OriginalThought Store

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  Title: A Great Book for Anyone Who Makes Speeches, Writes or Needs to Motivate Others

  Here’s a great and entertaining reference book for all you speech givers and writers. It is called “I Never Metaphor I Didn't Like: A Comprehensive Compilation of History's Greatest Analogies, Metaphors, and Similes” , by Dr. Mardy Grothe.
  
  You’ll find great phases and quotes that can be used for every conceivable situation. Here’s a link to look it over and to buy, if you’re as enchanted as I was.

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  Title: A Great Book About How Our Country Will Evolve

  One of my favorite reads from the last year is a book called “The Great Reset”, a book by Richard Florida.
  
  If you’ve wondered how our country will make its way back from the great recession that began in 2008, this book provides a thoughtful answer. Florida elegantly lays out how previous “resets” have happened (like the Great Depression for instance) and how things changed in the way and places we work and live. Here’s a link to look the book over and to buy it, if it appeals to you. amazon.com.

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  Title: Great Resource to Find Any Kind Specialized Talent

  A service I use to find people and companies with special expertise is elance.com.
  
  Whether it is to find a web site designer, an Excel pro or an admin person to do some heavy lifting, you’re sure to find people who fit your needs on elance.com. By the way, it is also a great place for freelancers and consultants to promote their services and capture project business.
  
  The way I like to use the service is to plug in the expertise I’m looking for into the search engine. I review the candidates by looking at their profiles and reading the reviews of the projects they’ve completed. Then, I write up my project, post my job and invite a handful of the people that I’ve found in my search. But often, other companies or people read about my project and submit a bid (you couldn’t possibly read about EVERYONE on elance.com who has the expertise you need; there are hundreds of thousands of people who’ve registered to offer their services on elance.com. That is what makes it so powerful.
  
  I also love the fact that all my interactions and the entire business transaction happen within the site. So there is always of record of communications and the system for making payments – after agreed to work is approved – is fantastic.
  
  Give elance.com a try when you have your next crises and need special help.

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  Title: Great Tool for Business or Personal Video Creation

  There is a tool I have used for a few years that can help you create a professional looking video – from scratch – in a few easy steps.
  
  It is called Animoto.com and I can attest to how easy it is to have a video done in a handful of easy steps.
  
  I have used the tool to create my company holiday card two years in a row. The steps involved are: One, upload photos or video footage you wish to use. If you don’t have any subject material, you can use the Animoto libraries for material and supplement it with photos from flickr.com or Google images (warning…make sure you have secured the rights to use the photos you select). Intersperse your images and footage with text boxes to tell your story.
  
  Two, select a track of music from their vast library, categorized by genre. Or, you can upload your own mp3 file (again, make sure you have the rights to use the music…which you don’t have to worry about if you use Animoto’s selections).
  
  Three, push the button and let Animoto’s video engine mix your video and tell you when it is done (depending on length, usually only a few minutes).
  
  If you don’t like the way the video’s been mixed, you can easily edit the inputs or just ask Animoto to give it another try and mix it a different way. You can keep doing this until you’re happy with the end result.
  
  There are three pricing plans (the first one is free), enabling different levels of functionality, including the ability to eliminate any Animoto brand. You can distribute your video by posting it on your website, Facebook page, or sending a link to it via email. All are super simple to do. Click here if you’d like to peruse the Animoto.com site and decide if it is right for you. And of course, email me if you’d like some more explanation or help in getting your video done.

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  To Purchase, Click Here