Do good to feel good.

It will serve you well.

It is also good for people around you.

One deed at a time, one person at a time.

Smile at people. Be nice to them, when you can.

Help somebody in need – even when they do not expect you to.

Help a co-worker learn something you know and she needs.

Do it for a friend who runs a business.

Volunteer for work (without pay).

Do something that makes you feel good.

Why do it?

Because most of us – You and I do things so that we can feel good in the end.

You go to work – because you want to earn more money – to feel good and be happy in the end.

Same about buying new clothes or a new car.

You go out – even when you have enough money or you do not have much; because you want to feel good.

Will you be happy after you make your target amount – or long after you watch that movie? Think about it.

Fact is – happiness or feeling good – does not cost money.

A good deed can make you happy.

Over time it will add up and spill over.

People you help will start doing good deeds for others and it will spread.

Check out this video to see this in action.

And this one of Simon Sinek talking about it.

In life – everything may not be perfect like a movie. But your efforts with right intention will not go waste – DO GOOD with this belief.

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Dreams that make you think that overnight success is possible.

This hardly is the case.

Even today – in the world of mobile, twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn - you need to invest time and effort to create true bonds.

It takes more time than what goes in sending some tweets or posting few comments on a person’s blog.

Tweets and comments can help make a start. But I strongly feel that this time is better spent thinking ways to help people – outside digital.

Success is more than creating a Facebook Page for your business or for yourself - and creating accounts on different social media websites. More so when everyone around you is doing it.

You need to do better than that, and this hardly gets done with your head in(side) the screen.

What is needed – is not a new Facebook account but more time shipping and perfecting your art.

Even if your work involves digital – you need time away from it. To think, formulate strategies, create new that gets you attention (of those who matter) and earn you respect.

No more words. Let’s get back to work.

Good to charge more!

Why charge more?

Charge more to transform your cheap business to a premium business.

It is a mindset thing.

I have listed below excuses that a “cheap business” owner gives – against not charging a premium price. [A solution is also listed next to each excuse.]

Excuse: I am just starting, nobody knows me.

Solution: Think of creative ways to spread the word about yourself/your brand. Some of the ideas that come to mind are,

• Create a useful (for your potential customers) eBook and put it on your website for free download. Also send it to people (friends, old customers) to create initial buzz.
• Use blogging to generate leads (still very effective). Here is how to attract audience to your blog.
• Get a celebrity to write about you. This one is tricky but can be done. One way is to create an engaging product and offer equity to celebrity, in return of building buzz.
• Create a unique online experience.
• Do not think business, think buzz for a while. See what Lori Deschene of Tiny Buddha did. She started with a twitter account and used the follower base there to launch the website which is now a business for her.

Excuse: There is competition in the market with people willing to charge less that I do.

Solution: Think of ways to add value. Research and see what competition is not offering. Offer that.

Do not always think features. Think customer service also. You can offer fast turn-around time, exemplary customer service. If you are bold – you can offer “pay for performance”. Pricing higher that competition is also a good strategy to stay ahead. Just make it sure that you back it up with a stellar product.

Use cost arbitrage to get premium pricing. If you live in Asia – then work with overseas customers.

Excuse: I need money to survive – so some money is better than no money.

Solution: Good that you start with some money in the bank. If that is not the case then increase your price by 20% for each customer win – this is if you are in a project led business. If you sell software then increase 20% once every 3 months for new customers. Increase it till the time you double the current price of your offering. Do not take more than 12 months to double the price you are charging.

If you ran a cheap business – and are generous enough to share your experiences – please share why you offered low prices, in comments.

To receive interesting updates, please sign-up below.

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Laptop for less than $5, are you kidding me?

I ran a cheap business once.

It did not help me much.

I am happy to have learnt my lessons.

Sharing what I learnt so that you make changes when there is still time.

Cheap business is not good for anybody. Not for the person building it, not for the people working in it. It may be good for some customers while it lasts – but how long it will last is anybody’s guess.

“What is a cheap business?”, you may ask.

A cheap business tries to win customers – by being the lowest cost provider in the market.

Let us see how being cheap hurts your business.

1. A cheap business is not competitive.

If your only competive advantage is low price then this advantage will not hold for long as there will always be somebody who is willing to offer lower prices than you.

