Ebook Creation: How to Select a Great Topic for Your Ebook
It couldn’t be easier to select a topic for an ebook. People are hungry for information, and people are looking to the Internet to feed their hunger. After you’ve read this chapter, you will feel confident enough to choose your own topic, or you can literally pull your ebook topic directly from this ebook and use it! How’s that for a deal?
Observe what’s going on around you.
If you’re smart enough to read this book, you’re smart enough to look around you and determine what interests you and those around you. Think of what problems you’ve recently solved, and what kinds of problems others have had and solved. Any problem that has been solved in your world could easily be the subject of your next book. People love to read how other have solved a problem that they currently have.
So, brainstorm a list of problems in your life and in the lives of those around you. Your friend Bob lost his job? Your sister’s child had chicken pox? How did they cope or find solutions? While you’re at it, start another list of unsolved problems evident in your corner of the world. Write down problems you wish you had solved. Aha! These are subjects that people will really be interested in! How to lose the last ten pounds. The truth about UFOs. The straightest path to becoming a millionaire. From your personal corner, your step-granddaughter is pregnant at age 14? Your grocery bill is double what it used to be? Your roof leaks? These are problems waiting for ebook solutions!
These unsolved problems would also be great ebook topics. Remember, you don’t have to know the solution, just the topic. You’re going to get someone else to do the research and write the book for you. You will not actually be writing one word.
Spend a few minutes Googling
The Internet is a great way to find out what people are looking for at any given moment. You can search for almost anything. Google™ is a popular search engine you can use, or you can try any of the others like Yahoo!® or Mamma.com. Type in phrases like “top concerns of Americans,” “best-selling nonfiction topics,” or “popular how-to manuals.” Common worries of 2005.
And while you’re on the Internet…
Find out the most popular nonfiction books from the New York Times bestseller list, Amazon, and a Google search for ebooks. Your findings will tell you exactly what book subjects people are buying right now.
Try this. Go to www.amazon.com. From the tabbed menu running along the top of the Amazon home page, click “Top Sellers.”
I did this one day in September 2005 and found a Harry Potter book, several other fiction books, and titles such as Natural cures “they” won’t tell you about, How what you wear can change your life, How to profit from the demise of the dollar, and The official SAT study guide. I’ve paraphrased to some degree, but you get the idea.
Here’s what I learned just from spending a few minutes on Amazon that day. People are reading good fiction from already-best selling authors (Da Vinci Code, the Harry Potter series, and others). Secondly, Amazon buyers, buying over the Internet, are interested in nonfiction topics such as improving their lives and making more money. For these books, just about any author will do, even virtual unknowns or people who went to prison for lying to the American public.
And that quick visit only confirmed that the straightest route to ebook profits is in the nonfiction ebook market. This is for a number of reasons. Fiction readers tend to like to curl up in a chair with an actual book. Some of them attend book clubs where the physical books are brought around someone’s kitchen table with wine and cheese. Fiction readers tend to purchase from authors they’re already familiar with. Fiction can be more difficult to write and deliver well. Also, many of the classics in fiction are available as free ebooks. A reader interested in fiction could just download those. So stick with nonfiction unless you’re feeling particularly bold and experimental.
Here is some more good news, and if you didn’t already know this then you are going to be smiling big. Drum roll please… ideas are not copyrighted, therefore any idea you see, hear, or read anywhere anytime, is yours to use for an ebook! You can create books around the same ideas that are covered in the Amazon best seller list, and turnaround and create an ebook on the exact same subject!
Now, copyright law does protect the way ideas are expressed, so you want to make sure your hired author does not plagiarize or copy book text outright. And you cannot use the title word for word either. But there’s nothing stopping you from creating another book or ebook that covers the same subject with a different voice. It’s all as completely legal and guilt-free as nonfat Haagen Dazs. This is why looking at bestseller lists is a great way to get topic ideas.
