The weather has been so warm and dry since last weekend that I decided to tear myself away from my Mac to spend more time outdoors. I asked myself shouldn’t I be blogging? Hack it when the weather is so fine. Who knows that this might be the only good weather we will experience this summer. There’s no guarantee when it comes to the English weather.

So what did I do when I wasn’t blogging.

Last weekend
1. I drove to the Continent last week. Spent a day in Brugge, spent a night in a static caravan in Camping Memling.
2. Spent the next day in Keukenhof admiring the tulips in Tulipland
3. And spent the remaining of the bank holiday in Amsterdam. It was also a bank holiday in Amsterdam. They were celebrating their independence from the Germans.

This weekend

1. I went for a walk in Isabella plantation in Richmond park. It is the season for Azaleas and Rhododendron.
2. I went to Garson to pick asparagus and spent the afternoon at Kensington Gardens just sitting under a tree watching people pay footie.
3. Went to Malaysia hall and had two cups of black coffee and a nice spicy Malaysian meal.
4. And I plan to spend Sunday outdoors again with friends.

I am allowed to rest and relax when the weather is good. So I think serious blogging can wait….

Do you have what it takes to become the next Picasso of this century? You can have some fun with Mr. Picasso Head. I came across this web-based fun type application recently. It allows you to express your creativity by drawing portraits Picasso style.

There are predefined objects that you can drag and drop onto the web canvas. Object categories available are :

face
eyes
nose
lips
ears
eyebrows
hair
abstract
Signature

Here’s one I created earlier.

It is entitled “The Melancholy Man” – Inside every flamboyant individual lives a melancholy man.

http://www.mrpicassohead.com/canvas.html?id=c46c326&skin=original

View the existing gallery
http://www.mrpicassohead.com/canvas.html

I wrote a post about Peopleized.com a couple of months ago. If you have not read the post, Using Peopleized to promote your blog, Peopleized.com is a social network that uses interviews as the mechanism to encourage its members to network with each other.

Peopleized.com’s business model allows the members to find registered people, conduct an interview with them and use the interviews to promote yourself.

Business Model
1. Find people
2. Give Interviews
3. Get Promoted

I was interviewed by Mert Erkal on Peopleized.com when I participated in Bloghology, a free ezine published by Mert. The interview is posted below.

Web Technology by Ash Chuan
Peopleized by: merkal2005 – Thursday, 03 April 2008

Read the interesting story of Ash Chuan, and monitor her blog to be updated on Web Technology

merkal2005: Hi Ash, please introduce yourself to Bloghology readers

ashchuan: My name is Ashley Chuan. I grew up in sunny Malaysia and moved to London, England in 1994 to complete my university education. I have been living in England since. I work as an Application Developer and enjoy what I do. My interests are in photography, blogging, travel and cooking.

merkal2005: When did you start playing with computers?

ashchuan: When I was given my first computer, the Apple IIe and I learnt to write sofware in BASIC and I got hooked on software programming.

merkal2005: How do you earn your living?

ashchuan: I earn my living working in a 9 to 5 job doing software development. Having said that it is my dream to be able to earn a living blogging.

merkal2005: What is the purpose of your blogging?

ashchuan: I enjoy writing about web technology and having a blog allows me to share and learn from other bloggers. I started to blog seriously more than 3 months ago and discovered that making money from blogging is an extremely challenging task. I have no problems with the technical aspect of setting up a blog, etc. but I learnt that being a blogger does not necessarily make me a good marketer and I am still learning.

merkal2005: Please tell Bloghology readers about your future dreams.

ashchuan: My future dream is to run my own web development business and blog for money but most importantly whatever I do, my goal is to add value to others.

ashchuan’s Page: www.ashchuan.com/blog

Authors Page: merkal2005

powered by Peopleized!

My nephew, a 22-year old young man enjoys blogging and has a personal blog called Four corners of a frame, just when you thought corners came in fives. Because we both live in different parts of the world, I read his blog regularly to keep myself updated with news from home.

He lost his mum last year and he blogged about her passing and many people were very moved by what they read on his blog. He has many talents and he writes and communicates well. He will soon complete his University education and will join the rat race in the competitive world of employment.

Recently I interviewed him about his passion for blogging and here is the interview.

Tell us about yourself (age, gender, occupation, interests, etc.)

Hi, I’m Marcus Tan from Malaysia. I carry the X and Y chromosome (meaning a male ;-p) and will be 23 this year.

I will be graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and PR in August 08. So, in the mean time, I’m kinda finishing up assignments and meeting deadlines in the National University of Malaysia, commonly known as UKM. I aspire to be successful in the communication and PR field, as well as manage events effectively.

I love to stick my foot into a variety of things, thus am interested in alot of things! Firstly, I love to do house work. For some odd reason, being able to keep my house spick and span provide a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment. Secondly, I am so into gardening, despite the fact I live in a high rise building. It is therapeutic and relaxing; and when the plants grow beautifully, you cant help but feel contented. I’m also into Kendo, a Japanese marshal art, translated into “The Way of the Sword.” The passion sparked back in high school when I joined the Kendo Club. Its been a while since my last practise, due to university commitments. I can’t wait to get back to it soon. =)

How long have you been blogging?

