The first is called RescueTime and it’s a downloadable system that monitors which you actually do while you’re online, whether it be email checking, site surfing or banging away on a project in Word.

I used it while working on PromoteANYTHINGOnline and found it to be pretty helpful. Here’s how it works:

You download the software to your computer and set up RescueTime to your own specifications. Nothing technical or complicated here, it just helps it recognize time well spent from time that may be not so well spent.

It tracks where and how you spend your online time, whether you know you’re doing it or not. You can check it periodically at the site directly and also sign up to receive weekly updates sent via email.
If you decide to give it a try, I strongly suggest those weekly updates. They’re real eye-openers!

You may well discover that those “few minutes” spent checking this or that out really amounted to hours wasted in a short span of time. Needless to say, this is an excellent tool for help with keeping the “blinders” on while you’re working on something.

I found it very helpful and more than a little enlightening. Unfortunately, I also found that it slowed my computer down considerably. I heard from others who reported the same. So I reluctantly uninstalled it.

However, I recently completed a virtual house cleaning of some junk I’d accumulated and never used. I just might give RescueTime another try.

I think it’s worth a try, and it’s free.

The second is also downloadable and a great tool for getting the most from your online working time. It’s called The Action Machine and you can set up your tasks with a time limit, during which you focus exclusively on that task until the timer alarm sounds. The cool thing about this tool is that you can set up all your day’s work at once or set up some to occur every day.

This guy has thought of practically everything and better yet, he’s constantly updating the software. I’ve received two updates since I first installed it – one of which I was about to suggest when I saw the email with the link!

At around $25, The Action Machine is a definite steal and it’s something you’ll certainly put to good use.

I’ll keep you posted about how it’s working for me!!

It’s not just a cool name, it’s a very usable tool with some very unique features.As part of the “Daily Target Praxis” which leads you through a sequence of preparation for the day ahead in an fun and entertaining way, you list all the things that are part of the plan for the day – phone calls, appointments, errands, tasks, whatever – in an online format that’s clear and well…simple.

Once you complete the DTP in about fifteen minutes or so, you’ll have that list to refer to throughout the day. Click a little garbage can icon beside each item as you complete it and all that’s left is the rest of your list.

There’s also a place called Dream Catcher to stash those ideas and inspirations too good to forget yet dangerous to your current focus.

What I liked best – and I may just be easily impressed – is the Backward Planner feature in the Major Focus section. List all the steps needed to reach your desired goal and you’ll have a very handy reminder of each day’s tasks toward getting where you want to go.

There’s also the Browser Bodyguard, which I never used, and then there’s the Wimiki. Set up a block of work time on the Wimiki and get started. When the block of time is over, you stop…because it stops you. A pop-up announces that it’s break time, and you take a break, drink some water or walk the dog. Ready to get back to work? Reset the Wimiki and you’re ready to roll.

That’s why I like Simpleology. Simple to use and simply effective.

P.S. Oh, did I mention…it’s FREE??

There’s also a pretty good OFFline tool that’s worked for quite a few over quite a few years. It’s called a pen and paper.

From Ben Franklin’s famous pros and cons decision making process to mindmapping techniques now being taught to kindergarteners, the pen (or a handful of markers) when coupled with an ordinary piece of paper has proven itself one heck of a sword against the dragons of time, effort and distraction.

Personally, I’m a big fan of a three-tool approach – one black pen, one red marker and one or more sheets of plain white paper, preferably mounted on a clipboard. Maybe that’s FOUR tools. A legal pad is fine too.

I write what I intend to do that day on the paper with the black pen. Writing down too many things will scare the dickens out of you and then you won’t want to do anything on the list.  Three to five items is manageable.

Prevailing wisdom claims that listing the toughest and/or least enjoyable task first with the purpose of tackling it first will make every other item seem like cake, because you did the worst first.

I say do that if you can. If nothing else, it’s worth a real try. I’ve discovered that I still balk at doing the toughest task at the top of the list, but I know that if I don’t do it then or by the end of the day, it’ll be carried over to the next day anyway. After seeing it for a few days, it gets done even if mostly out of a sense of shame than anything else.

