________
The 3 Things you should do when you can't sleep
The One Thing You Should Do to Protect Your Family From
Being Attacked
How the Experts __________
How the Experts Buy and Sell Silver
How the Experts Bluff in Texas Hold 'Em
Why You Should Never Even Think About ________
Why You Should Never Even Think About Showering Without
Filtering Your Water
What Never to Do When ______
What Never to Do When Buying information products online
The Dumb Mistakes Most _______ Make When ________
The Dumb Mistakes Most Businesss Owners Make When Buying
Advertising
The Dumb Mistakes Most Men Make When Approaching a
Woman
Below are some templates you can use to generate ideas for
articles and article titles. This is not a generic knock-off of Vic
Schwab's “100 greatest headlines”, or some poor attempt at
trying to pass off sales letter headlines as article headlines.
These are handpicked headline templates that I believe work best for articles, which are very different in nature than a sales letter is.
I will give you the template as well as some examples of how to modify the template to fit a variety of different situations.
The Truth About _________________________
The Truth About Hearing devices.
_______ You Should ____________
6 foods you should avoid giving to your baby
5 Coffee Franchises you should invest in immediately
The Warning Signs of _____________
The Warning Signs of Gout
The 6 Warning Signs of a Stroke
The Amazing Secrets of (person/place/thing)
The Amazing Secrets of Trout Fishing
The Amazing Secrets of Colorado Ski Resorts
The Amazing Secrets of the best Disability Lawyers
How to _____ like the pros/insiders/experts
How to cook fish like a world class chef
A _______'s guide to _________
A Knitter's guide to 10 minute scarfs
A man's guide to long term relationships
A dog lover's guide to healthy canine diets
The Joy of ___________
The Joy of a Clutter-free Home
Cures for ____________
Cures for Hot Flashes
Natural Cures for Depression
The Perfect ________
The perfect way to shop for engagement rings
The perfect gifts for under $22
Are you ________? Test Yourself
Are you ready to invest in the hottest new business
opportunities? Test Yourself.
Are you ready for marriage? Test Yourself
The basic elements found in every _________
The basic elements found in every stress-free work environment
Do You Have the Courage to ________?
Do you have the courage to lead a debt free life?
What every ______ should know about ________
What every shrewd investor should know about the stock market
What ______ Won't Tell You About _______
What your family doctor won't tell you about depression
Don't read this if _________
Don't read this if you're happy with your marriage
Don't read this if you're not worried about the impact of global
warming
Is it wrong/bad to ______ ?
Is it wrong to eat after 8 p.m.?
Is it wrong to access someone else's background information
online?
Protect ______ from _______
Protect Your Money From the Government
Protect Your Children from Skin Cancer
Best ______ of ________
Best marketing books of all time.
Best hip hop albums of 2007
Break the _______ Cycle
Break the ear-infection cycle
________-proofing checklist
Baby-proofing checklist
Debt-Proofing cheklist
_______ Breakthrough(s)!
Pancreatic Cancer Breakthroughs!
Couple Counseling Breakthrough!
The _________ you should do when _________
The 3 Things you should do when you can't sleep
The One Thing You Should Do to Protect Your Family From
Being Attacked
How the Experts __________
How the Experts Buy and Sell Silver
How the Experts Bluff in Texas Hold 'Em
Why You Should Never Even Think About ________
Why You Should Never Even Think About Showering Without
Filtering Your Water
What Never to Do When ______
What Never to Do When Buying information products online
The Dumb Mistakes Most _______ Make When ________
The Dumb Mistakes Most Businesss Owners Make When Buying
Advertising
The Dumb Mistakes Most Men Make When Approaching a
Woman
How To Get in an Article Writing Frenzy
How To Get in an Article Writing Frenzy
I'm going to share with you a routine I do almost every morning.
I generally do not look forward to writing articles. Any excuse I
can use to procrastinate I will... unless I get into what I call a
“Writing-Frenzy” state.