Digging a little deeper
There are groups of people who are willing to buy nonfiction ebooks: hobbyists. At any given time, these people are looking for ways to spend their money on their hobbies. Their passion is your financial gain.
What avid hobbyists want will always make great ebook material. Note that I did not say what hobbyists need. You may have certain opinions on what exactly certain people should need or should read. But those are not necessarily good topics for immediate ebook profit. Those topics may be areas for you to dabble in at your leisure. However, if you want to make money at this, find out what niche groups want, and hit those groups with your ebook.
Find hobbyists and niche groups by searching the web for “popular hobbies,” “enthusiasts,” or “what America is buying.” Or, you can search specifically for forums and discussion groups for hobbyists. In the forums, people talk with each other to share ideas with one another. Often, they will exchange testimonials for equipment, upcoming events, and books.
One popular site where hobbyists go to talk to one another online is Yahoo!. Check it out. Go to www.yahoo.com. Click “groups.” On the groups page you’ll see a list of categories such as Business & finance, and Religion. For demonstration purposes, click on “Games.”
On the games screen, game subcategories are listed followed by numbers. The numbers indicate how many discussion forums are available for that subcategory. These numbers reveal a lot. Notice how “role playing games,” and “video & computer games” have factors of ten or in some cases factors of 100 more forums than other subcategories. “Wargaming” and “paintball” don’t even come close, although those categories are much more discussion-laden than “horseshoe pitching.”
For fun, one day I continued selecting subcategories until I arrived at a list of over a thousand (yes a thousand) discussion groups on Yahoo having to do with vampire role playing. Here’s how I got there: Games>>Role Playing Games>>Live Action>> World of Darkness>>Vampire: The Masquerade.
Some of the forums are open to new members, and you can join to read what everyone’s discussing. Once in the forum, you can review discussion threads from today, yesterday, or a year ago. Don’t go back too far if you want to find out the hottest possible ebook topics. You can participate in discussions if you like. FYI, do not drop into a discussion group just to market an ebook; hobbyists consider this spam and will drop you from the group.
When you read and/or participate, you’ll find out what this group is buying. All you have to do is skim to find out what questions they are asking each other about products or traveling or information. What they are interested in buying is a key piece of information because passionate consumers love to research before they buy. This is an immediate ebook market. Create a book on how to select the best this or that on the market, related to the current wants of the enthusiasts.
Enthusiasts come in all shapes and sizes. Think brides-to-be, golfers, whitewater rafters, people who collect vintage baseball cards, wine connoisseurs, gardeners, frequent vacationers, video gamers, and parents who put their children into private tutoring, ballet, and violin lessons before age 3.
There are some hobbies that seem to continually attract enthusiasts, like playing golf, watching football, restoring old cars, and listening to music. These are classics. Then there are some hobbies that seem to come and go in waves, such as Red Hat Societies participation, snow boarding, or line dancing. Pick either a classic hobby or a fluctuating hobby in its peak season for your best odds.
A big market on the Internet is the 20-30 set. Here’s what they are doing right now, according to one survey. They’re snowboarding, wakeboarding, traveling, camping, listening to music, taking photographs. They’re drinking gourmet coffee, rock climbing, playing guitar, camping, dancing, looking for online love, shopping for computers and other electronics, attending sports events, studying the Bible, exercising, trying to find jobs, and watching movies. Any one of these subjects would make a great ebook with a buying market standing by.
How-to’s and hot topics
There is almost no limit whatsoever on the marketability of how-to books. Everyone wants an instruction manual, advice, and encouragement that they can do anything they read a how-to book for. Anything you know how to do, anything you’ve ever wanted to learn, or anything that’s teachable at all, can become a how-to ebook.
How-to books for hobbyists are a good way to go, and this overlaps with the discussion above. A hobby how-to ebook could be anything from how to build a home from hay bales to how to play Texas Hold ‘Em to how to understand Shakespeare.