2. It does not help if you want to sell your business.

Businesses buy other businesses either for loyal customers/users or for increasing profits. Cheap businesses do not have any of these two. There is no loyalty because customer is always on a look out to find a cheaper option. Cheap businesses also don’t have healthy profits because they use whatever little they earn for survival.

So either you create another business like Instagram (50 million users and growing) – and get acquired by Facebook for $1 billion+, or get to work and increase your revenues and profits.

3. It is REALLY tough to grow a cheap business.

Cheap businesses can’t pay their contractors, employees, partners well – so the business stays what it started as – Cheap and Small.

Such businesses can’t invest in brand building – so no visibility, no growth. Cycle continues.

4. Cheap business owners are not happy.

Cheap business owners are not happy because they are always thinking about serving their existing customers (while they last) with their limited resources, and thinking again and again about – offering low prices to win more business.

It is tough to be happy in such situation.

5. Cheap businesses do not last long.

Because there is low profit, not much growth and no fun – in building such a business. People tend to quit when there is no fun and reward in doing what they are doing.

If you persevere a lot then you may learn above lessons on your own – but not many last that long. They quit, looking for easier options like getting a job. [I have nothing against getting a job, but give your best to whatever you do].

All these reports that you read elsewhere about 95% businesses closing within first 5 years or some other reports telling you – 51%  businesses closing within first 5 years – are about these (cheap) businesses.

Cheap businesses with no creativity, lazy founders who make little effort to differentiate themseleves, create a stellar product and to win new business.

Do not be that business – while you are at it. Build premium businesses with high quality offerings (solutions, services, products). Spend time doing things that matter – like talking to (potential) customers, improving your packaging. Spend less time on activities than have almost no effect on your growth – excessive online research, and thinking about doing something rather than doing it.

Just to make it clear.

By cheap I do not mean businesses/entrepreneurs who believe in running an efficient operation and spend their money thoughtfully.

By premium I also do not mean a business that spends like crazy. A premium business is one – that serves customers who have potential to pay – and charge them a premium to deliver extraordinary solutions.

Hope this motivates you to take action.

Next post is going to be about “How to Charge More?”. So stay tuned.

If you like this post – then subscribe to updates below.

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It also drives what we do not do.

People stay stuck in a dead job because they think it is the best they can get.

People also leave jobs and jump on to entrepreneurial bandwagon because they fear not making the best use of their life’s potential.

People do not say “I love you” because they fear being rejected.

People say “I love you” because they fear regretting – not saying it at the right time – for their entire life.

People spend plastic money like crazy because they fear getting old and regret not having fun while they could.

People also save fearing that they may not have enough when they get old.

People do not go out and travel to unknown places because they fear falling ill or being robbed.

People also go out and travel because they fear not exploring and seeing the world enough.

How are you using fear – to go out or stay at home? To take action or avoid taking action?

The bigger question – is fear the best emotion to be driven by or you’d be better driven by an emotion like hope or happiness?

Feel free to share what you think in comments.

Doesn't matter how much money it is, it's a lot-of-money!

Please note that it is not easy.

Will take some work and some changes in how you spend your time.

Some risk taking, not like jumping off a cliff, but some.

If you are curious about how to do it but are hard pressed for time – here is the info in brief. It takes the age old – POWER OF COMPOUNDING and applying it to your earnings. You also need to negotiate, communicate well, let go when things do not work out, “dig your well before you are thirsty”, take help, take care of yourself and HAVE FUN.

Yes you read it right having fun is at the core of it. And you CAN AND SHOULD have fun while you work and make money.

It does not need you to be an entrepreneur, you can be in a job and get started but somewhere along the path you may need to switch gears more on that below.

If you are the kind of person who is fine with these things read on. And most important – YOU SHOULD BE WILLING TO MAKE MORE MONEY. READY… GO NOW.

——————————————————————————

I had just lost my wallet.

I was in Hyderabad for work.

Went to my bank there and requested the branch manager and his colleague to help me get a cheque book.

They were generous and helped me get it.

While it was being done, we struck a conversation and started talking about work, dreams, and life.

At one point discussion drifted to making more money.

I thought I had some insights to share about making a lot of money in comparatively smaller time frame and doing it without selling your soul.

