Their description is pretty true to form. They’re a user-friendly guide to finding the right web host in your current price range. They give you a break down of every host in the database and even have recommendations for their top ten hosts on the Internet if you really have trouble making your choice. I’ve noticed a trend in many recommendations for BlueHost being the #1 host on the list. My only issue with them is the lack of ability to rent a server. Based on a few companies that I’ve dealt with that are hosted through this company – I’ve noticed there wasn’t really any downtime at all and that’s always a plus for someone running a business.

While I am considering leaving the hosting industry all together and focusing on the web design aspect of things, that doesn’t mean I’ll completely walk away and leave empty handed. Maybe one of those top ten hosts would be interested in buying my clients – heh.

It’s worth checking out, trust me. Head on over to maxwebdesign.eu if you don’t believe me.

Another person with really bad eye sight is Sean and unfortunately he doesn’t have medical insurance to even get his glasses fixed, let alone update the prescription in general. I do believe that with my search I landed upon what I believe to be a great discovery. They’re called Zenni Optical and they sell prescription glasses online. There’s a huge selection of frames with everything from single vision lenses to bifocals. They even have tinted sunglasses for those who need corrective sunglasses as well. I guess no one likes the “clip on” look anymore…heh. They sell internationally too, so no matter where you’re located you can still get the prescription you need.

The link that really caught my attention (the reason I found this company) $ 8 Zenni Optical Rx Eyeglasses when you see a link like that you’re initial thought is “Okay, scam time” but they really aren’t. If you read through reviews on their website you’ll find that 99% of the time, consumers whom have gone through their services have a 100% recommendation to friends and family members when it comes to going back to this company – time and time again.

It’s too bad that I can’t order anything for Sean yet, he hasn’t had an eye-exam in a few years and he’s due for another one before he can even consider picking up a new pair of glasses. Hell, maybe if insurance works out properly we’ll be able to pick up some contacts for him instead. Either way something needs to be done, right?

Both Sean and my father have pretty bad eyesight. A few nights ago I put on Sean’s glasses before I put them on the nightstand for him, I could barely see anything in the room. My father’s are the same way, I get an instant headache. I know that they both can definitely get LASIK if they truly wanted to. Unfortunately there isn’t any insurance company that will cover that and it’s pretty damn expensive to pay for out of pocket, you know?

I just hope that this problem isn’t going to get worse.  I truly need to get my eyes taken care of or I’m really going to have some problems down the road, considering my eyes are my biggest employment perk right now, that and my hands.  My brain has been fried for years, but at least I’ve been able to see – you know?

I’ve always liked the idea of owning a massive oriental rug but they can get so expensive, you wonder if it’s really worth it for a high-traffic home…you know?  I’ve seen oriental rugs underneath white furniture that’s covered in plastic since no one’s allowed to step foot in the room that typical people would refer to as the “living room”.  I think it’s a shame to have such high-end things that you can’t even live in your own house.

Give me comfort with a punch of color!

The company I’m talking about is INC Paradise, they not only help you out with the paperwork but they also provide a space for you to start your business. They have a program for virtual offices and executive suites. You can use their office with free phones and internet. If you already have a space in mind, then naturally you’re not going to have to take this route but if you’re meeting clients at the local coffee shop and then working from home, it’s time to get yourself some office space. You can pay rent for a space or even build an extension onto your own home (if possible) but sometimes having your own office space would be a great thing to have once your business hits it big. Now this is naturally for those of us that are lucky enough to work in the computer world but when you’re looking to start up a bookstore, you’re obviously going to need to invest in some kind of a store front as well.

I personally own my own servers so I can’t really use their services but if I were to ever downgrade and take my 6 domains to another host, I’d more than likely consider Lunarpages before many of the other high-space and bandwidth based hosts out there. For me the domain option isn’t a big deal, I handle all of my registrations under my own account. But the unlimited MySQL Databases, Unlimited Parked domains and Unlimited Email is really a great thing to have when it comes to hosting. Granted, most people are fine with just one address that houses everything but I’m content with my webhosting, design and personal based email accounts. Having the option of adding as many as I please, maybe even starting up a free Pop3 email service seems like a fairly cool idea in my book. Sure, each account would have to be manually created but down the road you could easily invest in an automatic script.

This particular setup would be great for the “Just starting out” webmasters, as well as any company that has numerous employees who need to have business based email addresses. Anyone can sign up for a free gmail account but having your name attached to your companies domain, even by email address, makes you feel as though you’re more involved with the company than just for phone support – you know?

Check them out.