I'm going to share with you a four step sequence that gets me in
such a state almost every time. Here it is:
1) Clarity
2) Leverage
3) Confusion
4) Power
Clarity. First, I ask myself -- “What do I really want to get out
of this, and what's stopping me right now from getting it?”.
Almost every time I tell myself that I just want to write
productively for six hours and enjoy doing it.
Usually I find what's stopping me is I am focusing on the
negatives of article writing instead of the positives. I realize that
if I want to enjoy the process, I need to think of all the benefits I
get from writing articles. This gets me pumped up. This means
I'm ready for the next step.
Leverage. It's not enough to realize what I want, and how to get
it. I have to actually feel compelled to take action on this
information. Here's how I do it. First, I think of how painful it
would be if everyday I did something I didn't enjoy doing. I
imagine how poor of a quality of life I would have if I never
broke through resistance, and had a weak will. Scary!
Then, I imagine how great it would be if I could work all day
while having a smile on my face and feeling good about myself.
I also think about how cultivating this habit will improve other
areas of my life.
What I have essentially done is changed how I feel about the
task at hand. I've deliberately thought about how bad it would be
to not change my state, and how good it will be to change my
state to get what I want. It's the old pain/pleasure principle.
Just doing these two steps alone will make the article writing
process much easier. But let's not just stop there.
Confusion. Obviously, I linked negative feelings to writing for
6 hours. I realized I wanted to enjoy the process instead. I
realized how much pleasure I would gain from it, and how much
pain I would avoid if I made it happen. But wouldn't it be great
if I completely removed the negative feelings from my mind?
Yes it would.
Here's how I do it instantly. You can do the same, and you'll
find you automatically start laughing and have a smile on your
face when you sit down to write your article.
First, I picture myself sitting at my desk, writing my articles.
Then I picture myself with clown makeup on, writing the
articles. Then I create a picture of me writing the articles upside
down, on the ceiling. In my mind I imagine doing cartwheels at
breakneck speed, shouting out the words to an article, birds
flying in the window whispering research into my ear, and any
other crazy scenarios I can come up with.
Every time I do this, it makes me chuckle. I have now changed
my my association of sitting down and writing an article from
dread to comedy. When I actually go to sit down and write the
article, I am no longer thinking it will be tedious – because the
silly pictures pop into my head, and makes me laugh. I have
created a whole new feeling to associate with writing articles.
Now there's only one thing left to do.
Power. It's sufficient to create confusion to laugh at the process
instead of dread it. But wouldn't it be even better if, when you
sit down to write your articles, you felt powerful? Imagine what
it would be like if every time you wrote an article you increased
your sense of fulfillment in life?
The trick is after you have created confusion about the pain and
pleasure you link to the task at hand, you can now replace it
with a new, empowering alternative. I use a metaphor. I
imagine that every word I write is a brick, which is building a
golden pyramid. Each article presents another story on this
pyramid. At the top of the pyramid I see my ideal self.
Each article helps bring me closer to my ideal self. Each article
is a way for me to strengthen my discipline, commitment, will
power and focus. Each article also generates me money, which I
can use to invest in other business opportunities, to invest in my
own personal development, or just to spend on things that bring
me joy in life.
When I get to this stage, I am now in now in my ideal “article
writing frenzy state”.
Here's a quick review of the process. First, I decide what I want
to get out of writing my articles – the ability to work all day and
feel happy. Next, I motivate myself to actually want to strive to
achieve this, by thinking about how pleasurable it would be to
do so, and how painful it would be to not do so. Then I interrupt
the feelings I currently link to the process at hand, by thinking
of a ridiculous and silly picture. This “unlinks” any negative
feelings I would have about setting down and writing. What is
left is for me to “relink” my feelings to something extremely
positive, and empowering, so I feel with each article I write, I
fulfill my sense of purpose.
I want you to know something. The first few times I tried doing
this, it didn't really work. That was because it was a new process
I wasn't used to. I didn't have a “golden triangle” metaphor yet
created, I wasn't sure how to create confusion (by thinking of a
funny picture), and part of me was skeptical that it would even
work.