One book publisher knows how hungry we are for how-to information, and has created a whole series of “Dummies” books around the market. Further, there are other similar book series’, and all of them are doing quite well! “The Everything” series, “Idiot’s Guide” series and others are all cashing in on the how-to phenomenon.
You could cash in by creating ebooks on any or all subjects covered in any of those series’. Go to www.dummies.com, and check out their list of titles. Pick one you like, and move full speed ahead!
Remember that even though the books have “Dummies” in the title, that the books are as popular as they are because the readers are not treated like dummies at all. The authors cater to a person who wants to find out the easiest way to do something without too much tangential discussion. When you have your ebook written and when you choose a title, make sure you are appealing to a reader’s smarts! If you use words like stupid, dumb, or hopeless in the title, make sure that it is clear that the meaning would not extend to insulting the individual reader.
Ebooks, because of their brevity and because they are marketed primarily on the Internet can target smaller audiences. You don’t have to write a universal book like How to use a computer (which may not be interesting enough to sell anyway in this decade). Ebooks can cover more specific territory. Knowing this, you can 1) create your ebook in a specific way for a specific niche readership, and 2) create additional ebooks for different facets of the same subject, and sell each one separately!
Say you’ve decided to write an ebook on fishing. (FYI, this is one of those hobbies where enthusiasts are willing to spend money!). You could create “How to Catch Freshwater Trout,” “How to Tie Your Own Flies,” or “How to Plan a Successful Deep Sea Fishing Trip.” Almost anything related to the hobby can become a separate ebook depending on how much detail you include. Clearly, “How to put on waders,” probably wouldn’t be a great choice (though some would say it’s impossible to underestimate today’s consumer), because you would have to strain to fill up 60 to 100 pages on such a simple topic. You get the idea. The topic would need to be, in most cases, book worthy. Use good judgment.
Then, life itself requires instructions, as we know from “Life’s Little Instruction Book.” So, life also qualifies as a good how-to book topic. There are numerous subtopics, and you’ll never run out of ideas. Here are a few examples:
· “How to ensure your child gets an A+ in math”
· “How to have a successful garage sale”
· “How to organize your home office”
And while we’re on the subject of how-to books, I’d like to make one quick point. The titles of these ebooks do not need to be incredibly clever. Be sure the words “How to” are the first part of the title, and the rest should tell exactly what the ebook is about.
For example, which of these three titles would be best?
1. “How to have a successful garage sale.”
2. “One weekend away from a cleaner house”
3. “How to sell your old shoes for a profit”
Although numbers 2 and 3 are clever, a little punchy, and correspond with the ebook content, I would still recommend using title number 1. “How to have a successful garage sale” sums it up pretty well and will catch the eye of an Internet surfer who is interested in putting together a garage sale and needs a how-to manual.
Anyway, back to the point. Any phase of life, way of coping with life, or large or small thing about life can be the subject of a how-to book.
Looking young
Perhaps sixteen year old girls don’t want to look younger, but from that point on, and for most of the population in Western society, looking young is a common desire. Everybody wants to find the fountain of youth, whether it be in a pill bottle, a special diet, surgery, or an ebook.
An ebook about staying or appearing young in the face of growing old will have a solid future. Here are some title ideas, and I’m sure you can come up with a truckload more.
· “Drop ten years and ten pounds in ten days”
· “How to look 28 forever”
· “100 ways to look younger”
· “Grocery store products that will help you look younger”
· “Look 30 again without surgery”
· “How to live to be 100″
This topic is red hot. Botox, surgery, chemical peels, lasers, diets, acupuncture, electronic pulses, mega vitamins, prescription teas, thigh cream, and teeth whiteners are being purchased by baby boomers, the elderly, and even women as young as 20 ! No one wants to look a day older than they have to.
Health
Health is a concern to anyone who is growing old or ill or faced illness with a loved one or wants more energy or, basically, everybody. Health ebooks are a good investment for you to make. And doctors don’t have to be the authors. Anyone with any credentials, or no crendetials at all, can write books on health. Just be sure you don’t claim to be a doctor if you’re not one.
