8 perkara pantang bagi lelaki

1. Jika anda mahu disayangi sepenuh hati oleh lelaki yang anda sayangi jangan bongkar rahsia diri anda sendiri. Usah beritahu dia ada ramai lelaki meminati anda. Dia boleh bertindak meninggalkan anda ataupun cari masalah dengan lelaki-lelaki berkenaan. Dia boleh anggap anda "buaya" atau "pisau cukur". Tidak mustahil juga dia berasa jauh hati dan merasakan dirinya tiada peluang.

Lebihkan berbicara tentang masa hadapan dan dia sebagai satu-satunya lelaki yang bertakhta di hati anda. Usah banding-bandingkan dia dengan lelaki yang pernah anda kenali. Itu mengundang musibah.

2. Sejahat-jahat lelaki selalunya tetap patuh dan taat pada ibunya. Jdi, jangan gatal-gatal cakap itu ini, begitu begini tentang ibunya. Cakap yang baik-baik tak apa walaupun tak betul. Lelaki mudah lemah apabila disebut tentang pengorbanan ibunya, tetapi mudah lemah apabila disebut tentang pengorbanan ibunya, tetapi mudah marah apabila ibunya dihina walaupun memang benar ibunya jahat.

3. Kenapa suka sangat cerita sejarah silam anda? Tak perlu. Simpan semua sejarah silam untuk diri anda sendiri. Dia tidak ingin tahu semua itu. Setelah anda bertaubat anggap diri anda bersih. Dia juga akan menganggap begitu terhadap anda. Hanya bercerita tentang rahsia anda apabila anda rasakan ia boleh mengintimkan hubungan. Membocorkan rahsia diri bukanlah caranya untuk hubungan yang aman harmoni.

4. Jika dia telah pun bergelar suami, usah sentuh soal kejantanannya yang mungkin telah menurun selari dengan bertambahnya usia. Dia memang tak suka dengar, tak suka bincang dan tak suka berubat. Apa yang anda boleh lakukan ialah carikan penawar dan campurkan dengan minuman atau makanan kegemarannya secara rahsia. Jangan sekali-kali perlekeh dan perkecilkannya. Dia boleh mengamuk gila.

5. Dia tak suka sama sekali jika dipersalahkan, meskipun jelas dia bersalah. Misalnya anda balik kampung dan dia memandu, tiba-tiba dia mengambil jalan lain untuk short-cut, tiba-tiba tersesat dan sampai ke rumah lewat beberapa jam dari selalu. Lalu anda asyik menyalahkannya dan menceritakan hal itu kepada mentua anda, ibunya. Anda sengaja mencari nahas dengan berbuat begitu.

6. Sokong dia atas semua masalah yang dihadapinya, terutama dengan bos, dengan kawan-kawan, bahkan minat dia pun anda perlu sokong. Jangan tatkala dia mengeluh atau mengadu tentang bos atau teman sekerja, anda tokok tambah lagi serta menyalah-nyalahkannya, ini sangat menyakitkan hatinya. Anda tahu apa yang akan dilakukan selepas itu? Selepas itu dia tidak akan bicara lagi dengan anda. Dia akan mencari orang lain untuk bercakap. Jika kebetulan orang itu adalah wanita, akhirnya ada kemungkinan anda dipertandingkan dan dibanding-bandingkan. Bersiap sedialah untuk diduakan, gunakan bahasa paling halus tanpa mengusik sama sekali egonya.

7. Jangan puji lelaki lain di hadapannya. Jika tertarik pun diam saja dan simpan dalam hati. Walaupun lelaki itu seorang artis milik masyarakat, memuji-mujinya secara berlebihan akan mengundang rasa tidak senang. Silap-silap dia akan cap anda "gatal".

8. Lelaki penuh dengan keegoaan, Meskipun dia berpendidikan rendah daripada anda, usah perkecilkannya. Minta pendapatnya selalu apabila nak buat keputusan. Berikan dia kuasa memimpin. Jangan fikir mentang-mentang anda berpendidikan tinggi dan berpendapatan lebih daripadanya, anda berhak bersuara menentukan satu-satu keputusan. Lelaki tetap pemimpin dan hak membuat keputusan terletak di tangannya. Anda boleh memberi cadangan, jangan asyik bangkang.

