Guest posting doesn’t have to be an unpleasant, time-consuming task driven by tracking down guest post friendly blogs. Surprisingly, it’s as easy as joining MyBlogGuest.com. Memberships are free with the option to upgrade to a pro account.

If you make up excuses for not posting to your blog, you’re going to love this!

If you’re not familiar with MyBlogGuest, here are a few key benefits to all who join in.

Networking Opportunities

At the moment, MBG is near 23,000 registered members, with a consistent, steady growth. Many of registered members manage multiple blog accounts, making the networking supply all the more savory. While the number of contacts is impressive, what I think most impressive is how MBG adheres to high quality standards.

When I first joined MBG, it was relatively new; going through the apparent growing pains many websites do. It didn’t take long for Ann Smarty to devise a way that would ensure quality content for MBG members.

Not everything is perfect; you sometimes encounter members who don’t understand what guest posting is all about; who may not provide material that meets your personal standards. You’re in the drivers seat and have the option of accepting or declining any offer that’s sent your way. If you know what you’re doing, it doesn’t take long to discover the opportunities that suit you perfectly. Regardless of niche; whether you want to focus on submitting content or if your primary goal is to provide guest articles on your website, MBG is the most accommodating, centralized place to achieve these individually, or in unison.

MyBlogGuest Delivers in Spades

My Blog Guest has been designed to operate fluidly as a strong guest posting environment. The core of this community is the forum broken into sections that provide means in finding guest authors, finding blogs to host content, requesting and supporting social media sharing help. There’s also a private area with advanced tips and tricks to maximize your guest blogging efforts..

In addition to the forum, there is an article gallery. The gallery is where writers and bloggers distribute and seek fresh content. The format is easy to use and works beautifully for the designated purposes. The user interface is extremely easy for all participants to find exactly what they want in a short amount of time.

Time Management at Its Best

The days of tracking down and contacting webmasters in the effort to wrangle guest-posting opportunities at random are all but over.

I’ve been a member in this community for almost a year. I’ve checked back a few times, but the last time, I am sure I experienced what Ann Smarty intended.

There are a growing number of serious webmasters and brilliant content creators within the community. Those members are what makes MGB a superb resource for guest posting and a valuable source for any webmaster looking to expand their web presence, while taking in the added benefits of productive collaborations and partnerships with like-minded people.

The forum is perfect for networking, but the real success comes from the Article Gallery. As of this writing, more just fewer than 33,000 articles have been distributed through the gallery: original, high quality articles, across a mass of niches, written by hundreds of authors from every imaginable background.

The article gallery simplifies the process of locating content for your blog by categorically arranging guest posts that may be searched by various criteria. Members may select by topic, then cut it down to author score that’s based on member feedback, blog page rank and more.

There are hundreds of original articles every day. You may request publication rights with a single mouse click – it’s that simple. If you’re a writer, you simply add original article to the gallery. In most cases, it won’t last but a few hours until you’re getting offers from interested webmasters wishing to publish it.

Quality Links That Even Google Can’t Argue With

My Blog Guest offers a solid base of users who “get” what guest posting is all about, and who understand the general advantages when guest posting is done the right way.

My Blog Guest is not an automated link-building tool. My Blog Guest does not provide content that looks for those slimy, underhanded, linking tricks designed to deceive Google. MBG is a place where bloggers can exhibit high quality partnerships with strong webmasters and content creators.

To sum it up: My Blog Guest is a simple, powerful, time-saving tool for those who understand the importance of matching a good link with quality content.

Sign up for MyBlogGuest and connect with me – my profile is Gayla

If you’d prefer not to manage your own MyGuestBlog profile, you can still benefit from guest blogging. I’d be happy to submit guest blog posts on your behalf. Drop me an email to discuss.

More Links Featuring My Blog Guest:

John Chow – Guest Blogging Made Easy with My Blog Guest

Rand Fishkin at SEOmoz – 4 Valuable Link Building Services (Zemanta, MyBlogGuest, EightfoldLogic and Whitespark) and 21 Tactics to Increase Blog Traffic 2012

BlogWorld & BlogWorld Expo Writer Allison Boyer – Review: MyBlogGuest Premium

FamousBloggers – Ann Smarty answers a series of guest blogging questions and discusses the benefits of MyBlogGuest

Image credit

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My Comment Commitment: If you leave an approved comment on any of my posts, I will visit your blog and “share it” in some way whether on StumbleUpon, Twitter or Facebook depending on if I can find a nice fit.

After taking a deep breath to calm down, I read the announcement . At first it looked as if they were going to be merging with Google+ – which they still might, that’s unclear. But for now, everyone can use Picnik and all it’s premium features for free, up until it closes on April 19th. I’d recommend planning ahead, create as many images for your stockpile as you can in the event a similar option doesn’t present itself right away.