But whenever I try something new, I always make a 7 day
commitment. I just say, “For the next seven days, I am going to
try this. I don't care if it works or not. I am just going to do it
whole heartedly for the next 7 days, and then evaluate its
usefulness.”
After trying this process for three days, I started getting good at
it. By the end of the week, It would work for me almost every
time. And it started to go quicker, too. Now it takes me all of
about a minute to get into an article writing state, if I go through
the process every day.
With that said, I want to tell you a quick story, which will help
you with all aspects of your article writing.
I grew up my whole life as a wrestler. My dad was head
wrestling coach at the high school I would attend. Every thing I
did as a child was related to becoming a better wrestler. We
would train like mad-men.
I remember one day where it just hit me – I was in almost
perfect physical shape. I told my dad this. He said prove it. So
he took me into a hallway at school that had two flights of stairs.
“If you can run up and down these stairs for an hour straight,
you are in peak physical shape.”
He explained to me what to do. Run as hard as I can for five
minutes up and down the stairs, then jog for one minute. Doing
this ten times would equal an hour.
So for the next hour I did this. Whenever I'd start to tire or slow
down, he'd yell at me, and motivate me to keep up the pace
.
Somehow, I managed to finish. When I was done, I was
exhausted. I threw up because I worked myself so hard. But I
had done it.
Then, shortly after I got burned out on wrestling and took a
week break. During that time, I didn't work out at all. When I
came back, I couldn't run even run the stairs for a half an hour at
the same pace.
The point is it took me all year to get in almost perfect shape,
but it only took me a week to get out of shape.
Sometimes I'm a slow learner, though. There are some days
when I skip the formula to put me in a writing frenzy mind state,
thinking it is unnecessary. There are days where I don't time
each article I write, because I don't feel like doing it. However, I
always pay the price. It always takes me longer to write the
articles, and I don't receive the same amount of enjoyment out of
the process.
If you want to get the most of your article writing, you'll do the
exercise I outlined above every time you sit down to write your
articles. After you get good at it, it only takes a few minutes to
do. Trust me, it's worth it.
Not only do you become more productive, you actually get a
sense of fulfillment out of the process.
week break. During that time, I didn't work out at all. When I
came back, I couldn't run even run the stairs for a half an hour at
the same pace.
The point is it took me all year to get in almost perfect shape,
but it only took me a week to get out of shape.
Sometimes I'm a slow learner, though. There are some days
when I skip the formula to put me in a writing frenzy mind state,
thinking it is unnecessary. There are days where I don't time
each article I write, because I don't feel like doing it. However, I
always pay the price. It always takes me longer to write the
articles, and I don't receive the same amount of enjoyment out of
the process.
If you want to get the most of your article writing, you'll do the
exercise I outlined above every time you sit down to write your
articles. After you get good at it, it only takes a few minutes to
do. Trust me, it's worth it.
Not only do you become more productive, you actually get a
sense of fulfillment out of the process.
I'm going to share with you a routine I do almost every morning.
I generally do not look forward to writing articles. Any excuse I
can use to procrastinate I will... unless I get into what I call a
“Writing-Frenzy” state.
I'm going to share with you a four step sequence that gets me in
such a state almost every time. Here it is:
1) Clarity
2) Leverage
3) Confusion
4) Power
Clarity. First, I ask myself -- “What do I really want to get out
of this, and what's stopping me right now from getting it?”.
Almost every time I tell myself that I just want to write
productively for six hours and enjoy doing it.
Usually I find what's stopping me is I am focusing on the
negatives of article writing instead of the positives. I realize that
if I want to enjoy the process, I need to think of all the benefits I
get from writing articles. This gets me pumped up. This means
I'm ready for the next step.
Leverage. It's not enough to realize what I want, and how to get
it. I have to actually feel compelled to take action on this
information. Here's how I do it. First, I think of how painful it
would be if everyday I did something I didn't enjoy doing. I
imagine how poor of a quality of life I would have if I never
broke through resistance, and had a weak will. Scary!