__,_._,___

World Cup Preview - Semifinal Predictions


With South Africa and Mexico kicking off the 2010 World Cup in less than 48 hours, it's time for our predictions to be kicked up a notch. We've already given you our thoughts on who'll advance out of the group stages here. So, with that prognostication in mind, it's time to see who'll be moving on to the prestigious Final Four of the knockout round!

The Contenders
-With our predicted group draw, it's fairly clear that, in one of the deepest World Cup tournaments ever, there are more than only a few countries who consider merit in the semifinals. However, in our World Cup Bracket, these nations come close to making the semis, only to fall short.

Serbia-A trendy pick as an underdog thanks to their tremendous backline, we just don't see the Serbs having enough firepower up front to take out more balanced attacks after the group stage.

Italy-If this tournament were 2 or 3 years ago, Italy might be a lock to make it to the semifinals. But the aging of so many of their influential players (Cannavarro, Pirlo, etc.) will see this World Cup end early for the defending champs.

Mexico-We see El Tri making it to the round of 8, but they're shaky defense and at times questionable discipline will see them fall short on the world stage.

Argentina-Yes, it would be quite the story for the world's greatest player (Lio Messi) and the world's craziest national team manager (Diego Maradona) to make the semifinals. But, without picking his best 23 players, we see Argentina suffering an upset in the early portions of the knockout round.

Netherlands- The Dutch always play the most attractive football in the big events, but they don't do enough of the little things to win the ultimate prize, especially considering who they might play in the quarterfinals.

Ivory Coast/Cameroon/Nigeria-And as much as we'd love to see an African nation reach the semis in the first World Cup on African soil, there just isn't enough balance in any of these sides to advance that deep into the knockout stages. A healthy Didier Drogba might have made a difference, but we're at least expecting one of these teams to make it to the quarterfinals.

So...who do we predict will make the semifinals of the 2010 World Cup?

(1) England
Projected Path: vs. Serbia (2nd round), vs. Mexico (QF)
-Perhaps a bit of a sentimental choice, but England does have a relatively easy path towards the semifinals compared to other teams. If they can survive a defensive slugfest against Serbia, they will go against a Mexico side they have just beaten 3-1 at Wembley. While England has suffered heartbreak after heartbreak in the World Cup since 1966, this would be only their second trip to the semis since that triumph, the other being in 1990. But, there's no doubting the talent the side has, especially with Wayne Rooney up front, and the talent they finally have at manager with Fabio Capello

(2) Brazil
Projected Path: vs. Chile (2nd round), vs. Netherlands (QF)
-The Brazilians enter as one of the favorites to win the World Cup, as usual. But, they perhaps face the toughest road of any of our Final 4. First they would have to dispatch fellow South African rivals Chile, who finished joint 2nd in CONMEBOL qualifying. Then, they would play perhaps the match of the tournament, a quarterfinal date with the Dutch. Like we said, Holland at this point in the tournament could well be taking South Africa by storm with their attractive brand of football. And, in other years, Brazil might play right into the beautiful game. But, under the steely hand of Dunga, the Brazilians have the grit and toughness to shut down a high-powered attack while still possessing enough offensive firepower to advance.

(3) Germany
Projected Path: vs. USA (2nd round), vs. Uruguay (QF)
-It seems there are 3 certainties in life: death, taxes, and Germany in the World Cup semifinals. Since its inception, the Germans have made it to the semifinals 11 out of 19 times! Simply astonishing! And even without their captain Ballack, there's enough quality and leadership to advance the Germans past the U.S. and the winner of a slugfest between Argentina and Uruguay. Simply put, the Germans are the best example in the world of the sum of the whole being better than the individual pieces. Of course, another weak quadrant of the draw also would help matters.

(4) Spain
Projected Path: vs. Ivory Coast (2nd round), vs. Cameroon (QF)
-The other co-favorite with the Brazilians, the defending Euro 2008 champions would also have a difficult time of it in the knockout rounds as we project them going up against two African nations, the Ivory Coast and Cameroon. And while all the focus for the Spaniards success is on their attacking prowess (Torres, Villa, Xavi, Iniesta) they are just as strong at the back with Casillas between the posts and Pique and Puyol anchoring the defense. Their world record streak of 35 unbeaten matches shows the quality in this side, and even facing the emotion of two African nations won't be enough to deter Spain on their quest for glory.

So, with our semifinalists in place, who will make it to the World Cup Final and ultimately hoist the world's biggest trophy? We'll give you our picks for England vs. Brazil and Spain vs. Germany as well as our tournament winner and team of the tournament tomorrow on the eve of soccer madness! Until next time, it's bye for now!


