Sunday 22 July 2012

Scavenging for Work

   In order to get a few more Beer vouchers into the family purse I've sent my CV to the 3 local Bingo halls and a shop in Stirling. Ideally I'm looking for Part Time Evening work.

Scottish Titbits/ Ginger Beer - TWO REALISATIONS

   As I was listening to Radio Scotland the other day I realised that if I wrote down all the little titbits which piqued my attention then very shortly I would have built a list of Scottish miscellany which could be easily converted into an Ebook.

   I also just realised that I shouldn't moan too much about my Ginger Beer Plant (GBP) as these have a market on Ebay. When I get fed up of producing the drink I'll list some of the GBP for sale. I could actually list some of the Beer itself although I am unsure of Ebay's rules on this. Also I've not got a clue if my brew is alcoholic or not. I could end up selling Wife beater to primary school kids!

New Youtube Video

Remember I am going for quantity not quality!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3oByNFeutFQ

Sunday July 22nd Updates!

Five Squids - put another few wee joke services on there to see if anyone takes the bait.

Comps - loads of comps done. Have opened a wee facebook account for comps only. Might have to do the same with Twitter. Planning a Comp Day where I can get 200 or so in the bag.

Createspace - I've signed up for an account at Createspace after reading an article by James Altucher. It seems this is the place to knock up Kindle Ebooks, and I've got loads sitting on the back burner.

Hargreaves Lansdown - I've also got a new Hargreaves Lansdown Stocks and Shares ISA set up. I've got £60 pcm set up to go into this account and I've selected to have all profits re-invested. Once there is a grand or so in this account I will purchase so high div stocks and then forget all about it for another year.

Ginger Beer - my 2nd batch of Ginger Beer is well under way. Supposedly you take half of the sediment from you original batch and then start a new jar. This seems weird to me but it seems to be working so far. My first jar made 2l of GB so I should get 4l from this lot. That means I should have some pass around and get some feedback on. Not sure if I will carry on unless the feedback is fantastic. The reason for this is that the drink isn't exactly cheap, and also isn't exactly healthy - you should see how much sugar you need to throw in.

Talk Radio - After listening to Alex Jones and "American Freedom Radio" a great deal over the last week, I have became more and more convinced that we have a gap in the market in Scotland. I put forward that recorded interviews with Scottish authors and people of interest would be listened to and would eventually lead to sponsors etc. As I flick through "The Scots Magazine" I see at least 12 new Scottish titles coming out every month. A recorded interview with one of these authors could be posted onto Youtube. If the view count gets high this could attract other authors to speak with you as a means of promoting their book. If this snowballed eventually you could broadcast via the net and attract sponsors and advertisers to the site. Nice little earner based on just having a chat!

RBS - paid another £500 off the RBS Credit card. It is virtually finished now. The monthly interest in only £13 and my direct debit is £120. Now I have lost that millstone I can divert the funds towards other debt reduction (see "The Automatic Millionaire").

Arbs - got the free download of "Rebel Betting" and I am majorly impressed.

Amazon - my Amazon sales are kicking on. Have done £50 this week so far. Remember my target is 3 months of £100+ sales before I start to look at FBA seriously.

Friday 20 July 2012

Don't Talk Pish!

   After reading up on the subject am I now convinced I'll be able to sell Pee as a Compost Accelarator via Ebay. According to the literature, Urine has an 11-1-3 NPK ratio. That sounds pretty scientific so will include that on the Blurb. My reading also suggests that you need to bottle the urine up for 6m to make sure any unhealthy bacteria have died off. I'll be getting an old Irn bru bottle into the shed ASAP.

Wednesday 18 July 2012

More Gardening Ideas

   Two more things I was thinking of today:

Cash Crop - I bet bland old Yucca Plants and such like would be a good seller.
Scam - could you see Piss in spray bottles on Ebay by marketing it as a Compost Accelarator?