I started to blog out of fun, but after 3 years, blogging has now evolved from a past time to a more serious activity as I have developed a strong liking in blogging and has since blogged as a hobby, as well as a personal training tool. It has also become addictive, sometimes *nods*. I could spend the whole night (literally) to write a post!

How many blogs do you own?

For now, only one. You see, my first blog actually served as a experimental blog since moving from my Friendster blog to my current Blogger. Then, with mounting interest and HTML tutorial websites, I grew to love not only blogging, but also all the other technical parts of a blog, eg. Manipulating its colour, adding widgets, HTML, and the likes. I am looking forward to create another blog just for everything and anything that has relations to UKM – the good, the bad, and the in between. It should be out in 2 months time. Wait for that… =)

How would you describe your blog(s)?

Haha, that’s a tricky question. I’ll do my best with sounding as if I’m putting myself in a basket and raising myself. =) Well, I’d say my blog is not a 100% representation of me, but in some ways, it does reflect parts of me. I’d say it’s interesting because I strive to give my best and constantly experiment new things. So there is change; and change is good. Keeps people interested and coming back for more. At the end of the day, it boils down to the individual’s personal perception. As someone once said, “You are what people that are constantly around make you out to be.” Every new day holds endless possibilities for my blog.

Where do you get the inspiration to write?

Inspiration comes from the everything around me. More often than not, I have found the company of a camera phone very helpful in snapping picture for a post.

Do you monetize your blogs using Google AdSense, Chitika, etc?

I have recently added NuffNang adds on my blog, but I have yet to receive any profit from it. I need to learn about how it works, later on. I earlier applied Google AdSense in my blog, but have not idea how that works either. Making money via your blog doesn’t sound like a bad idea. =)

Can you tell us three of your favourite blogs that you visit regularly?

Well, if I have to choose, I’d say its my friends girlfriends blog, “The Purple One.” – love her blogging styles, my schoolmate’s “-ming- My Story, My Life” – he snaps nice pictures, and a Korean blog, “Reika no rakuen” – for alot alot of Korean celebrities’ news.

They are at http://www.zoeydee.blogspot.com/, http://limkuanming.blogspot.com/ and http://reikanorakuen.wordpress.com/ respectively.

Would you consider becoming a problogger and make a living from blogging?

Sure, I don’t see why not. If its doing something I absolutely love and the perks are good, I say go for it!

Four corners of a frame by Marcus Tan – http://tanengsoonmarcus.blogspot.com

Today Mert Erkal, a young Internet entrepreneur from Istanbul, Turkey launched the 2nd edition of Bloghology. Bloghology consists of profiles of unique and remarkable bloggers from around the globe. The first edition of Bloghology was released on 13th of January 2008 and the number of downloads exceeded 6000. Mert selected 14 bloggers for his March edition of Bloghology and he has kindly included myself in this edition.

To download an electronic copy of March 2008 Bloghology, please click on the Bloghology logo below.

Who is Mert Erkal?
Mert Erkal is a young Internet entrepreneur from Istanbul, Turkey. Mert has designed several different websites since 2006 and currently works on Peopleized.com project with Halil Mandal. Apart from freelance web designing and involving in Internet projects like Peopleized, Mert has been working for Maersk Line, worlds largest container line since 1998. His profession is Marketing. He shares his knowledge and expertise with Small Businesses and builds up Corporate Identity. He also provides Marketing and Branding service for Small Business companies. Mert Erkal’s blog is www.searchforblogging.com

Here is a quiz to determine which superhero you are by answering a set of preference/personality questions.

Based on my result, I am Superman because mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others. What a laugh, I should be Wonderwoman/Supergirl, not Superman. Anyway….Which superhero are you?

http://www.thesuperheroquiz.com/

Your results:
You are Superman
You are mild-mannered, good,
strong and you love to help others.

Superman 80% Hulk 80% Green Lantern 80% Batman 70% Robin 54% Spider-Man 45% Supergirl 42% The Flash 40% Iron Man 40% Catwoman 30% Wonder Woman 27%

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Test

I have started a visual blog roll page on www.ashchuan.com using Google Maps. A blog roll is link advertisement placed on a blog that will link to your blog. Blog roll is usually used in link exchange. Using the concept of blog roll, I decided to extend it by incorporating visuals and geo location.

What will be displayed on Blog Visuals?

If you would like a spot on Blog Visuals, please register your interest using the form below.

I would like to share with you about a story by Marc Allen regarding achieving success. Success is a subjective matter but in a rat race world, success is always measured by how much money one makes. I personally believe having a successful life is attainable in this life time. I am speaking about overall success. Overall success comprises of physical and spiritual success.

Physical success – a healthy body, materials such as buying a big house, a nice car, golf club membership, a career doing what you enjoy most, etc.

Spiritual success – success that satisfies our inner most needs, e.g. family life, children, religion, peace of mind, joy, etc.