Resource by Mr. Yoder

PENJELASAN PEMBATALAN 'KASI GEGAR PENANG 2010'

Photoshop-Zoom Blur


Teknik menggunakan Zoom Blur ke atas imej untuk mendapatkan kesan dramatik. Kaedah ini menggunakan layer mask (lebih baik daripada cara eraser).

HASIL:

FOTO ASAL:

LANGKAH 1:

  • Buka foto pilihan anda di dalam Photoshop.
  • Duplicate layer Background, tekan Ctrl + J.

LANGKAH 2:

  • Applykan filter Radial Blur ke atas layer yang baru diduplicate tadi.
  • Klik menu Filter > Blur > Radial Blur. Pilih Blur Method: Zoom dan setkan nilai Amount yang sesuai. Untuk contoh ini saya setkan pada 80.
  • Sekiranya, kesan Zoom Blur terlalu kasar anda boleh menggunakan Filter > Noise > Despeckle untuk mengurangkan kesan ini. Applykan beberapa kali sehingga berpuas hati.

LANGKAH 3:

  • Kemudian, klik pada ikon add layer mask di bahagian bawah panel layer.
  • Tujuan menambah layer mask adalah untuk 'menghilangkan' bahagian layer 1 supaya subjek menjadi lebih fokus (jelas).

LANGKAH 4:

  • Sekarang, setkan warna hitam sebagai Foreground Color. Tekan huruf 'D' dan kemudiannya huruf 'X'.
  • Dengan menggunakan Brush Tool, sapukan warna hitam ke atas layer mask di bahagian tengah imej iaitu pada bahagian yang anda ingin dapatkan fokusnya kembali. Sapukan sehingga anda berpuas hati dengan hasilnya.
  • Siap!

HASIL:

Selamat mencuba!
source: sifoo.com


Citroen Concept Car




Hitam di Dahi Tanda Niat Tidak Suci

Hitam di Dahi Tanda Niat Tidak Suci


sumber : http://ustadzaris. com/hitam- hitam-di- dahi-tanda- niat-tidak- suci

Tanya:
"Bagaimana cara menyamarkan/ menghilangkan noda hitam di kening/di jidat karena sewaktu sujud dalam shalat terlalu menghujam sehingga ada bekas warna hitam?"
0281764xxxx
Jawab:

مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلًا مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِمْ مِنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ

Yang artinya, "Muhammad itu adalah utusan Allah dan orang-orang yang bersama dengan Dia adalah keras terhadap orang-orang kafir, tetapi berkasih sayang sesama mereka. kamu Lihat mereka ruku' dan sujud mencari karunia Allah dan keridhaan-Nya, tanda-tanda mereka tampak pada muka mereka dari bekas sujud" (QS al Fath:29).
Banyak orang yang salah paham dengan maksud ayat ini. Ada yang mengira bahwa dahi yang hitam karena sujud itulah yang dimaksudkan dengan 'tanda-tanda mereka tampak pada muka mereka dari bekas sujud'. Padahal bukan demikian yang dimaksudkan.
Diriwayatkan oleh Thabari dengan sanad yang hasan dari Ibnu Abbas bahwa yang dimaksudkan dengan 'tanda mereka…" adalah perilaku yang baik.
Diriwayatkan oleh Thabari dengan sanad yang kuat dari Mujahid bahwa yang dimaksudkan adalahkekhusyuan.
Juga diriwayatkan oleh Thabari dengan sanad yang hasan dari Qatadah, beliau berkata, "Ciri mereka adalahshalat" (Tafsir Mukhtashar Shahih hal 546).

عَنْ سَالِمٍ أَبِى النَّضْرِ قَالَ : جَاءَ رَجُلٌ إِلَى ابْنِ عُمَرَ فَسَلَّمَ عَلَيْهِ قَالَ : مَنْ أَنْتَ؟ قَالَ : أَنَا حَاضِنُكَ فُلاَنٌ. وَرَأَى بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْهِ سَجْدَةً سَوْدَاءَ فَقَالَ : مَا هَذَا الأَثَرُ بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْكَ؟ فَقَدْ صَحِبْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ -صلى الله عليه وسلم- وَأَبَا بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ رَضِىَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ فَهَلْ تَرَى هَا هُنَا مِنْ شَىْءٍ؟