Then, I imagine how great it would be if I could work all day
while having a smile on my face and feeling good about myself.
I also think about how cultivating this habit will improve other
areas of my life.
What I have essentially done is changed how I feel about the
task at hand. I've deliberately thought about how bad it would be
to not change my state, and how good it will be to change my
state to get what I want. It's the old pain/pleasure principle.
Just doing these two steps alone will make the article writing
process much easier. But let's not just stop there.
Confusion. Obviously, I linked negative feelings to writing for
6 hours. I realized I wanted to enjoy the process instead. I
realized how much pleasure I would gain from it, and how much
pain I would avoid if I made it happen. But wouldn't it be great
if I completely removed the negative feelings from my mind?
Yes it would.
Here's how I do it instantly. You can do the same, and you'll
find you automatically start laughing and have a smile on your
face when you sit down to write your article.
First, I picture myself sitting at my desk, writing my articles.
Then I picture myself with clown makeup on, writing the
articles. Then I create a picture of me writing the articles upside
down, on the ceiling. In my mind I imagine doing cartwheels at
breakneck speed, shouting out the words to an article, birds
flying in the window whispering research into my ear, and any
other crazy scenarios I can come up with.
Every time I do this, it makes me chuckle. I have now changed
my my association of sitting down and writing an article from
dread to comedy. When I actually go to sit down and write the
article, I am no longer thinking it will be tedious – because the
silly pictures pop into my head, and makes me laugh. I have
created a whole new feeling to associate with writing articles.
Now there's only one thing left to do.
Power. It's sufficient to create confusion to laugh at the process
instead of dread it. But wouldn't it be even better if, when you
sit down to write your articles, you felt powerful? Imagine what
it would be like if every time you wrote an article you increased
your sense of fulfillment in life?
The trick is after you have created confusion about the pain and
pleasure you link to the task at hand, you can now replace it
with a new, empowering alternative. I use a metaphor. I
imagine that every word I write is a brick, which is building a
golden pyramid. Each article presents another story on this
pyramid. At the top of the pyramid I see my ideal self.
Each article helps bring me closer to my ideal self. Each article
is a way for me to strengthen my discipline, commitment, will
power and focus. Each article also generates me money, which I
can use to invest in other business opportunities, to invest in my
own personal development, or just to spend on things that bring
me joy in life.
When I get to this stage, I am now in now in my ideal “article
writing frenzy state”.
Here's a quick review of the process. First, I decide what I want
to get out of writing my articles – the ability to work all day and
feel happy. Next, I motivate myself to actually want to strive to
achieve this, by thinking about how pleasurable it would be to
do so, and how painful it would be to not do so. Then I interrupt
the feelings I currently link to the process at hand, by thinking
of a ridiculous and silly picture. This “unlinks” any negative
feelings I would have about setting down and writing. What is
left is for me to “relink” my feelings to something extremely
positive, and empowering, so I feel with each article I write, I
fulfill my sense of purpose.
I want you to know something. The first few times I tried doing
this, it didn't really work. That was because it was a new process
I wasn't used to. I didn't have a “golden triangle” metaphor yet
created, I wasn't sure how to create confusion (by thinking of a
funny picture), and part of me was skeptical that it would even
work.
But whenever I try something new, I always make a 7 day
commitment. I just say, “For the next seven days, I am going to
try this. I don't care if it works or not. I am just going to do it
whole heartedly for the next 7 days, and then evaluate its
usefulness.”
After trying this process for three days, I started getting good at
it. By the end of the week, It would work for me almost every
time. And it started to go quicker, too. Now it takes me all of
about a minute to get into an article writing state, if I go through
the process every day.
With that said, I want to tell you a quick story, which will help
you with all aspects of your article writing.
I grew up my whole life as a wrestler. My dad was head
wrestling coach at the high school I would attend. Every thing I
did as a child was related to becoming a better wrestler. We
would train like mad-men.
I remember one day where it just hit me – I was in almost
perfect physical shape. I told my dad this. He said prove it. So
he took me into a hallway at school that had two flights of stairs.