Here are some health topics you can hit at this moment in time and be almost guaranteed immediate interest, readership, and sales!
Disease prevention and cure.As our baby boomer population ages, most will be afflicted with heart disease, cancer, diabetes, dementia, or some other malady. Give these people some hope. Create an ebook on how to cope, how to find the best practitioners, how to avoid disease triggers, or cures American doctors are unaware of.
Natural remedies. People are curious about alternatives to standard medicine, and are anxious to try herbal, natural, or holistic treatments. Create a book on any disease that covers alternative cures. For example, “How to Treat Lymphoma, Naturally.” Or, you could just address natural supplements in general, “The best natural remedies for common ailments,” or “Holistic health.”
Diet. What we eat is always a hot topic. There are literally dozens if not hundreds of diet fads currently out there. Pick any one of them for an ebook. Then there’s obesity, general health, and also diet supplements like vitamins. Think “How to equip your kitchen for macrobiotic dieting.” Or, “Eat to cure cancer.”
Travel
Never has so much travel been available to so many. People today want to get in touch with the people they love. They want to experience different parts of the world. See exotic things. Be entertained. Also, because, especially in America, adults sometimes work well more than 40 hours a week, people need really good vacations. They’re doing their research to make sure that they will really enjoy their precious few weeks off each year.
Here are some topics for you: how to trade frequent flyer miles, how to keep airport security off your back, how to travel on a dime and get change, and how to keep your children happy on long car trips.
Beyond the how-to’s, there is plenty of room for books like, the best amusement parks for your money, top 100 campgrounds, things you must see and do in Utah before you die, and free things to do when visiting Washington, D.C.
Get the idea? The good thing about creating travel ebooks is that you may already know a lot about a place that other people may be interested in visiting. Makes it easy!
Money
Money makes the world go around (well that and the earth’s axis and planetary forces), and so it would make sense that ebooks would abound on the topic of money. They do, but the market is nowhere near saturated. There’s always room for more. From getting rich to just saving money day-to-day, people are always interested in how-to books related to money. Ideas below:
· “How to feed your family on less than $40 a week”
· “How to get free stuff”
· “How to pay almost no taxes”
· “How to buy a retirement home for no money down”
· “How to be richer than your parents”
· “How to buy cars at auction”
· “How to start a financial management business”
Life enrichment
In these days, although fewer and fewer are attending churches, more and more are flocking to purchase self-help books. Self-help books are leaping off shelves at brick and mortar bookstores. People want to feel that if they read a self-help book, they have all the power to change their lives. Whether or not this is true is moot. Changing your life, soul searching, and helping thyself, are all great ebook topics.
As much as ever before, people want to know how to find peace with their pasts, how to be creative or spiritual in a consuming society, and how to find true love. There is no end to how-to books you could create in the category of self-help, or life enrichment. Here are a few more ideas here:
· How to marry for life
· How to unbreak your heart
· How to stay sane in a crazy world
· How to meditate
A few more topics bound to explode
These are fiery hot topics that are sure to be on the rise. You can pull any one of these to use for your first ebook. Then come back and pull another topic for your next ebook.
Using the latest electronics. We are a society obsessed with having the latest and greatest technology. Do an ebook on iPods, email/camera cell phones, wireless Internet, digital TV, or any combination of these items.
Home improvement. There’s so much of a craze in this area that do-it-yourself (DIY) stores are on every corner of major cities. If you haven’t been to a Home Depot or Lowe’s lately, then you are one of the few. Sure, apartment dwellers and young students aren’t in this market, but people with homes and money to afford them are in this market. In fact, some cable TV services offer entire channels dedicated to home improvement.