Dari Salim Abu Nadhr, ada seorang yang datang menemui Ibnu Umar. Setelah orang tersebut mengucapkan salam, Ibnu Umar bertanya kepadanya, "Siapakah anda?". "Aku adalah anak asuhmu", jawab orang tersebut.
Ibnu Umar melihat ada bekas sujud yang berwarna hitam di antara kedua matanya. Beliau berkata kepadanya, "Bekas apa yang ada di antara kedua matamu? Sungguh aku telah lama bershahabat dengan Rasulullah, Abu Bakr, Umar dan Utsman. Apakah kau lihat ada bekas tersebut pada dahiku?" (Riwayat Baihaqi dalam Sunan Kubro no 3698)

عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ : أَنَّهُ رَأَى أَثَرًا فَقَالَ : يَا عَبْدَ اللَّهِ إِنَّ صُورَةَ الرَّجُلِ وَجْهُهُ ، فَلاَ تَشِنْ صُورَتَكَ.

Dari Ibnu Umar, beliau melihat ada seorang yang pada dahinya terdapat bekas sujud. Ibnu Umar berkata, "Wahai hamba Allah, sesungguhnya penampilan seseorang itu terletak pada wajahnya. Janganlah kau jelekkan penampilanmu!" (Riwayat Baihaqi dalam Sunan Kubro no 3699).

عَنْ أَبِى عَوْنٍ قَالَ : رَأَى أَبُو الدَّرْدَاءِ امْرَأَةً بِوَجْهِهَا أَثَرٌ مِثْلُ ثَفِنَةِ الْعَنْزِ ، فَقَالَ : لَوْ لَمْ يَكُنْ هَذَا بِوَجْهِكِ كَانَ خَيْرًا لَكِ.

Dari Abi Aun, Abu Darda' melihat seorang perempuan yang pada wajahnya terdapat 'kapal' semisal 'kapal' yang ada pada seekor kambing. Beliau lantas berkata, 'Seandainya bekas itu tidak ada pada dirimu tentu lebih baik" (Riwayat Bahaqi dalam Sunan Kubro no 3700).

عَنْ حُمَيْدٍ هُوَ ابْنُ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ قَالَ : كُنَّا عِنْدَ السَّائِبِ بْنِ يَزِيدَ إِذْ جَاءَهُ الزُّبَيْرُ بْنُ سُهَيْلِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ عَوْفٍ فَقَالَ : قَدْ أَفْسَدَ وَجْهَهُ ، وَاللَّهِ مَا هِىَ سِيمَاءُ ، وَاللَّهِ لَقَدْ صَلَّيْتُ عَلَى وَجْهِى مُذْ كَذَا وَكَذَا ، مَا أَثَّرَ السُّجُودُ فِى وَجْهِى شَيْئًا.

Dari Humaid bin Abdirrahman, aku berada di dekat as Saib bin Yazid ketika seorang yang bernama az Zubair bin Suhail bin Abdirrahman bin Auf datang. Melihat kedatangannya, as Saib berkata, "Sungguh dia telah merusak wajahnya. Demi Allah bekas di dahi itu bukanlah bekas sujud. Demi Allah aku telah shalat dengan menggunakan wajahku ini selama sekian waktu lamanya namun sujud tidaklah memberi bekas sedikitpun pada wajahku" (Riwayat Baihaqi dalam Sunan Kubro no 3701).

عَنْ مَنْصُورٍ قَالَ قُلْتُ لِمُجَاهِدٍ (سِيمَاهُمْ فِى وُجُوهِهِمْ مِنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ) أَهُوَ أَثَرُ السُّجُودِ فِى وَجْهِ الإِنْسَانِ؟ فَقَالَ : لاَ إِنَّ أَحَدَهُمْ يَكُونُ بَيْنَ عَيْنَيْهِ مِثْلُ رُكْبَةِ الْعَنْزِ وَهُوَ كَمَا شَاءَ اللَّهُ يَعْنِى مِنَ الشَّرِّ وَلَكِنَّهُ الْخُشُوعُ.

