Saturday, June 27, 2009

Tao Te Ching - Patient Thoughts and Printed Words


"Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear?"

That is an amusing thought. I've seen mud puddles, I've felt muddied mind, I've even stirred in the muddy waters with my muse waiting for inspiration. The printed word is slippery like an eel, it hides just below the surface of where I am. Do I have the patience to wait until the mud clears so I can see what I am saying?

I try, I write anyway and keep writing until I can sit on the bottom of that muddy pool and see clear into the ice blue sky of my mind wanting to be perfectly clear. Do I have patience? Not yet, but I do hope to acquire it once I finish reading this tiny, but very heavy--simple but very complex book. It amazes and frustrates me while it baffles and illuminates.

If you can't figure out what I mean...you really need to get this book - the most amazing phrase is "The master does nothing, yet he leaves nothing undone." Care to comment on that? I am interested in what you have to say.

Billie/Word Wizard
who feels nothing like a wizard compared to the Tao

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Rainbow Morning


First a quote that slipped into my inbox this morning:

"Three grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love, and something to hope for. "
- Joseph Addison

I wish for you all of the above blessings. This morning I was busy writing in my journals - we had a high fog - nothing major. A very pleasant morning. Suddenly the sun was peeking through and everything looked spring/early summer abundant. Then out of the sun shine, a sun shower - straight down beautiful rain. I had thought I heard thunder in the distance earlier but the sky was cloudless - as far as I could tell.

The sun shower became a little heavier and finally the sky became darker and turned into a downpour. I raced from my sunny kitchen window to shut windows on the back porch - there-- immediately west in full view was the most amazing rainbow I had ever seen.

I was in awe - as I traced the arch from one side of the horizon to the other - I noticed the arch over a hole in the deep gray clouds. There to my amazement was clear, robin's egg blue sky, an electric white cumulus cloud top, framed by the gray and all of it arched by this huge rainbow.

Could you ask for a better promise to start a day then that? I still can't believe my eyes - I was too amazed to run for a camera, I figured by the time I got it set up--the view would be gone.
Have a rainbow and happiness sort of day. Thanks for letting me share my joy.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

What a Whale of an Idea!




Whale Hunting is pages of solid, tested, proven advice about landing those huge corporate accounts that will boost your business to the top.

The Message: Stop wasting time with little accounts and start landing monster accounts. “…small fish keep you fed, but landing each whale-sized account can fill your corporate belly for years.” From inside Whale Hunting.
The Method: Nine easy steps provide clear, step-based models that will guide the reader every step of the way from finding, researching, ultimately landing and then harvesting that whale sized account to successfully grow your business.

The authors, extremely successful business people, have developed this proven (2 billion dollars in new sales) and practical system of targeting and getting those large corporate accounts that mean not just survival but growth for your own business.

It takes team work for a company to succeed, As Smith say, using the Whale Hunt metaphor is a perfect blue print for the feat of showing the how of success. No one person would set out in a row boat with hopes of returning with a whale, neither should you whale hunt without a team of cooperative supporters.

If you are looking for action-oriented, specific, actionable, methods to grow your company, harpooning big clients, Whale Hunting delivers. Once you understand the process and you will easily with the clear, concise language in this book, you’ll begin to understand how connecting your team to your target’s team creates the atmosphere of a successful partnership.

Get the book, devour it, and put every step into action. Success will be yours. It isn’t magic, but it delivers on its promise. Kudos to the team of Tom Searcy and Barbara Weaver Smith for an extraordinary book.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Whale Hunting - it's not what you think

Whale Hunting


The Whale Hunters Process™
Whale hunting focuses on creating a disciplined sales culture in your company that allows you to optimize your ability to catch and harvest whales. This dramatic shift in thinking and practice precipitates explosive growth of your company’s revenues and market position.
The nine-phase process model is consistent across companies and industries, but each company maps the model to its own steps.
Scouting
It all starts with knowing who you're hunting. With a focus on market and sales research and the creation of a target filter, scouting guides you to know, seek and harpoon whales whose business will be ideal for you.
Hunting
Hunting focuses on communicating with, pitching, and securely closing your ideal whale accounts. Our method of progressive discovery and disclosure relies on critical questions at each step of the hunt.
Harvesting
Harvesting brings sales and non-sales departments together in an integrated process to ensure you harvest your whale effectively, efficiently and harmoniously. It includes key account management and growing new business with your best accounts.
===============
Want to learn more? Tune in tomorrow when we examine this book some more

Sunday, June 7, 2009

Interview with Rajah - He's the cutest dog = )




Welcome Rajah we are so delighted to have you visit the Printed Words blog today. Please come on in, pull up a comfortable rug, pillow or couch and settle in.

Rajah:
Thank you for inviting me. I am delighted to be here.

I assume your name has a special meaning. What does Rajah mean ?

Rajah:
Rajah means Prince. But my full name is Rajah LeBeau. It means The Beautiful Prince. Mommy always tells me how beautiful I am. But when mommy calls me and says "Rajah LeBeau Penick Phillips-Cermak," I come running as fast as I can.

Where did Mom (Mosetta M. Penick Phillips-Cermak) get you from?