“If you can run up and down these stairs for an hour straight,
you are in peak physical shape.”
He explained to me what to do. Run as hard as I can for five
minutes up and down the stairs, then jog for one minute. Doing
this ten times would equal an hour.
So for the next hour I did this. Whenever I'd start to tire or slow
down, he'd yell at me, and motivate me to keep up the pace
.
Somehow, I managed to finish. When I was done, I was
exhausted. I threw up because I worked myself so hard. But I
had done it.
Then, shortly after I got burned out on wrestling and took a
week break. During that time, I didn't work out at all. When I
came back, I couldn't run even run the stairs for a half an hour at
the same pace.
The point is it took me all year to get in almost perfect shape,
but it only took me a week to get out of shape.
Sometimes I'm a slow learner, though. There are some days
when I skip the formula to put me in a writing frenzy mind state,
thinking it is unnecessary. There are days where I don't time
each article I write, because I don't feel like doing it. However, I
always pay the price. It always takes me longer to write the
articles, and I don't receive the same amount of enjoyment out of
the process.
If you want to get the most of your article writing, you'll do the
exercise I outlined above every time you sit down to write your
articles. After you get good at it, it only takes a few minutes to
do. Trust me, it's worth it.
Not only do you become more productive, you actually get a
sense of fulfillment out of the process.
week break. During that time, I didn't work out at all. When I
came back, I couldn't run even run the stairs for a half an hour at
the same pace.
The point is it took me all year to get in almost perfect shape,
but it only took me a week to get out of shape.
Sometimes I'm a slow learner, though. There are some days
when I skip the formula to put me in a writing frenzy mind state,
thinking it is unnecessary. There are days where I don't time
each article I write, because I don't feel like doing it. However, I
always pay the price. It always takes me longer to write the
articles, and I don't receive the same amount of enjoyment out of
the process.
If you want to get the most of your article writing, you'll do the
exercise I outlined above every time you sit down to write your
articles. After you get good at it, it only takes a few minutes to
do. Trust me, it's worth it.
Not only do you become more productive, you actually get a
sense of fulfillment out of the process.
2 More Neat Tricks I Use to Write 7 Minute Articles
2 More Neat Tricks I Use to Write 7 Minute Articles
Sometimes I won't have enough information from my research
to write an article that's 400 or 500 words. Other times, I will be
given a bunch of keywords or topics that are similar in nature,
and I have to come up with unique articles for each keyword.
What do you do when these situations arise? I use “crutches”
.
The story is a great way to capture attention, get your point
across and fill out the article. Let's say you're writing about
stock market investment mistakes. You could say, “Diversify
your investments.” Or you could say the following:
“One day John came home from work. He did what he did every
day after coming home from work – he logged in to his online
portfolio to check his investments. Lately, he'd been making a
killing. He had taken all his money, and put it into companies all
belonging to the same industry. This industry had been hot, too!
Stocks were rising like crazy, and everyone was getting in.
Then one day the bubble didn't just burst – it exploded! John –
and many other investors – were the vicitm of dot-com stocks.
John lost everything. This could've been avoided if only he
diversified his investments.”
Creating a story is easy, and it doesn't take much research to do
it. All I needed here was a tip – diversify your funds – and an
example – the dotcom bubble burst. From those two pieces of
information, I was able to come up with 107 words!
Stories are one of the most effective ways to turn a 300 word
article into a 500 word article, or to make your subject matters
fresh and unique. As a bonus, when done properly, they will
engage the reader even more than your general articles would
have.
Another great way to write fast articles, is to use an example.
Let's say you're writing an article about how to compare
different credit card merchants. In your article, you mention the
fact that each merchant charges a percentage fee for each
transaction that is made, making it an important factor to
consider when choosing between different merchants. You can
stop there, and go on to the next point or you can provide an
example. You could write:
“I want you to imagine for a moment the potential impact of
this. Let's say this year you process $100,000 in credit card
orders. Let's say your merchant charges 2% for each transaction
-- that means you end up paying a fee of $2000.