I penned my ideas in brief and emailed it to my banker friends.

While writing that email I realized that email did not tell it all.

So I sat down to elaborate it further and share how you can increase your income 60 times in 6 years.

For the naysayers – i will only say – to each its own.

For those who believe in hard work and taking big leap of faith, GOOD LUCK.

Once you believe that it can be done, you make a start.

Let us get into details.

First look and you may find it too much to tackle.

Break it and you will find it believable and workable.

At the core is power of compounding.

If you double your income every year for 6 years, you will earn 64 times of what you made last year (at the end of 6^th year).

If you made 25,000 USD during past year, you can grow it to 1.6 million in 6 year. (An Indian reader can look at making around 8 crores in 6 years if she made 12 lakhs during past year.)

If you are struggling to reach a basic earning level then you can skip reading this. I will share how to make your first 1000 USD in a job or small business.

Points to be noted before you dig deep.

- You will have to work for this.

- Your mileage may vary – you may get to 10 times your current earnings and also 100 times. Depends on how religiously you follow it.

- It is rare that you can do it in a job.  So be ready to get into garb of an entrepreneur. Quarter of a million in a job workable. 1 million plus in a job – possible but tough. (You may in a job right now but

- I will not talk about tricks but basics.

1. Negotiate

With your boss.

Best way to negotiate is to make a list of the good work that you have done for the company you work for. Share with your boss (person responsible for raise) on a monthly. Ask if she would like you to do anything else.

(Word of caution: Funny but true. Remember if you offer your ass, you will be screwed. So think about what you offer. Promise less, deliver more always.)

If you are in a job, talk to your boss and tell her that why your salary should be raised.

Before you do prepare well.

Make a list of all good things that you have done in the past.

Show how much direct revenue your work has brought to the company.

Show if your work has created a competitive advantage for your company.

Make an attempt to help your boss shine; because when you do that your boss will grow and when she grows. You will automatically grow if you have spent time on nurturing the relationship.

For negotiations there are tons of books out there. You need to buy (think of it as investment on yourself) and read. Look up on Amazon in negotiations category and buy top 3 books.

If you run a business, then up-sell your clients for a bigger purchase.

It becomes easier if you have helped their business grow with whatever you do.

Share new things with them and tell them ways to increase their revenues.

2. Learn to communicate well.

It starts with listening.

Whenever you sit in a client meeting – listen well enough to understand the inputs. Ask questions before you leave the meeting so that you have everything you know.

Also learn to speak and write well.

Same sentence shared in a fumbled voice will have less impact than when said with poise and confidence.

Write down your thoughts. This will help you improve your writing skills.

Keep working at it.

Same goes when you are sitting with your boss.

Understand what your boss tells you. Take notes and ask during the discussion if you missed something.

If your boss or client is a lousy communicator – insist on getting inputs in written form (via email).

This will help safeguard and make sure that you deliver on what is expected of you and some more.

When you do more than what is expected of you and create wow experiences for people who work with you, you create an aura that helps you grow and earn more.

3. Leave if it is not working.

It is important to know when to quit.

When you hit a dead end it is important to turn back and find another way.

If you are in a job and your target earning for next year is USD 100,000 and the total earning of your CEO is USD 100,000 there is no way you are going to earn more than that in short term.

In such a case, join a company where the CEO makes 1 million. You will have a good shot at making USD 100,000 there.

If you have a hard time finding the salary of CEO then talk to employees at your level of work and ask them how much you make. If you are lazy – then head to Glassdoor.com and check out the average salaries in an industry. And stop being lazy

I have talked about it earlier. Fire clients – who are a drag on your energy and time.

Work with people you enjoy.

Be courageous (and commonsensical).

4. Go hunting for new opportunities when times are good.

During old times hunters used to hunt when the weather was good. And save the kill for times when weather used to be rough.

If you do the same about work and life you will be.

Work out when you are still fit.

Look for opportunities when you still have one in hand.

Do not get settled in your cushy job or the safety net of your lifestyle business (if you want to earn more money). If you are ok with what you earn now then you should not be reading this post.

Do not eat when you are full.

But if you are in business scout for more clients when you already have many. Your confidence is high in such situations and you are on a roll. It is easy to signup new ones in such a situation.