Now the best part…the red marker. When you finish a task on your three to five task list, resist the natural urge to scribble or cross it out with your black pen. Reach instead for that red marker.

There must be a scientific study or two somewhere about the benefits of this technique, but here’s how it goes. Pop the cap off your red marker and make one strong straight line all the way across the task you’ve written on your list. Don’t scribble and don’t be dainty. Draw it like you mean it.

(If you’ve got a nice broad-tipped red marker, so much the better!)

Doing that will produce the most “DONE” feeling you’ve ever experienced, aside from collapsing after that marathon ten years ago. Both you and your brain now know for a fact that you have completed that task and it felt good. Really good. Good enough to make you want to do it again. You and your brain also know that the feeling will only happen again if you actually complete another task and then do it.

Another benefit is that you and your brain will feel increasing amounts of that “DONE” feeling as you mark off each new item.

Want to keep that feeling going? Save those daily sheets with those beautiful red lines through those completed tasks for at least a week and even a month or more. That’s solid visual proof that you did something on the way to reach your goals.

Your habit of DOING will grow stronger every day!

Image from Wikipedia

I’m currently looking at getting my act a little more together, especially now when I’m also looking at shorter and fewer work days in the near future (and not always by my choice).

During this week, I’ll tell you about different things I’ve tried, some I may have just heard about andhaven’t tried and at least one thing I’ve tried that actually worked and did me some good.

A few will be computer-based and a few won’t.

If you have a fave productivity system/tool/resource that helped you keep the dreaded focus and time management monsters at bay, please mention them in a quick – or even not so quick – comment.

More from me tomorrow…got some time that needs managing right now!

Because I do know this firsthand, it really, really saddens me to see people do it so very WRONG. I’m long since past getting ticked off about these things, but it does bum me out.

Why? Because it’s totally UNnecessary to do these things! And also by doing these things, the people doing them risk lifelong explusion from some excellent potential resources not just of sales, but of knowledge and networking. All this stuff is loads easier when you’re not doing it alone, believe me.

OK, here goes:

1. Don’t spam.

Pretty obvious, right? But as both a moderator and a participant on forums, I see it all the time. Granted, some are the work of pro spammers working on a big bank of computers in some dingy basement in some dingy city in some dingy country.

Too often, and more than once is too often to me, this spam is produced by misguided and either mis- or ill-informed individuals who stick a “Me too!” or some other lame message repeated a billion times in a billion place. Sometimes many of those places are on different sections of the same forum. Soooo not cool, soooo not helpful, soooo not effective!

If ever the urge strikes you to do something even remotely spammy, smack yourself silly and give yourself a severe talking to when you wake up. Repeat as needed.

2. Don’t spam by private message either.

I’m a member of a couple of very well-known forums with almost legendary reputations and a few gazillion members. They have so darn many members that I don’t visit them often. How can I feel special with all those other people vying for attention too??

Every so often, I see a private message from one of these forums in my inbox. Usually, it’s obvious that it’s not from the forum administrator (the only one/ones that should be e-mail the entire member list), but from another “member” who apparently joined just to do this. They may honestly believe that this is the way forum marketing is done.

Ahhh…NO.

If you’re a forum member and you want to contact another member with a legitimate question or request, follow that forum’s rules for doing so. Converse, don’t bombard.

Which brings me oh-so-conveniently to my next point:

3. Don’t have nothing worthwhile to say.

The occasional “Attaboy!” or “You go, girl!” encouragement is fine as long as it’s not all you ever do. Your forum visits should be timed to avoid blowing half a day without realizing it, and you should have an objective for your visit. Are you there to ask a specific question? Answer a specific question? Conduct a targeted poll? Research problems and concerns of your target market or maybe clarify the same?

It’s incredibly easy to fall into a “hanging out” habit with forums. I know because I’ve done it myself. Save the hanging out for forums you frequent JUST for fun after work hours. Be there for a real reason while you’re on your own clock.

4. Don’t abuse your signature file.

These few hyperlinked characters at the end of your forum posts are what ultimately make money. They’re that little cyber-doorway for those curious and hopefully interested visitors to pass through.