Later you find another merchant would have only charged you
1% on each transaction. Simply by choosing a different
merchant service provider, you could save a thousand dollars. It
would have been $10,000 if you had processed $1 million in
credit card orders.”
To recap, the example and the story are two perfect tools to use
when you need to write quick articles with little research time.
In fact, just imagine if you started the article about credit card
merchants with a story about a business owner who had trouble
with processing credit card orders. Then you segued it into the
example above. Your article would practically be finished.
If you're writing an article that already had a nice entry for it in
Wikipedia, then here is a trick to get the outline for your article
in less than 15 seconds. Let's say you're writing an article on
“colon cancer”. Find the entry in Wikipedia. Within the entry,
there will be a small section titled “contents”.
Here you will find all your main research points documented for
you. For the first article, you could write about the symptoms,
risk factors, and diagnosis methods. Or, you could write an
article on the 7 treatments for colon cancer, which are listed
right there on the content page.
In fact, almost each of the main points can be broken down into
its own article. You can write an article on just the symptoms,
then one on just the risk factors and so on. Just go to each
section, find three main points you can expand on, then quickly
research them.
Sometimes I won't have enough information from my research
to write an article that's 400 or 500 words. Other times, I will be
given a bunch of keywords or topics that are similar in nature,
and I have to come up with unique articles for each keyword.
What do you do when these situations arise? I use “crutches”
.
The story is a great way to capture attention, get your point
across and fill out the article. Let's say you're writing about
stock market investment mistakes. You could say, “Diversify
your investments.” Or you could say the following:
“One day John came home from work. He did what he did every
day after coming home from work – he logged in to his online
portfolio to check his investments. Lately, he'd been making a
killing. He had taken all his money, and put it into companies all
belonging to the same industry. This industry had been hot, too!
Stocks were rising like crazy, and everyone was getting in.
Then one day the bubble didn't just burst – it exploded! John –
and many other investors – were the vicitm of dot-com stocks.
John lost everything. This could've been avoided if only he
diversified his investments.”
Creating a story is easy, and it doesn't take much research to do
it. All I needed here was a tip – diversify your funds – and an
example – the dotcom bubble burst. From those two pieces of
information, I was able to come up with 107 words!
Stories are one of the most effective ways to turn a 300 word
article into a 500 word article, or to make your subject matters
fresh and unique. As a bonus, when done properly, they will
engage the reader even more than your general articles would
have.
Another great way to write fast articles, is to use an example.
Let's say you're writing an article about how to compare
different credit card merchants. In your article, you mention the
fact that each merchant charges a percentage fee for each
transaction that is made, making it an important factor to
consider when choosing between different merchants. You can
stop there, and go on to the next point or you can provide an
example. You could write:
“I want you to imagine for a moment the potential impact of
this. Let's say this year you process $100,000 in credit card
orders. Let's say your merchant charges 2% for each transaction
-- that means you end up paying a fee of $2000.
Later you find another merchant would have only charged you
1% on each transaction. Simply by choosing a different
merchant service provider, you could save a thousand dollars. It
would have been $10,000 if you had processed $1 million in
credit card orders.”
To recap, the example and the story are two perfect tools to use
when you need to write quick articles with little research time.
In fact, just imagine if you started the article about credit card
merchants with a story about a business owner who had trouble
with processing credit card orders. Then you segued it into the
example above. Your article would practically be finished.
If you're writing an article that already had a nice entry for it in
Wikipedia, then here is a trick to get the outline for your article
in less than 15 seconds. Let's say you're writing an article on
“colon cancer”. Find the entry in Wikipedia. Within the entry,
there will be a small section titled “contents”.
Here you will find all your main research points documented for
you. For the first article, you could write about the symptoms,
risk factors, and diagnosis methods. Or, you could write an
article on the 7 treatments for colon cancer, which are listed
right there on the content page.
In fact, almost each of the main points can be broken down into
its own article. You can write an article on just the symptoms,
then one on just the risk factors and so on. Just go to each
section, find three main points you can expand on, then quickly
research them.
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