Interview for a new job when you are already have one.

Do not wait for somebody to fire you or bad industry conditions to look out for a job. (Dig your well before you get thirsty. – Harvey MacKay)

5. Go where there is light.

If you want to grow, work in an industry which is on a growth path. In such a scenario you will always have an opportunity to grow and move.

Once you are a bit settled, get in pursuit of something that less people are working on right now.

My friend James Altucher used to charge more than ten thousand dollars for a 15 page website back when having a website was a novelty.

When you are early mover in an industry, you can charge a premium. (Not all early movers succeed but those who do make big gains. So it is a risk worth taking.)

6. Dream big but be reasonable.

It is ok to dream to make a million dollars, even if you make almost nothing right now.

Create a plan and get ready to work through it – through times tough and easy.

Stick through it and show up every day.

You will not have to walk on fire to achieve this but there may be some tough days in between.

7. Enrich yourself.

This is important in all situations.

More so, if you are stuck in an industry that is not sunrise. Take time to learn about new things – to enrich you and move ahead.

I started learning to code when it was not cool to do it, and started blogging when it was not mainstream. It has helped in ways I could never imagine.

Learn something new every 3 months. Think of what you enjoy and what are the opportunities are. Then go learn it. Focus on – less theory and more doing it yourself.

Check out resources like LYNDA.com if you want to learn a lot of new things sitting at home.

8. Hire support people for your home.

People spend a ton of time buying grocery, going to a drycleaner, fixing door knob and generally running errands. Hire help to get it done.

You can spend same time being with family 100%, reading a new book, working out.

This will help you enrich yourself and create a happy family. You will be at peace and will be able to give back to work and life.

This will turn into virtuous cycle of growth and satisfaction. A sure fire way to be happy (and make money).

9. Connect and help.

Connect with 4 new people every week. Great if they are from different background.

Connect 2 people (unknown to each other) and suggest how they can help each other. Do it 3 times a week. This will create positive karma and it will come back to you.

10. Take care of your well being.

A fit person is a productive person.

For God sake, do not be fit like the CEO who looked in great shape, and hit the treadmill every morning after barely sleeping for 4 hours every night. One fine morning he collapsed while working out on the treadmill never to get up again. He was 40.

Sleep well, eat well (not too much) and exercise regularly.

½ hour spent of your body – will make other 23½ fun and productive. Take time out to exercise.

Only a fool complains of not having any time for exercise, and needs to know that ½ hour spent on exercise will bring more clarity and higher energy levels.

You can do more in less time when you exercise.

11. Take off from work.

Do you come to work before everyone else does and you leave after everyone else leaves the workplace?

Then you suffer from time waster’s syndrome.( I just coined this term for people who are always at work and then they bring work home. This is a sure fire recipe to kill yourself and your relationships over a period of time)

Such an attitude and lifestyle makes you seen as who is available all the time.

You need to change this perception. This is done by adhering to a fixed work schedule.

A fixed work schedule (9 to 5) may not be fashionable – but it works wonders.

Arriving early is good but in that case finish your work, be super productive and leave early. If you work for a boss that needs you to stay back for long, you need to change your job.

Spend your evening working out, spending time with family and friends. Read, watch a new movie, go out for a concert or just sleep early so that your batteries are fully recharged for the next day.

Do not get into the habit of replying to emails really late in night. This will make people expect a response from you they send you late at night and also to those that they send you at night.

Take a look at 4×4 on ways to be more productive.

When you work to a fixed schedule and work smart – you can be more productive than average Joe by working on a fixed schedule.

Also take breaks – long ones if it works out. This will help people around your appreciate your presence.

Smart workers take breaks.

People miss you when you are not around. Nice people are missed even more. So be nice to those around you and take breaks.

A person worth missing is – one who leaves a mark and makes things work when she is around. Try and be that person and then take breaks.

Make people want more of you and then give it to them.

So these were 11 points to help you increase your income 60 times in 6 years.

Enough reading – get to doing.

BONUS TIP: This year, help 10 people increase their earning and create a better life. You can start by emailing this post to your friends.  Share on Facebook or twitter if you like. Stumble if that works for you.

Good for you as you create good karma and good life for yourself.

