Subject: TAKE CHARGE SUCCESS STRATEGIES
###########################################
Volume 2, Number 5 October 31 , 2002
Publisher: GoalMinds, Inc.
E-Mail::condrill@goalminds.com http://www.goalminds.com http://www.jocondrill.com
Copyright 2002 Jo Condrill All rights reserved
###########################################
Welcome to the new subscribers who have joined us since the last edition! Thanks to our faithful subscribers who continue to find value in our newsletter.

If any of the links in this newsletter do not work for you, please copy and paste them into the URL or email. Note: "mailto" is not part of the email address to be pasted. Thanks.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"The greatest achievement was at first and for a time, a dream. The oak sleeps in the acorn; the bird waits in the egg; and in the highest vision of the soul a waking angel stirs. Dreams are the seedlings of realities." --James Allen in As A Man Thinketh

===================================
IN THIS ISSUE
===================================
1. 10 Pointers for Powerful Communications
2. Retreat and Move Forward!
3. The Synergy of a Master Mind Group
4. How to Get Paid for Book Signings, by Linda Ligon
5. Books
==================================
Please FORWARD this newsletter to anyone you know that is interested in self-development, making money writing or speaking, or just hanging out with interesting folks.
If you've received this newsletter as a forward, please sign up to receive future copies by sending an email to Condrill@goalminds.com with SUBSCRIBE in the subject line.

PRIVACY STATEMENT: We will not distribute your address to anyone. Period.

==========================================
1. 10 Pointers for Powerful Communications
=========================================

Whether you're a beginner or a pro, you probably want to present a more powerful image, sell your ideas more effectively, deal with discord better, and run more productive meetings. These points will help you.

1. Stop talking and listen--former Secretary of State Dean Rusk said the best way to persuade others is with our ears…by listening! Think of your conversation as a tennis match, with each person taking turns serving and receiving. When you allow people to speak, you'll find that most people have the ability to solve their own problems while you are listening. And if you are trying to sell something, remember that if you are thinking about what you will say next, you will miss vital information that can help you close the sale.

2. Know what you want to say--Get to the point quickly. Then the listener can remember what you said. If you think before you talk, you'll know what outcome you want from your conversation. Successful networking relies on knowing what you want to accomplish!

3. Ask questions--To gain the most from any interaction, find out what people want! Ask open-ended questions that cannot be answered with "yes" or "no." You'll be amazed at the valuable information you obtain! To make sure you glean as much as possible from each conversation, rephrase what the other individual says, asking a question to make sure you understand.

4. Screen out distraction--Nothing you do will make others feel more important than giving your full attention. Turn off electronic devices and ignore the telephone. Pay no attention to other conversations taking place in the same room. And, if an unavoidable interruption occurs, excuse yourself and show interest when you return.

5. Watch your tone--Voice tone gives the listeners evidence of your feelings. Soften your tone to show respect or affection. Guard against unwittingly revealing negative emotions such as impatience, anger, or rejection. If you did leave a negative impression and you want to change it--say you want to change it!

6. Handle disagreements with tact--It is unrealistic to think that everyone will always go along with whatever you request. What do you do when someone disagrees? Tact begins with listening. Be sure you clearly understand the issue, and ask questions. Stay calm, and think of disagreement as a difference in opinion, not personal rejection. Everyone has a right to an opinion, so respect that, and work at finding an acceptable compromise. If it really is a matter of principle, you may decide to end the conversation…or even the relationship.

7. Be receptive to new ideas--It is easy to miss vital input. Relax and allow time to receive vital signals. Listen attentively, and consider how new ideas may apply to things you already know. Don't be afraid to yield control--this can add to your knowledge, encourage you to study further, or even change your mind! A closed mind is a dying mind.

8. Take notes--Always carry a paper and a pen to jot down thoughts. Record new ideas and items on which you must take action. After you first meet someone, take a moment and jot down key information about the person and the conversation. Spell their name phonetically so you will remember how to pronounce it. Also, spell it correctly. A scrap of paper and a pencil stub make your brain a whole lot bigger.

