Article by Charlie Wright
My fridge-freezer packed in on Sunday.
I couldn’t get someone to look at it until yesterday. A stoned guy called Winston turned up in a Del Boy van, stared at it for ten minutes, told me it was broken, and left.
I love this country.
Until it’s sorted, I have to store milk outside my front door. My life is so back-to-front, it wouldn’t surprise me if the milkman came round, took the milk and left me 40p.
In this zombified world of rotting vegetables, I’ve been pounding away on my computer keyboard in an attempt to finish my book.
The typing got so manic, my repetitive strain injury flared up and my hands dropped off.
Yes, literally DROPPED OFF.
Right now I’m writing this email with a Biro cellotaped to my nose, bobbing my head over the keyboard like a duck.
“You wrote a book?” you say, ignoring the hands thing altogether.
“Why yes,” I reply.
“Tell me more!”
“Well, it’s a fantastic biz opp blueprint for turning emails about stuff you already know into regular part time cash.”
“Sounds great, Charlie.”
“Yes, it is great.”
“That’s what I just said.”
“I know.”
“I know you know.”
“So do I.”
“Good.”
“Good.”
Silence.
But seriously…
I haven’t written my own business opportunity product before, so it’s been an interesting ride. And as I promised when you joined The Biz Opp Jungle, I am happy to share the experience with you.
So if you’re thinking of creating your own product, report or book, then here are Charlie Wright’s do’s and don’ts.
DON’T – declare your intentions to write a book to everyone you know in May, then do absolutely nothing about it for the entire summer, while you get drunk at folk festivals and tied up in other projects.
DO – set yourself a basic timetable, with targets for completing each stage… research schedule, followed by product plan, followed by draft one, daft two and so on.
DON’T – spend a few months hopping from one idea to another like a frog on a hotplate.
DO – take one week ploughing through lots of different ideas, then pick your subject and focus all your attentions on that.
DON’T – get a great feeling about a fresh, exciting subject… say, blogging, for example… then sit back and watch someone else… say, Jonathan Street… go ahead and write a brilliant report on it while you’re twiddling your thumbs.
DO – write a chapter-by-chapter plan of the book first. Detail what’s in each chapter by listing all the things you want to say in a list of bullet points. That way, when you come to write the book, you just fill in the sections. It’s like painting-by-numbers. Much less intimidating.
DON’T – get bogged down and frustrated trying to get the first chapter right. Writing and re-writing the same bits over and over again. Get the first chapter down as quickly as you can and move on. Come back to it later.
DO – take breaks from writing your book, and from your computer. It’s not only healthy, it’s a way of recharging your brain and getting fresh ideas. Go for a walk, a shower or a pint. You’ll be amazed at how many good ideas you’ll get when you’re away from the computer. You’ll be eager to dash back and get on with it.
DON’T – write relentlessly from morning ’til evening until shooting pains blast up your arms and you start hallucinating about sparkly goblins in World War I German military helmets.
DO – reward yourself for your efforts. Go out and celebrate when you complete important sections of your book. Buy yourself something nice or meet your friends.
DON’T – get two thirds of the way through your book, then go to a Great Yarmouth holiday camp in the middle of winter and sit in a 1970s chalet drinking wine and listening to your iPod, wondering if you’ll ever finish your project and whether it really matters any more.
Perhaps this should be the subject of my second book…?
Anyway. Onto something completely different…
Is Francis Belgrave a clone?
I’ve been asked to look into a guy called Francis Belgrave, a new tipster who is promoting his service right now.
He says he has a 100% laying record. His tips cost £39 until the end of the flat season 2007. And he’s offering £80,000 profit or your money back.
Sounds good?
Well, a word to the wise… Belgrave may not be new kid on the block that he makes out to be.
His promotion is almost exactly the same as the one used by a guy called Robert Carter, a tipster who’s been doing the rounds for a few years as The Millionaire’s Racing Club.
He same claims, the same results, the same promises.
This could mean that Belgrave has bought out Robert Carter’s business. More likely, it means that Belgrave IS Robert Carter.
Why would a tipster change his name all of a sudden if his performance was any good?
If you scour the internet for reviews and opinion on Robert Carter, you’ll see why. His performance wasn’t any good. In fact I’ve not seen any evidence that he fulfilled even a tiny fraction of his promises.
This is why I’d be cautious about Belgrave’s promotions.
Always test these guys out on paper
By now you’ll know my opinion on racing tipsters. Some of them are scam artists, many of them mean well but lose money, and only a very, VERY few are any good.
Even the best of them aren’t likely to make you rich. Certainly, I wouldn’t count betting as a serious business opportunity.
The only reason I cover so many racing
tipsters on my site is that there are so many of them about.
For what it’s worth, I’ll give you my advice.
Test every system you try on paper first. Pick the horses, follow the bets and see what you could have won. Calculate your losses and your wins.
Do this for the entire trial period before you decide to use your own money.
If there is no trial period offered, BIN THE MAILSHOT. If they say you can only have your money back if you prove that you’ve followed every single tip, then BIN THE MAILSHOT. If there’s no guarantee at all, BIN THE MAILSHOT.
And if your fridge breaks down while you’re away…
BIN THE MILK.
Don’t even sniff it. Trust me. I’m a man who knows.