Try looking up growing your own legal highs on Google. It is like there is a conspiracy against you finding a half decent website.

Tuesday 17 July 2012

Various Updates 17.7.12

   Various Updates:

  • Sold wedding dress and tablet on Ebay for a combined total of £160.
  • Made a 2nd batch of ice cream and it was fantastic. A few more practice runs and I'm sure I would have a saleable product at Farmer's Markets or such like.
  • I'm slightly ahead of par on my "Walk a Mile a Day" challenge. I've done 203 miles at the 198 day mark. It is a harder task that you might think!
  • I'm up to 400 listings on Amazon - but really want to get to the 1000 mark this week.
  • Talking of Amazon, I'm on £39 for this fortnight so far which is much more like the thing. Remember, I want to do 3 months of at least £100 before making the switch (post positive calculation) to Amazon FBA.
  • I blew my abstinence from Crisps and Chocolate at the weekend. Before failing I hit a high water mark of 47 days abstinence on both. Let's see if I can get by the 50 day mark this time. Shouldn't be a problem!
  • 5 comps done the other night. Still waiting for my first 2012 winners. I've noticed a major switch to Facebook and Twitter comps this year.
  • My Tatties, Onions and Tomatoes are all going well. I made up a batch of "Mel's Mix" and I've now planted my onions out in it. This weekend, all being well, I'll make up a second batch and get more onions out. The toms are going to go in a growbag on the Greenhouse floor shortly.
  • I've now got 2 compost bins on the go. I'm going to toss up the mix in Bin 1 and transfer it to Bin 2 soon. Believe it or not, my Lawnmower didn't have a grass collection box so I purchased one online the other day. The next batch of grasscuttings can get in there soon, along with a shovel full of lime. I've been amazed how much Compost I've got through this year so having my own supply in 2013 will be a moneysaver.
  • Following on from above, I'm getting more and more interested what cash crops can be grown from the garden. I'm reading "Cash from Square Foot Gardening", which is v interesting but very American focused. I'm interested to see how it can be applied to Scotland. What we do have in Scotland now is a network of Farmer's Markets over the Summer where produce could be sold. In terms of what to grow, I am of the opinion that you should be growing stuff that you would eat yourself. For me that is Tatties, Toms, Onions, Leeks, Peppers, Garlic. Unfortunately these are not very exciting because they are not ridiculously expensive in the shops. In light of this I am looking more into growing legal highs which could then be resold via Ebay or my own bespoke site. San Pedro cactus would be a good start but I'd like to do more than one thing. I think if I could make some sales I would invest in a second greenhouse for the following season. What do you think?
  • last week, whilst in England, I picked up a big box of Scot's Magazines. I'd say there are about 200. The whole box cost 99p. I'd say these could be knocked out eventually for £1 (net) each. I'll list a dozen or so on Ebay at the next Free Listing Day to see if I can get any action. In the meantime they are not going to rot.
  • My first Youtube video is now live. I now need to make shooting and uploading into a habit. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sQLJHjLIehM The first lesson I learned is that Youtube don't like long vids. Of my 30min masterpiece, only the first 2mins went online. That leaves you the option of putting your vid on in many parts or just sticking to separate little vids. Think I will go for the latter of the two on my next efforts.
  • I signed up at Five Squids and got my first ad listed. I'm offering to interview anyone via Skype for 5 mins for a fiver. I will then send a transcript of the interview back to the client. Don't suppose I'll get any takers but I wanted to get my foot in the door.
  • Still losing my fight against sleep. Had an hour on the settee at teatime and then another 40 mins at 9pm.
  • Last point for today. Over the last few days I've watched the series "Hidden Talents" via 4 on Demand. The program took random people and asked them to sit various tests aimed at discovering talents which the participants may not have known that they had. For example, they found a homeless guy who could pick up languages really quickly and a Wedding Attire Shop Owner who was a fantastically gifted Mountaineer. Simple question - why aren't these tests dished out in our Secondary Schools? There is so much talent going to waste in Scotland. It's a real sin.