9. Respect the other person's point of view. Building powerful relationships requires us to learn what we agree upon. Try to understand why people think the way they do. You can understand another point of view without agreeing with it, after all. Even though you know the "truth," you can dismiss minor deviations from it when they do not affect the outcome.

10. Eliminate audible pauses--Verbal fluff ("ah," "er," "um") obscures your message and reduces your credibility. If you hear yourself adding these distractions to your words, stop, think, then talk. Use shorter sentences, or pause using silence instead of audible sounds. Become more familiar with the topic, and practice what you want to say.

You may reprint or broadcast the above information if you source the information by mentioning the book: 101 Ways to Improve Your Communication Skills Instantly, by Jo Condrill and Bennie Bough, Ph.D. http://www.goalminds.com

=================================
2. Retreat and Move Forward!
=================================
We conducted a survey in this newsletter some months ago about your interest in a retreat weekend. Responses indicated the strongest interest in something spiritual. I believe we've come up with an excellent program, a TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR LIFE RETREAT! This is a weekend of spiritual and practical tools to create the life you want to live. We carefully selected the site to provide beauty and inspiration. The lovely MiraMonte Resort Hotel in Indian Wells, California, does that and more. The dates are January 17-19, 2003 (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday weekend) The greatest gift you can give yourself, or someone you love, is a life filled with passion, purpose, and love. This retreat weekend will help you live such a life. Terri Amos, Miss USA 1982 and author of Message Sent: Retrieving the Gift of Love, and Jo Condrill, author of Take Charge of Your Life, invite you to join them for this exciting three-day retreat. See what we have planned at
http://www.goalminds.com/retreat/htm.

Gift certificates can be arranged. Please pass this invitation on and give a gift to someone you love. If you want to discuss this weekend, please call Jo at 1 800 697-5680 or Terri at 310 374-4057
=================================
A Millennium Primer: Take Charge of Your Life is now available as an abridged audiotape, Take Charge of Your Life, ISBN 09661414-2-3. It's available at bookstores and libraries as well as from GoalMinds, Inc.

=====================================
3. The Synergy of a Master-Mind Group
=====================================

Master-mind groups are spawning all over the country. Some of them function like social circles or support groups. However, a master-mind group fashioned from the concept of Napoleon Hill in Think and Grow Rich is much more than that. Hill writes of the POWER of organized knowledge when explaining his ideas, the power of collective wisdom.

A master-mind group is a specially selected group that can work together in absolute harmony to achieve diverse goals. While members of the group work in harmony, they may be very different from each other. The common element is that each draws something from the others, and each contributes freely to the others. It is the focusing of each mind on a common issue that triggers thoughts not readily available to one mind. Those in the group draw upon their unique experiences and specialized knowledge to help each other.

We have seen the results of many minds concentrating on a single point in this manner. It provides a power over and above the sum total of each of the individual minds. It is as though an invisible force joins the group and provides additional insight. I have used the master-mind concept with amazing results … first to advance my career and later to lead a group of volunteers to achieve remarkable results, ranking number 1 in a worldwide organization, Toastmasters. Today I'm forming a new group in the entertainment capital of the world, Los Angeles. This group includes a producer/director, an actress, a Hispanic international trade expert, an attorney, voice actors, and me, a writer.

It’s relatively easy to form a group, but it needs to be done with caution. Choosing members wisely is the first step. Things to keep in mind while forming your group:

1. You need people who are not like you, because they will challenge you and contribute different ideas.

2. Each member of the group will benefit from the experience, skills, and specialized knowledge of each member, and from the expanded network of resources.
3. Group participation is stimulating, but the group will not be successful without individual action outside the group.
4. To be effective, members of the group must have a positive expectation of good results from their participation.
5. For a like-minded alliance to survive, there must be a high level of trust.
6. Each person must have something to contribute to others in the group, such as a specific talent, specialized knowledge, or marketing or organizational skills.

Organizational matters, such as the leadership of the group, decisions on when to meet, whom to select as members, and establishing an agenda should be agreed upon by members of the group.

Go to http://www.jocondrill.com for the downloadable booklet, How to Form a Master-Mind Group, for an in-depth discussion of the formation and smooth functioning of a master-mind group. It will be available November 5, 2002.