Thanks for spreading the word. I LOVE YOU.

If you liked this post, you should follow me.

Photo by Noah Wesley.

- Log on to Twitter or Facebook to add to or consume what your friends have been up to

- Engage in mindless gossip

- Waste time thinking about your goals, projects rather than doing something about it

- Move into a new project without finishing the one at hand

Think about your dreams and work that needs to be done.

Think about what have you done today that will take your closer to your dreams and finish what is important. If you have done nothing then do not log into Facebook, Twitter or Farmville and whatever your favorite time-kill is. Postpone it for a while. For a change, do without long hours of thinking and take action.

• If you do it today, you will end your day more satisfied.
• Do it for a month and be happy with your progress.
• Do it for a year, day after day; and you will be amazed by your accomplishments.

Take a chance and do it. You will not know until you put it in practice.

Finally, stop reading this blog NOW only then you will be able to focus on what is important.

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bus-stuck-in-snow

When you start work on a project – there are 4 possible outcomes.

1. It turns out the way you want

2. It turns out better than you want

3. It does not turn out the way you want

4. It turns out worse than you want – meaning you are not able to finish it (Here are some ideas for finishing things you start)

When you finish it in line or better than your expectations then it is time to celebrate.

If it does not turn out the way you want then here is what you can do.

1. Accept.

Accept that it is over. There is no point being the mouse that goes back again and again to the same spot thinking that the piece of cheese is still there. If you are collaborating with someone then opt out graciously if required. If you are in a job and have been given a boot – no point bad mouthing people involved, if you can help it. Just move on.

2. Analyse.

When you do a project your strengths come to the fore so does areas where you need to improve. Ask why it didn’t work out the way it should have. Also think about what worked.

It is possible that you make some mistakes on the path. see and note what they were.

3. Look at options ahead.

Life does not end with a project – whatever small or big – not working out.

Look at your options. Are there opportunities that are already waiting for you and you did not pay attention to.

You may need to dig the well and find out a new opportunity. You may need to work on getting new clients, start work on new software or hunt for a new job.

Always keep in touch with interesting people that you meet during the course of the project.

4. Savour your learnings and find ways to leverage them.

Any failed project is not without learning. You will end up improving your collaboration skills, communication skills, writing, or speaking. You may make new connections or get insights about new areas.

During a recent project I interviewed entrepreneurs from different background and captured these interviews on video. Now I am using this experience to launch a new project.

5. Learn from your mistakes and take a vow not to repeat them.

One should learn from mistakes and not repeat them, and do not curse yourself for making them. If you go out on the road, you will find traffic. If you take on something big you will make mistakes. It is part of the game. So take on big things, make more mistakes, and make things happen.

6. Take a break and re-align your priorities.

It is good to take a small break – and do what you have been putting off – during the project. Go meet friends, spend time with family. Do what you love doing.

While you are working on anything keep building your platform – more so if opportunities come your way through your platform.

7. Celebrate.

This may sound counter intuitive but it makes sense to celebrate even when you make mistakes. If you become gloomy then you will not be not be able focus on things on hand.

If you think about it, life is made up of small things, projects – some will work, some will not. Then why bother too much.

Whatever be the case, try and be happy always and make celebration part of every day of your life. Then you will be able to live a fuller life. There is no other way it should be.

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People, who are just getting back from a holiday, will have a lot of catching up to do. They need to check on pending communications, put plans in actions, and wish people they know.

I hope you are refreshed after a long-short holiday and there is serenity all around you. You came back, got in the flow and already started shipping remarkable stuff. If this is the scenario then I am happy for you.

What if the scene is like this?

You came back from holiday, thinking about work that you have to do. As soon you reached your workspace you found tons of emails to respond to; a report that you need to work on; more pending work that you left incomplete rushing into holidays. There are also some calls that you need to return. There is a total of a week’s work to be finished in 2-3 days.

If this is case then not need to worry too much; explore ideas below and work it out.