Dari Manshur, Aku bertanya kepada Mujahid tentang maksud dari firman Allah, 'tanda-tanda mereka tampak pada muka mereka dari bekas sujud' apakah yang dimaksudkan adalah bekas di wajah?
Jawaban beliau, "Bukan, bahkan ada orang yang 'kapal' yang ada di antara kedua matanya itu bagaikan 'kapal' yang ada pada lutut onta namun dia adalah orang bejat. Tanda yang dimaksudkan adalah kekhusyu'an" (Riwayat Baihaqi dalam Sunan Kubro no 3702).
Bahkan Ahmad ash Showi mengatakan, "Bukanlah yang dimaksudkan oleh ayat adalah sebagaimanaperbuatan orang-orang bodoh dan tukang riya' yaitu tanda hitam yang ada di dahi karena hal itu adalah ciri khas khawarij (baca: ahli bid'ah)" (Hasyiah ash Shawi 4/134, Dar al Fikr).
Dari al Azroq bin Qois, Syarik bin Syihab berkata, "Aku berharap bisa bertemu dengan salah seorang shahabat Muhammad yang bisa menceritakan hadits tentang Khawarij kepadaku. Suatu hari aku berjumpa dengan Abu Barzah yang berada bersama satu rombongan para shahabat. Aku berkata kepadanya, "Ceritakanlah kepadaku hadits yang kau dengar dari Rasulullah tentang Khawarij!".
Beliau berkata, "Akan kuceritakan kepada kalian suatu hadits yang didengar sendiri oleh kedua telingaku dan dilihat oleh kedua mataku. Sejumlah uang dinar diserahkan kepada Rasulullah lalu beliau membaginya. Ada seorang yang plontos kepalanya dan ada hitam-hitam bekas sujud di antara kedua matanya. Dia mengenakan dua lembar kain berwarna putih. Dia mendatangi Nabi dari arah sebelah kanan dengan harapan agar Nabi memberikan dinar kepadanya namun beliau tidak memberinya.
Dia lantas berkata, "Hai Muhammad hari ini engkau tidak membagi dengan adil".
Mendengar ucapannya, Nabi marah besar. Beliau bersabda, "Demi Allah, setelah aku meninggal dunia kalian tidak akan menemukan orang yang lebih adil dibandingkan diriku". Demikian beliau ulangi sebanyak tiga kali. Kemudian beliau bersabda,

يَخْرُجُ مِنْ قِبَلِ الْمَشْرِقِ رِجَالٌ كَانَ هَذَا مِنْهُمْ هَدْيُهُمْ هَكَذَا يَقْرَءُونَ الْقُرْآنَ لاَ يُجَاوِزُ تَرَاقِيَهُمْ يَمْرُقُونَ مِنَ الدِّينِ كَمَا يَمْرُقُ السَّهْمُ مِنَ الرَّمِيَّةِ ثُمَّ لاَ يَرْجِعُونَ فِيهِ سِيمَاهُمُ التَّحْلِيقُ لاَ يَزَالُونَ يَخْرُجُونَ

"Akan keluar dari arah timur orang-orang yang seperti itu penampilan mereka. Dia adalah bagian dari mereka. Mereka membaca al Qur'an namun alQur'an tidaklah melewati tenggorokan mereka. Mereka melesat dari agama sebagaimana anak panah melesat dari binatang sasarannya setelah menembusnya kemudia mereka tidak akan kembali kepada agama. Cirri khas mereka adalah plontos kepala. Mereka akan selalul muncul" (HR Ahmad no 19798, dinilai shahih li gharihi oleh Syeikh Syu'aib al Arnauth).
Oleh karena itu, ketika kita sujud hendaknya proporsonal jangan terlalu berlebih-lebihan sehingga hampir seperti orang yang telungkup. Tindakan inilah yang sering menjadi sebab timbulnya bekas hitam di dahi.

Sumber: respek

ProBlogging – 10 Things I Wish I Knew when I Started

As much as many of us want to get our blogs up and running and create an overnight success story, the truth is that having desire alone just isn’t enough. For starters, guys like Darren make it look extremely easy now, but it’s not like he rolled out of bed one morning and became an instant success. He poured hours of blood, sweat, and tears into his blogs before they became income worthy, but don’t fret just yet, help is on the way.

Even though we have to make our way through the learning curve until everything “clicks” into place, there’s no reason that we can’t shorten the learning curve so that we can spend less time wishing and more time living. By learning from our own experiences and, more importantly, the experiences of others, we can do just that. Darren does a great job of doing that here, but I’d like to present a list of things I learned the hard way, things I wish I knew sooner, and things that I think new bloggers could use to elevate their game to the next level.

1. Good design is crucial

Most bloggers don’t have a very long time to make a good first impression, and with the abundance of great content throughout the interwebs, readers try fo find ways to cut back and/or make quick decisions on which content they consume. One of the ways they do this is by judging a book by its cover. It might not be fair, but it’s reality. You dont’ have to give your kidney for a good design. There are dozens of theme providers that have both inexpensive and free themes that look much better than what was designed 2-3 years ago.