Especially of current interest are in-home automation systems. DIY home improvers are eager to learn about and buy things that will make their home lives more relaxing, high-tech, or fun. Create a book to teach them how to make their lights come on for them before they get home from their jobs, or how to press a button to adjust window blinds, music, or temperature. Or how Bill Gates’ house works. Or how to add automation to an existing home, or how to build-in automation when a house is constructed.
Identity theft prevention. Especially because ebooks are marketed on the Internet, this is a great topic. This is because people who purchase over the Internet are concerned that their credit card numbers will not be seen by others or misused in any way. Even away from the computer though, consumers are on-edge about identity theft. Today, people are shredding their receipts, removing their personal information from the face of their checks, and cautiously covering themselves when they type in passwords at public terminals or ATMs. Microchips are being installed on ID cards. People are worried. Tap into this with an ebook!
Safety. Along the same lines as worrying about identity theft, people are worried about their safety from other things like crime, chemical warfare attack, and natural disasters. Watch the evening news tonight, and you will be able to list at least twenty things that people are afraid of. When you talk about safety, you are speaking their language. Titles along the lines of be prepared for any natural disaster would go over well, as would those like never be a crime victim again, how to defend yourself in a parking lot, or prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
How-to manuals for any new product recently on the market. This harks back to the Dummies series but takes it one step further. Target your ebook to people who want to buy the most current commercially available item. How to use the new model John Deere tractor. You will be sure that no one else has a book like yours, and you can say so in your sales pitch.
How to survive any phase of life. People face numerous demons and battles as they live their lives. For many, when they’re in need, they’ll be reaching out for help. Support groups, private therapy, being with friends, starting over - these are all solid topics for an ebook. You could also reach out specifically to certain people needing emotional assistance. How to get through the terrible two’s. How to cope with a cancer diagnosis. Living with your own shortcomings. How to live with someone who is dying. Surviving high school. Any of these will do.
Anything to do with pets. People are pampering their pets more than ever before. Some pets are treated better than people. It’s the people who spend small fortunes on their pets that will also be willing to pay good money for an ebook that gives them ideas on how to treat their animals even more royally than they already do.
Write books on how to pamper your parakeet, homemade meals for picky dogs, where the pet spas are, how to train your kids to be cat-friendly, million dollar homes for mutts, which animals make the best pets, or pet psychology.
Traveling mixed with the subjects above. Not only are people traveling like crazy, but they want to customize their itineraries and their methods of travel with their hobbies and lifestyles. Try a few of these on for size: where to dine around the globe and still stay on a low-carb diet plan. Hotels with the best exercise facilities. How to travel exquisitely with large dogs. Crime-proof your campsite. Be creative. There’s a market here.
Using the Internet to meet people. As I said, the craze is upon us. Everyone’s online, and sometimes folks spend more time chatting with Internet buddies than they do talking face to face with actual friends. I know I’ve been guilty of this one myself. Anyway, along with the advent of the World Wide Web, came people who need a little help figuring out how to get where they want to get. They want to find like-minded people, find a date, find love, find support.
There’s a huge ebook market for hooking people up with people online. Here are just a few things that could be covered: speed dating online, virtual music jams, taking online classes, hooking up with people who share your hobby, and finding online support groups. Any of these and more are of interest to people who wish to get maximum benefit from their ability, thanks to the Internet, to network with people in the farthest reaches of the world. In fact one of the appeals with online communing is that distance does not matter. Help these people in foreign lands find each other with an ebook.
Topics of special interest to women. The facts don’t lie. Women dominate the Internet, and they spend or influence spending of 80 cents for every dollar changing hands. What women want has never been so important to business owners and authors.
Certain topics appeal particularly to the female set. These include beauty, health, decorating, emotional support, and life enrichment. Women do a few things, generally, that men don’t. They play bunko, wear make-up, and talk for hours to their girlfriends on the phone. They send more greeting cards, prepare more casseroles, and vacuum more often than men. They eat more salads and go shopping more often for clothes. They get more pedicures and love to dance more than the average man.