Ironically that happens to be my dad’s birthday which seems to be a magnet for tragic events and bad news – Waco, Oklahoma City, a close friends death. Granted, Picnik closing isn’t nearly as tragic, but still, I feel like I’m losing a very good friend

Once Picnik is gone, what options will we have? What image editing programs do you use?

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Since joining Google in 2010, we have been creating editing magic in Google products while continuing to keep Picnik awesome. But now we get to focus on even awesomer things. Picnik will be closing on April 19, 2012.

Your photos liberated
Amazing photos are created in Picnik, so we have launched a new feature, Picnik Takeout, that easily downloads your photos to your desktop in convenient zip files. You may also elect to copy your photos to Google+ where you can store and share your creations. You may request your photos at any time and use this handy tool as many times as you like until our closing date of April 19, 2012. Learn more.

Premium Refunds
To our primo Picnik Premium members, we’ll begin processing a full refund of your current membership fee within a week of this announcement. By “in full” we mean the whole darn thing. Yep, this means even if you are on your very last day of an annual membership, we will refund you the entire $24.95. Just because we want to say thanks.

Now the Good News – Free Premium for ALL!
To express our gratitude for your support over the past 5 years, Picnik Premium is free for everyone! Use Picnik in all of its premium glory, for free, from now until our actual closing day. Touch-up, Textures, Advanced, and more are all free for you to use!

We have been incredibly proud of building a product that is used and beloved by so many of you. We continue to be amazed and humbled by the photos you create and we are immensely grateful for all of your support, creativity, and passion.

We are excited by the photo-editing fun we have already brought to Google products, like Google+, where you can find many of your favorite Picnik effects in Creative Kit. We encourage you to visit Google+ and give it a whirl.

Please visit the Help Hub for more information on our wind down, and check the Picnik blog for updated information on our April closure.

It’s been awesome,
Team Picnik

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Again, what options do we have? What editing programs do you use? Suggestions?

I found one that may be a nice Picnik alternative – FotoFlexer – check it out and see what you think.

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My Comment Commitment: If you leave an approved comment on any of my posts, I will visit your blog and “share it” in some way whether on StumbleUpon, Twitter or Facebook depending on if I can find a nice fit.

The biggest investment that is usually made in this popular home based business tends to be made in terms of time spent. Actually a lot of it is allocated to finding the best keyword phrases that are bound to attract tons of traffic through search engines. Interesting content is then generated based on those keywords. The result for a home based business that has mastered this strategy can usually be nothing short of amazing. Within a very short time tons of traffic is crowding at their blog. They then simply refer this traffic to their affiliate site or to a sales page selling whatever it is that they usually sell.

Some affiliate sites receiving heavy traffic from home based business blogs are able to pay out tens of thousands of dollars every month to their affiliates.

This is but one of the most lucrative home based business models that has taken the World Wide Web by storm. It means that a home based business can thrive and be very successful without the owner ever having to indulge themselves in serious and aggressive selling of any sort.

Learn more about the best home business opportunity from a blogger who rakes in thousands of dollars… and growing from their home business. There are plenty of those to be found these days.

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My Comment Commitment: If you leave an approved comment on any of my posts, I will visit your blog and “share it” in some way whether on StumbleUpon, Twitter or Facebook depending on if I can find a nice fit.

Originally posted 2010-01-13 11:25:00.

ARE YOU A WORKAHOLIC?

When you work from home it can be hard to STOP working. Temptations such as the ringing of your business phone, the constant flow of emails, and piles of paper work can easily draw you back into work mode if you let them.

TIPS TO CONQUER WORK-A-HOLISM

1. Set a regular schedule for work and home hours. Make a deliberate effort to stop working on time. When you are done with work, shut off the computer, and mentally shut off work.
2. Locate your office in a separate area of the house. Having your office out of sight may help you forget about work.
3. Enjoy your "off" time. Pamper yourself! Schedule yourself regular vacations! Take time to relax! Spend time doing the things you love most. If you started working from home to spend more time with your family, then make sure you are actually DOING that. Schedule daytrips with your kids. Take time to visit a friend you have lost touch with.

ARE YOU EASILY DISTRACTED?

Does the sound of Nickelodeon, the allure of the cookies in the pantry, and the beautiful sunny weather distract you?

TIPS TO HELP YOU STAY FOCUSED:

1. Don’t tolerate distractions in your life. Discover sources of the distraction and remove it from your work environment. If you can’t remove it entirely, try to come up with a creative "work-a- round" that will let you function.
2. Make a daily to do list and prioritize, by placing the most important 3-5 tasks at the top. Put all other "tasks" at bottom. Try to spend your time on items which on the things which will do the most to move your business forward.

DO YOU FEEL LONELY?

Do you miss birthday lunch celebrations, water cooler talk, and co-worker friendships? Are you becoming a bear in your "work at home cave"?