1. Stop for a minute and realize that you cannot do all – email, phone, reports, meetings all at one go. This will help you be at ease.
2. Even if you enter office late do not head into email, facebook or your favorite social application first. If you are already logged in then disconnect.
3. Just pick a pen and make a note of 3-5 items to finish in the day.
4. Connect to the web, open email client and see if there are some action items there. Just take a look for 5 minutes, download any important input and then disconnect. This is just for the day you are back from holiday. For regular days stick to – no web till midday practice.  
5. Delegate tasks. If you are in a situation where work cannot be delegated then ask a friend to help who is comparatively relaxed.
6. Commit to stay off connectivity for next 4 hours and work on tasks from your list.
7. Work from urgent to important while tackling your task list.  On regular days stick to important 1^st and urgent later practice. Better finish one –most important task of the day within 3 hours of waking up.
8. Around lunchtime take a good 30 minutes break – go for a walk – return some calls (important) during these 30 minutes.
9. When you connect to web, set you status on chat as busy (if you use messenger at work)
10. Keep room for 5 short (2 to 5 minute) calls while you work on email, rest take them and suggest calling later.
11. If some work remains then sleep and start early for next couple of days. Stick to no web till midday practice.

Now as your work is settled let us move to bigger things.

I wish from the core that you do something remarkable; make an impact in 2011 and move ahead by leaps and bounds.

How to do it?

For starters, commit yourself to excellence for next 30 days. Focus on output and not on the hours that you spend working.

Do what you wanted to do last year or wanted to do always. Work towards it for next 30 days every day and do it the best you can – and before you know you would have made a great start to 2012.

Even if you did not review or plan in detail that is all ok. Just move in a more fluid way working on day to day basis in the direction of your dreams.

To a great start and continued success.

What do you have to say?

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5 words for 2012

Every year I decide on 5 words as my guideposts.

In 2011, these 5 words were minimize, ship, love, act and help.

Life changes – with it perspectives and goals. My goals for 2012 are different than 2011 – so are my 5 words.

In 2012 the words that I plan to live by are – simplify, celebrate, new, move and scale.

Read on for details.

1. Simplify.

Simplify the way I live.

Simplify the way I run (and build) my business(es).

Opt for a distributed work model, that allows freedom for me and people I work with. Only work with customers and associates who are cool with this approach. To rest – say goodbye, love them still.

2. Celebrate

Celebrate each of 366 days in 2012.

I plan to do this;

By engaging in meaningful action.

And to enjoy everything I do. If I do not enjoy something, I don’t do it as simple as that.

It also includes doing nothing at times and enjoying such moments. I will begin with doing nothing for two full days every month and enjoy just lazing around.

By moving away from screen/s.

For our generation it is more important because we can be glued to our screens and still think that we are living life to the fullest.

With Facebook and Twitter to some degree, taking over the lives of normal people it is important to remind yourself that real life is lived outside cubicles and away from digital screens (laptop, mobile, iPad).

By asking one important question.

Am I happy? If the answer is negative, do what it takes to be joyful and centred.

By working less.

Work for lesser number of hours than I have been working in 2011.

I will do this by practicing 4 x 4 and working to a schedule.

I do not count writing as work – so less work will mean more writing for me.

I also plan to exit or not engage in businesses than require too much of my personal time to run.

3. New

Immerse in new experiences.

Do things that I have never done in my life before.

I have always done this. But this year I plan to take this to the next level. A start has already been made in this direction.

4. Move

Move to places – old and new, with a focus on having fun and sharing.

In sync with this – i am aiming for reasonable freedom from inbox. I plan to interact over email but spend less time on other channels. I made a start in this direction in December last year.

I will instead take time to meet new people and be totally present wherever I am.

5. Scale

Move on to bigger things in life.

Play with big ideas that can make an impact.

Think about big problems facing the world – hunger, disease, poverty.

Spend my time tackling bigger challenges.

Build bigger businesses than I have built before.

–

So my plan is to get up everyday –>

- live a simple life

- do work that I enjoy, ship what needs to be shipped

- take time to be more with people who matter in my life

- travel and  take time to meet new people as well

- do the new

- and work on big things.

I wish that 2012 is year that you live with a clear purpose.

Great if you get up, live life to the fullest, do work that matters and play. Do not keep play for tomorrow, keep it for today. Live each day of your life as a festival. It is your right and you can do it.

I am sharing this with you as friend. So keep checking as the year progresses, and feel free to kick my butt, if I get lazy and don’t do it. I mean it.

Image credits