Thursday 12 July 2012

Updates

Back from England now. Was struck down with a wee bug so Sunday, Monday and Tuesday were a write off. Since then though:

  • Have had first payment from Amazon. First two weeks made £10. One week into second fortnight, have made about £25. Listings up to 350.
  • Have sorted out second bank account. Used Santander in the end.
  • Brewed a big batch of my own Ginger Beer to try.
  • Tatties, Onions and Toms all flying. Think all the other stuff has died though.
  • Paid another £250 off credit card. Balance now under £1000.

Monday 9 July 2012

Monday 9th July - Flu

   Struck down with the flu over the weekend but coming out of it now. Working in England this week so progress will be slow. I've resolved to get 1000 books on Amazon on my return.

   Got half a dozen comps entered tonight. Selling two items on Ebay - Vicki's Wedding Dress and a little tablet computer that Vicki bought last year. Current bids at £31 all in but lots of interest (10+ watchers on each) and 5 days to go.

Friday 6 July 2012

Reply from Tam Cowan.....

I've done four, if that's any help.


Ross, email us on Off The Ball tomorrow or text 80295 and we can have a laugh with it. Show starts at noon.

Tam

 
 
I take back everything I said about him.

Tuesday 3 July 2012

The Pie Man

   I've tried Tam Cowan again, this time on his Daily Record email address:

Hiya Tam,




Do you have any idea what the World Record is for the most amount of Pies ate during a football match. I am going to try and break it.



Kind regards,



Ross Taylor.

Monday 2 July 2012

More Green on Betfair

   Traded out of my Federer liability. He must have had a wobble as I could back him at 7.0. Now I win £2 whoever wins the tourney.

The Cube

   I'd like to get a couple of these in my back garden (the back garden in my current place is huge) and then rent them out via AirBnB or traditional channels. I'm sure you'd get plenty of coverage in the press.

http://www.cubeproject.org.uk/

Taylor's Tatties 2013

   If I am going to do a bit of Tattie action next year I need to -

* Work out if it is better to buy Tattie Growing Bags or just bags for life from Tesco.
* I need loads of Compost built up.
* I need to find out how to store the tatties so they don't go rotten.

How to Live Longer and Be Richer

From Property Investing.net:

How to Live Longer and Be Richer


How to Live Longer and Be Richer. These go together. If you get richer, you are more likely to live longer. If you are poor, you are more likely to live less long. There are a number of reasons for this which will well explore and explain. Please keep an open mind – we hope by the end you will think this article makes sense.

Firstly, there are a number of things are claimed to correlate with longer life:

* People that floss their teeth live 6 years longer
* People that drink red wine live 5 years longer
* People that don’t smoke live 5 years longer
* People who are right handed live 5 years longer
* People that live on noisy-busy polluted main roads live 5 years less long

What these statistical analyses don’t normally mention is that all these tendencies correlate with something else – a combination of social class and wealth. The bottom line is, if you are wealthy and of higher social class, you will tend to live longer. Specific to the bullets above, you will also tend to:

* Have teeth – and therefore floss them - flossing correlates with "looking after one's health"
* Drink red wine – rather than beer or cider
* Smoke very little or not at all - better for one's health
* Be right handed – this reduces stress levels
* Live on a quite road – this is also in a more expensive property – well away from stressful pollution and road noise

Those people that exercise 1-3 hours a week live 5 years longer - there is also a broad correlation between exercise and wealth and social class.

Wealthy Live Longer: When you combine all the factors up, you can start to understand why wealthy people live longer. It’s not rocket science. Add to this the fact that if a rich person has a medical condition or needs expert care, they can pay for the best to cure themselves or keep themselves going for longer with less stress. No waiting lists. No mixed bedrooms. Better healthcare.