------------------------------------------------
4. How to Get Paid for Doing Book Signings
--Linda Ligon
------------------------------------------------
Linda is immediate past president of the Board of Directors of the Publishers Marketing Association. At their University in New York City in May, 2002, Linda was a member of the panel titled Conduct a Low-Cost Book Signing Tour!* Linda shared with the audience how her company sends authors to a NO-COST book signing. She speaks from a publishers perspective, but her advice is easily adaptable for self-published authors.

It’s this simple: Identify venues that will pay to have your author appear. This will not work for every author of every book, but it will work for a surprising number—especially for how-to books. Here are some that have worked for my company (Interweave Press):

· Garden writers doing workshops (and book signings) at botanical gardens around the country. Travel expenses are picked up by the botanical gardens, they charge their members to attend the workshop and give the author an honorarium which more than covers food and lodging, and we place books on consignment directly with the botanical gardens at a relatively low discount. In some cases the botanical gardens arrange for media appearances, and in some cases we have handled this.

· Cookbook author doing workshops and book signings at large urban kitchen stores, natural foods stores, and culinary institutes. Same arrangements.

· Knitwear designers, authors of knitting pattern books, teaching classes at knitting shops. Same arrangements.

· A medical doctor with interest in alternative modalities lecturing at health shows.

· A poet and tapestry artist receiving travel money to do readings at a number of museum shows in the US and France.

Any organization that pays money for programs for their membership, or specialty retail outlets that pay for workshop or seminar leaders, are fair game for this kind of program. Your involvement can be as limited or extensive as you choose. The more control you exercise, the more opportunity there is to build in a profit for yourself beyond what you make on book sales.

Most involvement: You identify and contact venues, create a schedule, make travel arrangements, collect fees from venues, make media contacts, arrange for other signings at local bookstores. This is a lot of work, but can have high yield.

Least involvement: You identify and contact venues, turn these over to the author, and see that plenty of books are on hand at each location. This is simple, cheap, low yield beyond book sales. Depends on an energetic author.

*Conduct a Low-Cost Book Signing Tour! panel discussion led by Jo Condrill at PMA University, New York City. Other panelists were Maggie Lichtenberg, Publishing Coach, and Marcella Smith, Barnes & Noble. To purchase a copy of the tape call 1 800 697-5680.

===============================
5. Books
===============================
In her book, Message Sent: Retrieving the Gift of Love, Terri Amos takes the reader on a journey to discovering a wondrous inner truth: the love you have been seeking has been there all the time. You find the love when you find you. Terri's journey began when she was named Miss USA of 1982. Instead of the joy she expected to feel, there was only emptiness. She had lived her life trying to be everything people thought she should be and in the process, she had lost herself. She says that she continued this path of denying herself with her marriage and her family until she discovered the gift of change. Her book teaches us how to live every day fully, with passion, authenticity, and love. It's a must read for self discovery. http://www.terriamos.com

At first glance Peter Colwell's new book, Spell Success in Your Life, is just another motivational "you can do it" book. If you've read as many self-help books as I have, even the forward by Les Brown, author of Live Your Dreams, doesn't hook you. As I looked closer, however, I saw some rather bold subtitles: Overtraining, Overeating, and Overworking, and the "magical ingredient" sleep. While most of us are trying to get people to work harder, Colwell focuses on a well-rounded, balanced existence. Bravo! This book is definitely well worth your attention. http://www.petercolwell.com

***********************************
Thanks for being with us. If you would like to be a guest author for this newsletter, please email your suggestion to us, mailto:Condrill@goalminds.com. You will get full credit if we run your article.

Please tell your friends about this newsletter and recommend that they sign up.
To subscribe just type SUBSCRIBE in an email
Email Condrill@goalminds.com or go to http://www.goalminds.com/ or http://www.authorsden.com/jocondrill and sign up there.

#####################################
GoalMinds, Inc.
http://www.goalminds.com/
468 N. Camden Dr. #200
Beverly Hills, California 90210
Phone: 310 860-5681
Toll Free: 1 800 697-5680
FAX: 310 860-5600