There are two things to keep in mind with regards to women and ebooks. If you want to attract a female market, you need to write about a topic that women like to read about, and you want to make the title friendly towards women.
Here’s a female-oriented subject and title: Where to find great shopping bargains in Taos. And here’s a male subject: Where to catch the most fish in Taos.
Here’s a female-friendly title (same as above): Where to find great shopping bargains in Taos. And here’s a male-friendly title on the same subject: Keep your money in your pocket in Taos. See the difference? Know your market, and if you need to choose between one or the other, you’re safe going with the women’s title.
Sex. People don’t need to sneak out of bookstores with erotic books in their hands anymore, and they know it. They are looking on the Internet for sex materials, toys, and books. The Internet is private, individuals can take their sweet time, and indeed they can surf with or without a lover sharing their chair. There’s been a recent ebook success entitled Orgasms for two. There is room for more similar ebooks. On the subject of sex, this is one case where a fiction book may also do the trick. You could create erotic short stories or a how-to-have-great-sex ebook. Either ebook would entice adults interested in this category (and incidentally, most adults are indeed interested in this category).
Get more interesting articles on Internet Marketing at my blog: http://mfuzi.com
- mfuzi
Awaken the Giant Within You
Your True Size Is Measured By Your Courage, Wisdom, and Love.
Even as a baby elephant, Bulig was big.
As Bulig grew up, he was taller and bigger than all his playmates.
It didn’t take long for the other elephant to be afraid of him. And Bulig knew this. So he used his size to terrify others to do what he wanted them to do.
He’d snort and growl as he’d say, “I’ll crush you!” It was his usual greeting to anyone he met on the road.
Obviously, if the other elephants were scared of Bulig, the other smaller animals would be as well. Monkeys, deers, tigers, and even lions stood in awe at the huge animal.
The elephants gave him a special home on top of a small hill. And Bulig’s throne was a gigantic bed. There he lay down and lorded it over the jungle.
Each morning, the elephants would give him a basketful of bananas. And the monkeys would give him a basketful of apples. And the deer would give him a basketful of nuts. This happened everyday.
So Bulig grew even bigger. And the more he grew, the more terrified the animals became of him.
He now became a god to all the animals there.
A group of pelicans took turns fanning him.
A group of parakeets sang to him in the morning.
A group of monkey acrobats performed for his evening entertainment.
For the longest time, Bulig never much left his home.
In fact, for years, he didn’t even stand up from his giant bed.
All he really did was snort and growl once in awhile, “I will crush you!” And every time he said it, all the animals would be terrified.
Because he didn’t move much, he became as fat as ten elephants put together!
Now, even other animals from other jungles would visit to see for themselves if the Legend of the Giant Elephant was true. And all of them would stand in terror at the sight of the great beast.
One of those animals was a tiny turtle by the name Pokito.
Pokito heard about this Elephant and wanted to see him.
Being a young and playful turtle, he thought it would be great to be friends with the giant elephant.
So one day, he walked up to Bulig who was like a mountain compared to Pokito. But Pokito wasn’t afraid.
He said, “Hi great Bulig! Can I be your friend?”
All the animals around Bulig gasped in horror. Who dared speak to Bulig in that way? Does he know what he was saying? Poor turtle!
Bulig was insulted that a little creature was not worshipping him as a god. So he snorted and growled his usual growl and said, “I will crush you!”
But Pokito was a wise turtle. He saw that behind Bulig’s size was great weakness. He felt pity for him. So he simply said, “Bulig, I just want to be your friend. If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I’ll just go on my merry way…”
As he turned around, Bulig got even angrier and snorted and growled again and said in a bigger voice, “I WILL CRUSH YOU!”
All the animals scampered behind bushes, rocks, and trees. It was the first time they heard Bulig this angry.
Pokito turned around to face the giant again and said calmly, “Bulig, I wouldn’t do that if I were you. You might hurt yourself…”
Bulig’s face turned red as a fire truck.
He stood up. Or at least tried to.
