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Have you ever been curious as to the amount of education necessary to read and understand your work?

Not the  education or talent of the author, but the level of education the reader needs to be able to put your work to good use.

I calculated mine based on a standard readability formula. It’s a fairly simple straight forward calculation.

• Calculate the average number of words you use per sentence.
• Calculate the average number of syllables per word.
• Multiply the average number of words by 0.39 and add it to the average number of syllables per word multiplied by 11.8.
• Subtract 15.50 from the result.
• Algorithm: (0.39 * average_words_sentence) + (11.8 * average_syllables_word) - 15.9

But, if you are not a math fan and trust the calculations of others The Blog Readability Test site will do it for you if you past in the site address. Here is the link if you want to check your own.

Here are the results of the readability scale of some of the sites I read on a regular basis. Bye the way, the results change with every new addition of material. So, a college level site can on one day can be a junior high school level site the next day.

1. Blogging for Business - Junior High School.
2. Make it Great - Junior High School.
3. Converstations - Junior High School.
4. MindTweaks - Elementary School
5. Kyles Cove - Junior High School
6. JD’Blog - Genius Level
7. 37 Signals - Elementary School Level
8. Ians Messy Desk - Junior High Level
9. Lifehacker - High School Level
10. ElementalTruths - Junior High Level
11. Steve Pavlina - Genius Level
12. Seth’s Blog - High School Level

I monitor my site pretty closely because I want to keep my writing simple and clear enough so that it is easy to undertand and yet precise enough to give the background information for further growth. Junior High level is about that level for most people.

Consider that, Moby Dick, Macbeth, Of Mice and Men, The Once & Future King, and Treasure Island are all written on the Junior High to High School reading levels (right around 8th grade, actually).

What reading level is needed for the sites you read, and if you are a writer do you take the reading level into consideration when you work?

I have just published my first Squidoo lens.

Let me know what you think.

Melding Psychology, Philosophy and Practical Knowledge Into a Scaffold for Success!

Getting ink is a term used to describe the process of self marketing. It is a veritable mission statement of honest self promotion that provides value to others.

Here is the list.

1. Provide something of value.
2. Know your hook.
3. Stand for something.
4. Get your face out there.
5. Try to build real, sustained relationships.
6. It’s the message not the amount you spend on it.
7. Give stuff away for free.
8. Ride the momentum buzz wave.
9. Be in it for the long haul.
10. Be undeniably good.

I recently shared a link to a website (The PositivityHub) that does its best to provide uplifting yet realistic material and resources for its readers. I incorporated in my post an invitation for other authors who write positive content to list their site with the promise that I would review them as well. Jacqueline Stone took me up on the offer and told me about her site. The message and my follow up are listed below.

“My web site, www.journey2happiness.com, provides articles, images, and videos to inspire and empower visitors. I do not have products for sale. There are no blaring ads or flashing signs. It is a place of peace on the internet where visitors can refresh both mind and spirit. The home page contains links to my blogs, where I welcome comments from other travelers on the Journey to Happiness. I invite you to visit the video page on my site, where you will find video teachings from Wayne Dyer, Deepak Chopra, Neale Donald Walsch, Gregg Braden, and Abraham-Hicks. Everything on my web site is available free of charge. My purpose is to share what I have learned with love and joy that others may come to know what it is to live with peace in their hearts.”

I followed the link back to the site and found it to be just as advertised. The site hosts a collection of essays focused on self-empowerment and recovery from past hurts. In addition the advertisements are also as described, very subtle and well below “the fold.” In fact there are not even embedded content specific advertisements like those I use to defray costs on ElementalTruths.Com.

Additionally the author lists two other blogs On The Journey and Recovering From Abuse, both blogspot sites. They two follow subtle patterns and subdued colors. My only concern with them is that they both have the embedded blogtalk radio features that launch their audio component as soon as you scroll down to that section of the page.

The colors are subdued and the font is muted, presumably to generate a feeling of comfort and safety. I prefer article a different “feel” for my publications. Being a male I naturally lean toward more blues and grays and I accept that isn’t the preference of all.

You should check it out. As a matter of my own interest, I would particularly like to here your reaction to the site based on your gender.

If you enjoy the site, or if you have a site you would like me to explore please comment here or email me at RegAdkins@gmail.com.

Converstations author Mike Sansone wrote an interesting piece which outlined the territories he intends his publication to cover.