Most of the things that help make people wealthy are also good for one’s health as well – it’s a vicious circle of opportunity. Let us explain - you are far more likely to succeed in business if you:

* Get plenty of exercise
* Are not overweight
* Don’t smoke too much or don't smoke at all
* Don’t drink – or if you do – just have the occasional moderated glass of red wine socially
* Live in a quiet house in a good low crime area away from stress and angst

Better Performance: You will therefore be healthier, more focused, more enthusiastic, more energetic, more positive and this will positively impact your relationships with all of your business partners, customers and associates. Your performance will be exceptional and if you provide an excellent service for a reasonable cost whilst fostering good relationships – your business or job performance will do very well. Again, this is not rocket science but it's worth pointing out. One needs to take a holistic view about making serious money – the number one priority for sustainable high returns is that the investor should have good person health and welfare. If you health fails, so will your business and your wealth generating abilities. Ultimately if you are no longer around on this planet, logically you cannot generate any wealth for yourself anymore! If you are incapacitated by poor health, you will no longer be actively investing - you are likely to be in divestment mode through a third party.

Continuous Discipline: It is also no good going through phased health fads – it’s got to be continuous and over a long period of time. One needs to built it into a routine. Be disciplined to follow the routine. Not have people distract you from this routine. An example is – jogging. Ideally, if this is your preferred exercise one needs to build a routine:

* Ten minute run each working evening – four days a week (one day off)
* Two 40 minute runs at the weekend days – or on holidays

Don't let your partner, friends or colleagues put you off or put you down for getting exercise.

20 miles a week: If you walk to a railways station – say 10 minutes each way and you got at the weekends - just doing this exercise will clock up 20 miles a week – with little strain. If you stick to it every week of the year – you will stay on course to live 5 years longer. If you stay wealthy, eat well, drink a little red wine, don’t smoke and live in a low stress quiet home away from pollution, you’ll probably live ten years longer than average. Serious. And with it, your clear head will help you make serious money by focussing on the best investments even into your elderly years – and you will be stronger and more able to handle higher risks and stresses in the markets.

Eating: If you struggle with your weight like many people do – try this:

* Stop eating wheat (bread, pasta, pastry, Wheetabix)
* Eat lots of fruit, nuts, vegetables
* Eat raw food
* Avoid processed food
* Avoid sugar

Weights: If you pump a bell weight – to keep your upper body muscles trim and you walk and/or jog, then this will develop muscle that will then burn energy when you are resting and sleeping. Your metabolism will rise because you have more muscle. It’s all about the muscle. The bigger the muscles the better - the more energy you burn. They will then burn the fat away. Then you will be far stronger and healthier. And able to eat more and "get away with it". Remember – develop muscle and loose weight.

Muscle Mass: Our view – or practical theory – is that the only reason why people add weight as they get older is because their muscles (naturally) get smaller and start to waste away. So the bigger the muscles as you get older the better – then you will not put on weight. If you can keep your muscles the same size as when you were 20 years old – whether you are a man or women – then this maximises your chances of keep you weight down.

This analysis is grounded in science. Read any biology book and you will find that muscles burn energy and fat does not. Eventually fat stops exercise as exercise becomes more difficult leading to further muscle wastage, more fat - this can eventually lead to death through cardiac arrest, diabetes or other complications. Fats also store toxins that also harm your health. If you are fat, you are more likely to get cancer and have heart decease.

In summary

* Stop eating wheat
* Pump a bell weight
* Walk and run

Before you know it, your will be shed kilos rapidly! Just call it your little secret. It works. And it doesn't cost anything! And will eventually add huge value through better investments.