First off, I have a theory. Don’t officially START anything unless you’ve dabbled in it. I’m going to stick with something like Web Design because that’s truly all I know at this point. Freelance for a little while, don’t jump head first into something that you’re going to get sick of in two months. Make sure you know for sure that this is your true passion. From Freelancing comes Outsourcing, get yourself teamed up with a few different established companies so you can teach yourself how to go about handling the work load that’s placed on you. After you’ve done that for a few months, then work on starting up your own business.

I know it seems like a few extra steps but there’s no money to be made by those whom are inexperienced. I had to work very hard to get to the point of running not only two businesses, but still managing to outsource and freelance for other companies as well. A proper contact list can work wonders for business when your own business is experiencing a bit of down time.

So you’ve been playing in the field for a little while now, you’re looking to start up your own company and break free of bosses. Being your own boss is just as much of an American Dream as the white fence and 2.5 children one, trust me. With the rise of horrible bosses, and knowing as well as trusting yourself and your abilities instantly makes your business better than the guy you just emailed your final notice to.

So what do you do? Start up a website and hope people come to you? Sure, that’s fine until you’ve made $500 and you’re no longer considered freelance. You’ve got to file tax forms with someone, so registering yourself as an actual business keeps the IRS off your case come tax season. Where do you go? Who can help you with this? You can head down to the local library and read up on it, or you can head over to your favorite search engine and cross your fingers.

What if I told you that there’s a company out there that’s helping thousands of entrepreneurs start up their own business? They aren’t lawyers and they sure as heck don’t charge high fees. They help you with all of the paperwork that you may find complicated if you aren’t familiar with starting up a business. They can setup a corporation or LLC in any state.

This company, incparadise.com, is based out of Nevada but they’ve just recently opened a new branch in Tennessee. A quick browse of their site showed me that they cater to all 50 states, so no matter where you live you’ll be able to get yourself up and running.

Originally my business was registered in New York, now that I’m living in Delaware I transferred everything to make sure I wasn’t being screwed out of money. Taxes in NY are outrageously higher than DE so naturally that’s one of the first changes I was going to make. Now, since I already knew the run-down, I didn’t have to go through a site in order to help me out. I do believe that anyone looking to start up their own business should consider IncParadise, because they really do help you out with everything you could possibly need.

Check them out, you won’t regret it – I promise!

Flyer’s – This naturally falls under the inexpensive side of advertising. If you’re someone who knows how to work your way around a computer, you don’t even have to hire someone to create unique flyer’s for you. Many computers come with paint programs that offer templates for flyer’s and even ones for kids school projects, but that’s a completely different entry all together. Take your flyer to Staples, or even Kinko’s and have a few of them printed up. Start off with 20, you could even do this at home. Go to your local Super Market and paste it up on the board that’s typically located right outside of the door. Make sure you design it with a few of the vertical tabs that can easily be ripped off, these tabs naturally should house quick information like a website address or contact information in general. It’s free advertising, and trust me when I say it works. Half of my clients when I was first starting out were all local businesses and bands – money in the bank for a $10 investment.

Stickers – I know you’re thinking, how exactly am I going to get stickers? I’m talking in regards to bumper stickers and even window decals. Satisfied clients will gladly place a sticker on their car (if they’re into that kind of thing), family and friends will gladly help you out with your advertising if they believe in what you’re doing and even you can help yourself. Think of how often you travel during the day, how many cars are you sitting behind at a stop light where you find yourself reading their “I have an honors student” kind of bumper sticker? Now think of how many people are behind YOU at a stop light, they aren’t going to read an honors student sticker, they’re going to read a business name that they more than likely won’t forget.

Signatures – Many people have told you in the past to include your website address or business name in the signatures of emails, websites and anywhere else you’re actively posting. Do you have any idea how many hits one person can receive from being involved in say 3 forums online, even if you don’t post that frequently? This would be under the free aspect of advertising, and trust me – it’s also worth it.

Directories/Listings – There are many website directories online, both free and paid. You’re given the option of placing your site in multiple categories and there are hundreds of thousands of these websites on the internet. The majority of which are actually free listings. Through a personal study of my own, I found that more hits came from free listings than they did paid ones. Why? Because no one really wants to PAY for hits, so they flock to the non-paying listings first. This test on an equal amount of paid and free listings proved to me that it was a complete waste of money. Something to consider the next time you consider pulling out the credit card!

I’ve taken almost every step I’ve listed and while I’m by no means a large corporation, as a single income business it’s proven time and time again to be completely worth it.