TIPS TO AVOID ISOLATION:

1. Volunteer. Sign up to help with a Girl Scout troop, at church, or at the local library.
2. Join a group. There are lots of local women’s business breakfast groups. You might also be able to find a local playgroup, or church group to join.
3. Take a class. This is the perfect opportunity to learn a new business skill or indulge in a personal interest such as pottery, art, or scrapbooking.
4. Spend time with friends and family. Have lunch, call an old friend, make a date with your spouse, or send a personal email to a family member. Make time to connect with the important people in your life.
5. Build a personal support network. Whether it is a business coach, or fellow entrepreneur you’ll need someone to encourage you, listen to you, and guide you. Find a mentor who is highly successful at what you want to do and ask what their secrets are for success!
6. Participate in an online community. There are many online communities for entrepreneurs and work at home parents. Here you can network, meet friends, and promote your business.

DO YOU NEED HEALTH INSURANCE?

Insurance is a regular perk of working in the corporate world. When you go "solo" you will find yourself without the crucial coverage you need.

TIPS FOR GETTING INSURED:

1. If your spouse has a corporate job, check to see if you can be covered under their insurance plan.
2. With the costs of family insurance coverage ranging from $7000 to $10,000 per year, it really pays to shop around.
3. Here’s a few web sites where you can get free health insurance quotes from several leading carriers and easily compare many policies to choose the one that’s best for you.  http://www.ehealthinsurance.com/ – http://www.InsureCom.com – http://www.USInsurance.com
4. If you recently quit your corporate job, the COBRA law will let you purchase health insurance from your old corporate employer for up to 18 months.
5. Ask your insurance agent about opening a Medical Savings Account (MSA). An MSA is a combo type account from which you can draw funds to pay for your medical expenses and the remaining funds grow like a tax deferred retirement fund.

DO YOU MISS REGULAR PAYCHECKS?

Do you have trouble making regular paychecks to yourself?

TIPS FOR REGULATING YOUR INCOME:

1. Build reserves. When you have a good month, stash it away for those slow business periods. Stock up by working more during winter, so that you can take time off in the summer.
2. Develop an "automatic" income source. Some options include writing and selling an ebook and acting as a reseller for services that complement your offerings.

DO FAMILY & FRIENDS VIOLATE YOUR BOUNDARIES?

Do your friends, family call you during your work time? Do your clients call during your family time?

TIPS FOR SETTING BOUNDARIES:

1. Communicate with your clients early on letting them know your policies, your work hours, and what they can expect.
2. Let family know what your work hours are. Ask them not to call you with personal chit chat until your "home" hours begin.
3. Caller ID can help you identify calls to see if they are from family, friends, or pesky sales people.
4. The bottom line is to determine your boundaries, set them in stone, communicate them, and guard and uphold them!

== SUMMARY ==

While working from home is the new American Dream, it can present some real challenges at times. Smart business owners work hard to maintaining balance, practice extreme self-care, and regulate their income. By overcoming these obstacles you’ll experience renewed energy, focus, and stability in both your personal and business life.

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My Comment Commitment: If you leave an approved comment on any of my posts, I will visit your blog and “share it” in some way whether on StumbleUpon, Twitter or Facebook depending on if I can find a nice fit.

Originally posted 2010-01-18 12:00:00.

It’s my opinion that each writer should assess their traffic to determine what posts are popular, the length of time a person spends on each visit, what the bounce rate is and with that information, they can determine what the optimal post length is for their readers.

It’s also my opinion, that you should consider the following:

• Reader Attention Span – There’s lots of documentation that support the belief that readers will spend under 100 seconds on a blog. As a result many writers keep their content length down to a level that is readable in short grabs.
• Quantity of Posts – Some believe that shorter posts allow you to write more posts and that more posts generate more readership with RSS and in Search Engines. Could this actually be what sites like Engadget do to make up the majority of their content.
• SEO – Seach Engine Optimization experts believe long and short articles are not ranked as highly as pages that are of a medium length. Of course no one truly knows what the ideal length is, however, the general consensus seems to be that 200 to 250 words is a reasonable length. At the same time, many of the experts I’ve communicated with advise keeping articles under 1000 words.
• Topic/Genre – Of course it goes without saying, the topic you write on will determine the true optimal length of article. As an example, when you are writing a product review your article will be longer whereas hot news topics you mention and link to something written by someone else will be shorter. As well, photo blogs require much less coverage.

I believe if you can answer the key “Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How?” in under 250 words, that’s all you need. At the end of the day, you need to monitor your stats, communicate with your readers and determine what works best for you and your blog.

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My Comment Commitment: If you leave an approved comment on any of my posts, I will visit your blog and “share it” in some way whether on StumbleUpon, Twitter or Facebook depending on if I can find a nice fit.

Originally posted 2010-01-17 23:58:46.