Women: Just consider this carefully. There is this perception that it is not womanly to build muscle – muscles are not feminine. To this we say – bull****. Look at female athletes. Look at Madonna. They are feminine and attractive. Leryn Franco - the Olympic Athlete above is an example. Most supermodels tone their muscles. But the key thing is that if you build muscle, your shape will improve dramatically. No-one will see muscle – they will only see slim, shapely and healthy. All of a sudden, those clothes will fit perfectly. It boosts ones self-esteem. It’s equally valid for men and women – to tone up muscles to leave the fat behind. Whether this is through walking, jogging, cycling, weight lifting, toning or any other form of sport or exercise, that is for the individual of course. You don’t even need to tell anyone you pump weights – why share anything with anyone if you think they might want to put you down or doubt you for it. Best just get on with it and get fit, healthy and build some trimming muscle. Only by building muscle will you keep the weight off in healthy and sustainable fashion.

Wheat Is A Toxic New Invention: On the subject of not eating wheat, you might think this is a bit alien. Actually, it’s not. Remember planet earth is 5 billion years old. The human species is a millions of years old. But wheat was invented by the Romans about 2000 years ago. Human’s intestines are not used to eating wheat. What happens is the gluten and sugars swell up the human body – your body will add water because wheat is somewhat toxic to most people. The sugar will rapidly be converted to fat. You may suffer back pains because your joints and cartilage will expand. The yeast can lead to yeast infections or cause mild inflammation. If you drink beer and eat lots of bread – you will no doubt get flatulent and your waistline will expand immediately and then more in the longer term. That’s a toxic combination. Yeast, breast and beer. No wander people that drink red wine and eat nuts live longer!

Japanese Example: Why do you think there is so little obesity in Japan, China and Taiwan? Probably the single most important thing is they don’t eat much wheat. They eat plenty of fish, vegetables and rice and no wheat. Western developed nations eat huge quantities of wheat – this is where obesity is the highest. Okay, avoiding driving and walking and cycling helps, but eating bread and wheat is a huge negative in our view.

Value of Time and Health: Coming back to making money – if your heart is stronger, you are fit, have large muscles and low fat levels, you will be far more energetic, productive and feel a whole lot better. You will then feel like taking more risk and making more money. You will be more robust and feel very comfortable with doing lots of things – work, leisure and investing – and managing all of this with responsibilities around family and friends. So the underling foundation of prosperity is health.

Warren Buffett: All those young people that don’t believe this – just consider this.

* Warren Buffett is about 82 years old and is worth $60 Billion. He’s very wealthy and his health is good.
* You are 20 years old and are worth $0. You are very healthy and your health is good.

What would Warren Buffett give to be 20 again? The answer is – all of his wealth. The most valuable things in life are time and health - not money and wealth. If you have time and health, you can make money and wealth.

Value of a Day: Now consider this – as an economist. If you split each day into a value – say – called each day worth £300 – if you were wealthy, you would surely pay £300 for an extra day. Then if you live 5 years longer – that’s worth £550,000.

Value of Jogging: But then consider that if you are 30 years old – exercise for 2 hours a week – then you live five years longer because of it – to age 80. That means you spend 0.6 years exercising but lived 5 years longer – a net gain of 4.4 years on an investment of 0.6 years. That means for every hour you exercise, you gain a net 7.3 hours. That’s an excellent return on time investment. Just think about it next time you are jogging. You may have to kid yourself you enjoy – but try and enjoy the experience – then after jogging 1 hour you have gained a net 7.3 hours of life.

Value of an Hour’s Exercise: Economically, if you value each day at £300, then each hour you exercise will gain you ¼ of a day or £75 worth of time. That’s like working for £75/hour when you jog - when you are actually enjoying yourself jogging through the countryside. That’s good value!

Driving: Now consider this. Driving is stressful, highly toxic (noxious fumes), bad for your back, time-wasting, tiring, expensive, dangerous (accidents) and fattening (no exercise, sitting, poor posture). Just imagine if you can cut down the time in the car and increase the exercise time. You find a way of cycling to work, then leaving the car behind – that would avoid poor health and increase good health - a massive net health gain! A massive net value gain. Dump the car. Start exercising.