2. Narrow Your Niche

This is something that took me a long time to understand. I thought that by covering a bunch of topics, casting a wider net so to speak, that I would attract more people to my blog. The problem with that strategy is that when you do attract new visitors, you throw them off if your content isn’t consistent. They’ll wind up leaving and you’ll have to recruit new readers for every single post. So, try fishing with a spear instead.

3. Comments Really Do Matter

I didn’t take this seriously at first. I thought that my content was special enough to get noticed on its own. Boy was I wrong! It wasn’t until a few months ago that I crafted a comment policy that has helped my traffic explode. I do it by subscribing by email to a dozen or so blogs in my niche so that I’m notified as soon as there is a new post. I try to comment right away and do my best to add something meaningful to the conversation. More importantly, I come back and reply to other comments in the discussion. Do this often enough and on enough blogs and you will start to get noticed. You can’t give commenting lip service either; it is something that needs to be done every day.

4. Don’t Underestimate the Importance of Your Knowledge

When you master a skill, it’s easy to think that others might be on the same level as you, which can lead you to discount the value of your skill set and experience. However, most people don’t know what you know and would to pay you to teach them. Things that might seem simple to you can look like Greek to a reader. Don’t ever take your skill set and knowledge base for granted.

5. When You Have a Blog, You are the Authority

Own It! – We blog from behind a desk and see our lives as imperfect or incomplete. However, to a customer or new reader, you have an incredible amount of authority. If you have gone through the work of publishing content, then you need to step up to the plate and own that content. Take the authority and use it. You might be a 6 or 7 (on a 10 point scale), but to that new person, you are a leader. This excites people…they want a piece of your vision. Use that authority to step up to the plate and give them what they want. Don’t be afraid to be an expert!

6. Consistency Counts

I thought I could get away with blogging whenever I felt like it. I thought I could change the topic based on what felt right at the time. Looking back through my archives, I’m almost embarrassed by the casual attitude I took with my blog. These days, I know better and I keep a steady editorial schedule (3 posts per week on Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday) and have narrowed the topics of my content to a degree that keeps my readers feeling like they belong. Changing it up all the time confuses people and scares away good readers.

7. Have a Plan

What are you going to do when your readership doubles? How are you going to handle getting hundreds of emails per day? How will you respond to comments? How do you see your platform evolving over the next year, 2, or even 5? These are some of the questions that you need to address early and often. Your plan might not be perfect, but at least you’ll have a direction to head. There’s nothing wrong with being flexible, but allowing your circumstances to dictate your business can lead you down roads that are better left untraveled.

8. Start Networking Early!

I cannot emphasize this enough. Use Twitter, comments, and guest posting as a tool to meet new people. The wider your reach, the easier it is to get noticed. Don’t wait for people to come to you…get out and network. People love personal connections! Go to conferences and shake hands with other bloggers. You never know which contact could turn into a great guest posting opportunity, a JV deal, or a new devoted fan. Blogging is a business, and you’ve got to get out and meet people if you want to take your blog to the next level.

9. Be Everywhere

This is tied in with the previous point, but to keep it simple – try to be in as many places as you can. Use Twitter, Facebook, USTREAM, YouTube, LinkedIn, and any other social network you can. You don’t have to live there, but having a presence there is important. People need to be able to find you in as many places as possible. You never know where that next source of income or the next reader might come from.

10. Hustle

Really, it all boils down to this. If I had to give you one piece of advice, it would be that you need to work your tail off to become a problogger. There’s no secret recipe, no golden ticket…you’ve just got to work hard and treat your blog like a business. It might seem like you aren’t getting anywhere at first, but be patient and keep at it. Adjust your plan on the fly if you have to, but never stop hustling. You’ve got to love what you do…absolutely enjoy doing it every day, if you really want to quit your job and go full time. If you don’t love what you do, then stop what you’re doing and go do what you love. Trust me, the work will come MUCH easier at that point.

Although this is just tip of the iceberg, I believe that if you just learn to improve on a few of these points, then you’ll shave a tremendous amount of time off your learning curve. You still might have to learn the hard way, but at least now you’ll have the context to understand what’s might be going wrong. If nothing else works, then you can’t go wrong with #10. In fact, I’d say that’s a great place to start