Marc Allen wrote how a woman approached him and asked if everyone can succeed. It is interesting how Marc Allen responded to the woman’s question.

Quoting Marc Allen:

A woman came up to me after a talk I gave a while ago and asked a very good question: “Bottom line,” she said, “Are you saying anyone can succeed?” I knew exactly what she was thinking as she asked it: Even me? With all my problems?

I thought it over for a moment. No one had ever asked me that question before; I hadn’t asked myself that question before. It’s a good question. Can anybody succeed?

According to Marc Allen, everyone can succeed. He pointed out that no matter what problems or obstacles we face, there are people with far worse problems who have succeeded brilliantly. He also said that people generally have plenty of excuses they think are valid but every excuse is lame. To succeed, we have to cut out the lame excuses, make a plan and do whatever possible according to the plan and watch what happens. I believe the universe works in a system of what you sow is what you reap.

Read the whole story here.

Having said all that, I would like to share a few pointers I learnt from Marc Allen’s book – The Millionaire Course that will help in planning to succeed. I personally find the pointers have helped in my thought process towards re-ordering my life so that I can do things better, think better and over time if I continue to develop thought patterns in line with the pointers, I’ll be able to achieve more as a person and eventually succeed.

Here are the pointers:

Who is Marc Allen?

Marc Allen is an internationally renowned author of Visionary Business: An Entrepreneur’s Guide to Success, A Visionary Life, The Ten Percent Solution: Simple steps to Improve our Lives and the World and his latest book is The Greatest Secret of All.

Besides writing Marc Allen also composes music.

Comments?
Any views or opinions from you, the reader about what I have just shared?

Here are some of my favourite blogging resource that I found very helpful when I first started taking blogging seriously. Every now and then I revisit these articles and remind myself of the key points and do a check if I am on the right track.

For me blogging is a consuming activity simply because it takes a lot of time to blog and if you are blogging for money, it will take a while before you see the fruits of your labour. Whether you blog for money or simply as a hobby, don’t miss out by not reading the articles, e-books listed below. They are good blog training material.

Blog Profits Blueprint (BPB) by Yaro Starak
In BPB Yaro Starak talks about the importance of creating pillar articles and building communcation channels. He emphasized that blogging is not just about content. Building communication channels is just as important. There is also an audio version available

http://www.blogmastermind.com/blueprint/

John Chow’s Make Money Online E-book
John Chow’s e-book gives an insight into blogging for money. Tips given by John Chow are valuable knowledge to have if you are a serious blogger.

John Chow also runs an affiliate program called TTZ Media affiliate. TTZ Media provides product based ads that are trigger by keywords. The ads show products that are based on the keywords entered and a list of online stores where the products can be purchased

http://www.johnchow.com

Is Professional Blogging a Sustainable Business Model?
Pillar article by Yaro Starak. If your dream is to become a problogger, then this is a must read. Lengthy article and I suggest you print out the article and read in your free time.

http://www.entrepreneurs-journey.com/616/professional-blogging-as-a-business-model/

How I’d Promote My Blog If I Were Starting Out Again by Darren Rowse
Darren Rowse is a popular problogger who makes a living by blogging and has been very successful doing what he does. The title of the article speaks for itself.

http://www.problogger.net/archives/2008/03/11/how-id-promote-my-blog-if-i-were-starting-out-again/

A lot of successful websites depend on returning visitors to account for a major part of their traffic. Returning visitors are easier to convert into paying customers because the more often they return to a site, the more trust they have in that site. The credibility issue just melts away. Hence, you can keep your visitors coming back to your site with the following methods:

Start a forum, chatroom or shoutbox

When you start a forum, chatroom or shoutbox, you are providing your visitors a place to voice their opinions and interact with their peers. As conversations build up, a sense of community will also follow and your visitors will come back to your site almost religiously every day.

Carry out polls or surveys

Interact with your website visitors using polls and surveys. They provide a quick way for visitors to voice their opinions and to get involved in your website. Be sure to publish polls or surveys that are strongly relevant to the target market of your website to keep them interested to find out about the results.

Hold games and competitions on your website

Whatever strategy you use to keep your visitors coming back, it should get them addicted to your website. Why do you think Facebook is such a popular social networking site? The Facebook applications keep the visitors interested and entertained all the time. They keep returning to the website because they are addicted. You can engage your website visitors using similar strategy by holding competitions and awarding attractive gifts to the winners.

Update frequently with fresh content

Update your site frequently with fresh content so that every time your visitors come back, they will have something to read on your site. This is the most widely known and most effective method of attracting returning visitors, but this is also the least carried out one because of laziness.

Human beings are curious creatures and they will keep their eyes glued to the monitor if you post fresh news frequently. You will also build up your credibility as you are proving to them that there is also a real life person behind the website.

My thoughts

Ideas and suggestions are great but it will not help in bringing more visitors to your site unless you put those ideas into practice. Most of the time it is how much time you spend developing your website that will determine how many visitors you get daily. It is also important to understand why they come to your website. Knowing your visitors will help you develop better competitions that will interest them, write more relevant content and build a community within your niche.