Remember, it has been years since he even stood up!
“Ummph… Ummmph…. Ummmmmmmph!” Bulig struggled and struggled but couldn’t stand up!
“Bulig, please don’t do that…” Pokito said.
All the animals left their hiding places. They were totally shocked to see their god having difficulty standing up!
Finally, Bulig’s legs folded and he came crashing to the ground. Whaaam!
Bulig was now in pain, but his humiliation was even greater than any physical pain he was feeling at that moment.
First, a little monkey began to jeer.
Soon, other monkeys joined him.
And after awhile, all the animals began to ridicule Bulig. They taunted him and called him names. “Weakling!”, “Fatso!”, and “Blubberhouse!”
That was when Pokito screamed, “Stooooooooop it!”
Everyone hushed at the brave turtle in front of them.
“For years, you worshipped Bulig as a god,” Pokito said, “but now, you’re insulting him as the enemy. Why are you doing that? Bulig is just one of us, just like any other animal.”
Pokito marched to the embarrassed, whimpering Bulig and said, “Do you need help to stand up?” Sheepishly, Bulig nodded his head.
The turtle turned to the other elephants, “Help your friend stand up.”
The other elephants were astounded by the wisdom of the little turtle. All of them went beside the giant, and together, pushed him up.
With great effort, the huge elephant stood up.
With his knees still trembling, Bulig smiled at the turtle and quietly said, “Thank you. You are the real giant.”
Pokito smiled. “Thank you.”
Bulig asked, “Can you be my friend?”
The turtle said, “On one condition. You have to join me in jogging every morning.” He winked.
And all the animals broke out in laughter.
7 Lessons for Life
I wrote this little story for Mustard, our children’s magazine. (Why Mustard? From mustard seed! If you want to subscribe and get 10 fun-filled issues for your kids, log on at www.shepherdsvoice.com.ph )
But the powerful lessons in the story aren’t for children only.
In fact, I believe adults need to hear them more than kids do!
Here are the 7 life-changing lessons from the story:
Lesson #1:
Don’t look for worshippers; Look for true friends instead.
Not all friends are created equal. Some friends are just fans. They admire you. They flatter you. They fear you. They benefit from you. But when you need them, they’re not there. Choose true friends over fans anytime. When you have a problem, they’ll stick there by your side.
Lesson #2:
The best way to look for a true friend is to be one.
Are you a true friend? Do you care for people? Do you go out of your way to express your love for them? The best investment you’ll ever make will be in your relationships. There lies your true gold.
Lesson #3:
Bullies are weak. Avoid them or face up to them,
but never be afraid of them.
Do you have bullies in your life? You’ll always cross paths with bullies. Bullies intimidate people. Bullies want you to fear them. They manipulate you to follow them. Depending on the situation, you can avoid them or face up to them. But never be afraid of bullies. Because all bullies are fake. With their outward force, they cover up their weakness. But deep within, a bully is a fragile child with lots of fears.
Lesson #4:
When someone doesn’t like to be your friend,
just walk off and go on your merry way.
Life is too beautiful to be sad at one person’s rejection.
People-pleasers want to please everyone. And when one person rejects them, they die within. Because people-pleasers need to be needed. When a person rejects them, they get hurt deeply—and carry this hurt wherever they go and allow this hurt to affect their lives forever. What does a mature person do when they receive rejection? They get hurt like everyone else but they don’t carry the hurt. They shake the dust of their feet and move on. They love themselves. They love life.
Lesson #5:
When someone is angry with you in an unjust way, pity that person.
He will be hurting himself.
Don’t pity yourself when you suffer unjust anger. Remember that unjust anger destroys the person who is angry, not you. Pity him.
Lesson #6:
Always be good and kind to everyone—
whether he be a king or a beggar.
Every human being you meet in life is God’s child. Whether he sits on a throne or lies on the mud, it makes no difference. That person is your family.
Lesson #7:
Your true size is measured by your courage, wisdom, and love.