Don’t lock them out with an over-the-top message!

“Make Megalicious Moolah By Monday!!!” or “Be A Bedroom God!!!” aren’t exactly enticing to most. Low key is juuuust a bit more inviting, like:

“How I Conquered My Acne In One Week”

No screaming, no exaggeration. You must be sure that the destination your visitor reaches tells them what you say it will, or that’ll be their last click on anything associated with you.

For more about the DOs of forum marketing, grab the first lesson, “Week 1: Forums” of Promote ANYTHING Online: Your Step-By-Step Online Marketing Action Plan now.

A friend of mine literally stumbled across a way to do so. After it worked for him, he created The Twitter Technique that uses just three totally free Twitter applications you can apply in under half an hour to increase your follower base AND maintain its quality.

Easy is good, quick is good, but effective is even better.

Having lots of followers and following lots yourself must be the way to go, right? After all, it’s SOCIAL networking, so you should connect with as many people as possible…shouldn’t you??

Only if the thought of completely losing your mind appeals to you.

Those you follow are preferably those from whom you most want to receive a particular benefit: education on a topic of their expertise or entertainment most often. You may want to follow people with similar likes and interests as your own. You DON’T want to follow any others with either no benefit or nothing much in common: they’ll just became very uninteresting or annoying in short order and you’ll have to take the time to unfollow them. Usually that’s easy, but why spend time doing somthing like that if you choose wisely at the outset?

Size, literally, doesn’t matter in terms of how many people follow you. The more important issue is that they are engaged and interested in you and what you offer to them. People who care are more apt to pay some attention to you and your messages and interact meaningfully.

Don’t worry about building a huge following on social networking sites. Concern yourself more with developing a binding relationship with those who chose to follow you as well as those you choose to follow.

Make your motto “Quality before quantity” and your social networking efforts will be much more rewarding for everyone involved!

We’ll be discussing social networking sites like these and what they mean for you and your business over the next week.

Speaking of Twitter, I’ll be speaking with my buddy Alan Petersen about how I used Twitter myself for my most recent fundraiser for autism research, which resulted in a threefold increase in regular donations and one very welcome surprise.

It’ll be part of a product he has in the works about using Twitter effectively. If I can charm a copy of my interview from him, you’ll see it here soon!

Here’s a video with a lighter look at Twitter in particular:

It’s inspiration and creativity alone that brought many of these methods to life.

None require huge budgets or weeks of work to put into place. None require extensive skills of any kind – you don’t HAVE to be a world-class writer, you don’t HAVE to be a world-class speaker, you don’t HAVE to be a world-class technical expert.

Some you’ll get better with time and some you might actually look better if you’re not perfect!

The cold hard fact is we’ve brought to light nearly two dozen ways to repurpose article marketing. Whether you do them all or not doesn’t matter; it’s knowing you can do them if you choose that counts. It increases your options and with them, your potential for self confidence. Work with one until you’re comfortable and in the groove, and then pick another to start.

Think of being a kid in a candy store staring at the penny candy, which costs more like a dollar apiece these days. So many sweet choices, and you can choose several but still only enjoy one at a time. When you find one you really like, you can get and enjoy more of it.

The big difference is, enjoying these “sweet treats” can also make money for you. Now that is sweet!!

Sadly, I only managed to find and list a mere 20. Please accept my humblest apologies.

BUT…

I gave it a little more thought on my own over a particularly yummy plate of buffalo wings, with chunky blue cheese dressing and celery, of course. I do some of my best thinking while munching these little delicacies, but writing or typing at that time is a bit messy.

My hot sauce inspired revelation?

Sig lines.

That’s those little hyperlinked lines you set up in your forum and email profiles to send folks to whatever place you want to send them. Why not send them to your articles?

It’s a small and quick change to change one article link to another as you choose to keep them appropriate.

It’s also a nice way to provide good content that can lead into opt-ins and product sales. Unobtrusive, yet intriguing if you write your text to pique interest and not more hype to ignore.

For example, “Here’s Three Tips To A Tighter Tush” beats ” Get A Boffo Butt , Baby!!”

I’d certainly hope so, anyway…