De-Risk Poor Health: Yes, we know you cannot make too many assumptions and life is not exactly deterministic – but exercising, eating well, lowering fat levels and building up strength will help de-risk poor health and increase ones changes of living a long, active and healthy life – and thereby making even more serious money. That's exciting! Warren Buffett is a classic example – he’s now about 82 years old and shows no sign of making less money. If anything, he looks most likely to make even more money as he gets older. This is the same for Richard Branson – who has kept himself very healthy. Sting is another example - he looks after himself. Paul McCartney is another one.

Early Grave: Just consider the people on the other end of the spectrum – many of the pop stars - that drank heavily, took drugs and abused their bodies with regrettable outcomes - that curtailed their wealth generation, health and life.

Loaning To The Unhealthy: If you go to a bank and ask for a loan, if they knew you were not healthy, they would be far less likely to loan you money. Not really surprising. Are you individually a going concern? e.g. is your health okay. A lot of it might be hereditary and/or luck, but there are certainly many things you can do to de-risk poor health.

Hard Work: As Margaret Thatcher once said – no-body died of hard work. Well not exactly, but she used to get 4 hours sleep a night working 17 hour days when she was Prime Minister – she’s still alive at 85 years old.

Wealthy = Health: If you look at African Presidents and Middle Eastern Kings – you will find further evidence that being wealthy leads to longer life. They can afford the very best health-care. An extreme example is that the average age expectancy of a Zimbabwean is 40 years old, but their President is 84.

No-one lasts forever, but it sure helps living longer of you are healthy and wealthy.

So the message - focus on being healthy and focus on making serious money – they go together!

We hope this Newsletter has helped you frame your investment and lifestyle strategy, assisted you in managing risk and highlighted some opportunities during this projected high inflationary period. If you have any queries, please contact us on enquiries@propertyinvesting.net

Check out Super-Jam

   Super Jam is a good example of how a Cottage Industry can take of:

SuperJam™ is a range of 100% pure fruit jams; sweetened with grape juice and made using Super Fruits, such as blueberries and cranberries.
SuperJam was created by Scottish jam-maker Fraser Doherty, after being taught to make jam using his Gran’s secret recipes at the age of fourteen.

From humble beginnings, the company has gone on to sell millions of jars, has won a variety of awards and is even exhibited in the National Museum of Scotland as an example of an ‘Iconic Scottish Food Brand’...
Email to "Throw Like a Pro":

Hiya,


This might sound stupid, but when you practice do you use 3 darts or more?

Kind regards,

Ross.

========================================================================

A friend of mine told me that the Chinese Diving team don't get near to the pool until they've mastered their technique in the Gymnasium. The Chinese coaches don't see the point of wasting time climbing out of the water and up the stairs for 50 minutes of every hour when those 50 mins could be better spent practicing. Does the same apply to Darts then? If you were holding 30 darts instead of 3 you'd only have to walk up the board 10% of the time. What do you think?

Sunday 1 July 2012

More Praise for "The Takeaway Secret"

   I made the Fried Chicken recipe from "The Takeaway Secret" for my Tea tonight - and it was absolutely fantastic. I am now officially the White Ainsley Harriot.

   If I had known about this book 10 years ago I would have saved at least £1000 on takeaways!

   Have been reading up on people who have set up food businesses from their Kitchen table. Imagine if I could knock out my chips (using my own tatties and my homemade Sunflower Oil) for local delivery. I like that.

End of an era


   After 27 days of no losers I had my first hiccup today. I had £4 on Italy +3 in the Euro Final, but they were soundly beaten.

   Weirdly I also layed Spain/ Dzagoev Winner/ Top Scorer Double which Betfair have paid out on. Never mind though as overall I am £1 up for the day and was up a total of £170 for June. The big elephant in the room is Federer in the Tennis. I lose £100 if he wins - and he's looking good.