Rajah: Mommy adopted me from the Cleveland Animal Protective League.
I was very young. I was one of six in a litter.
One day I actually met one of my litter-mates. His mommy took him to the dog park, and my mommy took me to the dog park, and we met. It was a wonderful surprise.

Do you help her write – are you sort of like her muse?

Rajah:
Mommy says that I make her laugh with delight. She says that it is wonderful to watch me explore the world. So, she writes about the things that I do, and she hopes that it will help her students, and the other kids that read her books, learn a life lesson.

What kind of Dog are you?

Rajah: I am a Black Lab. I also have a touch of Blue Tick Hound, too, I think.

Tell us a bit about this book. Where did the inspiration come from?

Rajah:
This story is about facing your fear and making friends with someone who frightens you. It is sort of like the bullies some children have to deal with in school.
Mommy got the idea one summer when two Blue Jays built a nest in one of our trees. They began to dive bomb me, and drop sticks and pinecones on me every time I would go outside. I didn't even want to go outside to go potty. But Mommy told me how brave I was. And, I was able to be brave.
Mommy always says that she wrote the story for one of her favorite second grade classes. But, this story can help anyone be brave.

What is a typical day of writing like for you?

Rajah: Mommy gets up at 4:45 a.m. every morning. We all go downstairs and go outside. Then, when we come back in, we have a wonderful breakfast. After breakfast, we go to the computer room.
If mommy doesn't have to teach children during the day, or adults at night, she writes until 2:30 in the afternoon. Then she takes a break and plays with us. Sometimes she throws the ball, or she takes us to McDonald's for a hamburger and fries. At 6:00 p.m. we come back upstairs and write until bedtime.

What do have coming up next?

Rajah: We are under contract for five (5) more books in this series.
Then, there is a middle-grade chapter book, that mommy calls a scientific fiction, and a young adult novel, also. She just completed a new children's book for little people. She will put it away for a month before she starts her rewrites.

Will you, Rajah, be a part of the next book?

Rajah: In the next book, I save the day. In fact, I think that is the title. There is Rajah saves the Day, Rajah Adopts a Brother, Rajah and Prince, Rajah and the Teensy, Tiny Kitten, and Rajah's Birthday Party. Of course mommy said that the title could change.

Is there anything you would especially like to tell our readers?

Rajah:
Mommy is doing book signings.
She will be at Joseph-Beth Bookseller at Legacy Village
24519 Cedar Road, in Lyndhurst, Ohio, on Thursday, July 9, 2009 from 7-9 P.M.

On Saturday, July 18, 2009, she will be signing books at a Lunch with the Author event.
This will be held at Nela's Restaurant, 3553 West 117th Street in Cleveland, Ohio from 1:00 to 3:30 P.M. The APL will be there with their Adoption van. I hope lots and lots of people will come out and have lunch with my mommy. There will be good food and door prizes.

Mommy is donating $1.00 of the sale of each of my books to the Cleveland APL.
That is about 25% of her royalties!
We are trying to sponsor a cage for a dog or puppy at the APL. If we sponsor a cage, we guarantee that the puppy or dog will be able to live in the cage until they are adopted, for up to a full year.

Where can we reach you, send you an email? Where can we order your book?

Rajah: You can order my book at www.publishersgraphicsbookstore.com/Rajah-and-the-Big-Blue-Ball-by-Mosetta-Penick-Phillips-Cermak-40sw41_p_386.html, or on
http://www.google.com, as well as at http://www.alibris.com. You can also order on Barnes & Noble (http://search.barnesandnoble.com/Rajah-and-the-Big-Blue-Ball/Mosetta-M-Penick-Phillips-Cermak/e/9780981777740 ), although they show the book as out of print. You may have to ask for it.
Mommy says that she cannot put her book on Amazon.com because they want a 55% discount, and that would stop her from giving money to the Cleveland APL, without the price of the book going up. Mommy insisted that the price of my book stay under twenty dollars.
I am on Facebook. I would love for your readers to become my fans. You can reach me on facebook at
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Cleveland-OH/Rajah/189451395362?ref=ts .
I am also on twitter at www.twitter.com/RajahLeBeau .
My email address is rajahlebeau@yahoo.com . But, it is easier to reach me on Facebook.
Sometimes I forget to check my email.

Thank you so much for stopping by. Will you and your Mom be able to come back to answer questions during the day for those who would like to add comments to your interview?
Rajah: I would love to come back and answer questions. Thank you for asking.

Rajah and The Big Blue Ball are coming to Printed Words


We are donating $1.00 of each book purchased to the Cleveland Animal Protective League.
I am trying to also to get small groups of people to donate a class set of books to their favorite second grade class, in whatever school system that they choose. I will autograph the books, and $1.00 still goes to the Cleveland APL.


The
Book Title: Rajah and The Big Blue Ball
Author: Mosetta M. Penick Phillips-Cermak
Stop by to read an interview with Rajah

Monday, June 1, 2009

You Won't Want to Miss This!!

He's our friend - we'll be here!
Hint: He's not a cat!



Rajah is coming to Printed Words - He will be allowing me to interview him with his Mom. This is a one of a kind opportunity - adorable and lovable - he'll be here June 8, 2008 Please stop by tell all your friends!