Are you a big person? Measure your courage and wisdom. By how you love, you shall know whether you have matured in life or not.
May your dreams come true,
Bo Sanchez
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- Bo Sanchez
parakeet health?
My keet has some really labored breathing I just now noticed, shoud I take her to a vet?
- G. B.
Budgie Parakeet Feather Health Question?
Budgie question, I have two budgies.. they seem to be in good health, however I have noticed that under their necks, wings, and rump in small areas the feathers look sparce and thin. I’m not sure if this is normal, or maybe it’s a part of the molt process? Although I have not seen loose feathers flying around. I’m a first time budgie owner, and they’re great! I want to be sure they stay happy and healthy, thanks for the help!
- Brittany D
Parakeet Health Trouble?
i think my parakeet has scaly face. i have been reading up on it and she has alot of the symtoms only its just beginning. what can i do to treat this condition?
oh and how much would it cost if i took her to a vet? i dont have any insurence.
- MaRi3.
Parrot/parakeet health question?
My landlord (who lives in the house) has brought a small parakeet type bird into the house. It’s in a dreadful state - all its feathers are manky, and I’ve seen it pluck its own feathers out. It’s kept in a cage all day, and from what I can see, it can’t fly. It uses its beak and claws to navigate around the cage.
All it’s fed are monkey nuts, bits of fruit and water. The landlord says it plucks its own feathers out because it’s bored. I just think it’s really cruel. It hardly has any contact all day. The owner doesn’t get back till about 8pm and then hardly does anything with it. I think he’s hoping it’ll speak, then “I can sell it for £1000″, but there’s no way this thing will speak unless it receives some TLC. The landlord’s not a bad bloke and he doesn’t mean it any harm, but I just think no one wants it - its exchanged hands between his family several times already.
I can’t really ring the RSPB/RSPC though, as he’ll know it’s me and I’ll most likely get kicked out.
- Quickswitch79
Could bird (for example, parakeet) droppings be considered a hazard to human health?
Hi. I have two budgies, and I love them to death. I know they’re indoor birds, so at first I wanted to keep them indoors in our living room. However, my parents are worried that the droppings could lead to illnesses, so as a result, we keep them outdoors on nice days, and leave them in the basement at nights. They still get a lot of attention, but I still prefer to keep them indoors at all times. Could someone please clear up this subject matter for me, and whether my parents’ theory about illnesses transmitted through the feces is true or not? Any response will be greatly appreciated. Thanks
- damasta
Please help with parakeet health, paint,and my new oven?
Well…. I am painting and using polyurethane on my kitchen so my parakeet is at his grandma’s house for safe keeping. I had my new oven delivered and they said to turn it on for 1/2 hour and there will be fumes the first time I use it. Well.. the book that came with it said the same thing, and that there will be fumes the first several times it is used. The book also said that it can kill a pet bird. I already know that, but I am wondering when it will be safe for him to come home. will this oven be dangerous forever? how many times should I use it before he comes home? If I don’t smell the fumes anymore, can it still hurt him?
- Lorena Anne
Parakeet Health Questions?
I used to own two parakeets, Brenda and Marley. One guy and one girl. Both two years old.
Recently Marley died(for no reason) and I found Brenda on the bottom of the cage trying to nudge him awake(heartbroken.)
She’s getting over it and cheering up but I have found tail feathers in and around the cage. She seems to be mourning.
Should I get a new friend for her? And what things can I do to prevent this from happening again?
And what should I have in my cage to keep my birds happier and healthier? What can I use to keep their claws trimmed. Brenda is missing a claw on one foot and I attribute this to being too long.
Also, Brenda’s cere has been brown and crusty lately. Should I be concerned? Is this treatable?
- aries2110
my baby parakeet breathes fast, but i know my other one did that when i first got it. is it stress or health?
it seems to be eating and drinking normally, it’s very loving and social… and the poop is a little green.
- turqie868