He broke it into three target areas:

What he writes,

Who he writes for,

Why he writes.

I was so impressed with the technique I decided to do a similar analysis of Elemental Truths. The result is the chart above.

If you are a web publisher and are interested in building a chart for your site the end product should assist in creating purpose driven, real world applicable material. I’m excited about it and recommend it and Mike’s site to you.

What is the one key elemental truth that keeps people/clients/customers coming back?

Credibility.

Many providers of services and products spend a tremendous amount of time an money building just the right look, designing the optimum advertising plan. Selecting only the most timely topics.

But, what it all comes down to is find the most forthright way to credibly present your product. Regardless of the curb appeal your product may have, it must maintain credibility and authenticity in its presentation.

The internet is rife with posers and pretenders. For me their is nothing more striking and attractive than authentic content and a firmly embraced position. This is even true if I do not happen to agree with that position. I respect the genuine and avoid the fashionable.

My work may never reach the popularity of Seth Godin, Steve Pavlina, Leon Ho, Engadget, Gizmodo, or BoingBoing but it doesn’t need to. And if I may be so bold, neither does yours.

Instead, I measure my success ratio by being aware that I am doing my best to provide the best quality I can. And I strive to earn the respect of quality providers such as Phil Gerbyshak, Rosa Say and Ted Demopoulas. As a side effect, although I don’t believe it is a true measure of intrinsic value, my subscribers should continue to increase and my work should continue to grow in the revenue it brings in.

As always, if you find value here I ask you to add Elemental Truths to your bloglines reader, share content with your friends and add a comment to share your thoughts.

Much is on-line about growing an ebook. Where to seek inspiration, what to share about and how to sell it are the most common topics. Less plentiful are the step by step mechanics of creating and hosting an e-book. You are welcome to use my experiences to jump ahead with the process.

By the Numbers

1. Write the content (this is the easy part).
Take what you trust and build upon it. Seek the input of others.

The great ones share. You will know who to ask. They will say, “Yes! , Here!; Take what you need!; There is plenty for all; Let me help you.” And, as long as you also share, the stream will continue to replenish itself.

2. Choose pictures to illustrate your book.
A wealth of shared images can be found on Flickr. But, make sure you use creative commons or get permission and credit the artist. Most give freely without requiring a credit but it is just good karma to build another when you can. If are uncomfortable using the image created by another, you can simply look to them for inspiration and then build with your own with your digital camera.

Consider a contest. If you offer took take submissions to the public, many will send you submissions to be included in your book. Be sure to fully credit their work and include them in your acknowledgments section.

3. Convert your document to pdf format.

Your operating system will be a determining factor. If you have a PC system, add a PDF converter. Adobe Acrobat is good. Primopdf converter is also good and it is free. I use both. The differences are negligible and I like free. After you make the addition, you may select converter from your printer selector file. This will create your pdf in your chosen destination.

Most Mac operating systems come pre-bundled converter in the printer choice menu.

4. Distributing your ebook.

What won’t work: Google Docs doesn’t support pdf. Yahoo Briefcase won’t allow you to share without an upgrade. One option is offer a free site subscription RSS feeder. You then email the document to anyone who subscribes. Another option is to email it as an attachment to any who request it.

Finally, there are hosts like Quicksharing.com They don’t require registration. They will carry your ebook for free. You go to their site. Then follow their easy to use menu to browse out your file and upload it. Quicksharing will display the address. Then you can share it with anyone who would like to download your ebook.

There are a couple of things that I don’t love about it. One, because it is monetized by advertisement, you occasionally find promotional links for things you wouldn’t choose to promote, at you download site. Two, if your ebook isn’t downloaded for a month or so, the Quikshare automated system will delete it.

I have converted this document to a PDF and hosted it on Quicksharing so that you may download it (free of course) and get a feel for the process. Unfortunately, it was deleted.

Currently I am building an expanded version of this publication that should be available to purchase from Lulu.com in a short time.

I am building another ebook about giving great feedback in difficult situations that will also soon be available for free download. If I can help, in any way, please contact me. I hope this work has added value to your day.

Have you ever wondered how BoingBoing came to be one of the most profitable and popular blogs in existence? If you could, would you duplicate the BoingBoing phenomenon on your site?

BoingBoing bills itself as a “directory of wonderful things.” This strategy in and of itself practically guarantees you an increase in your Internet foot print. If you devote your time to exhaustively crawling the Internet in search of unique and interesting “things” to collect and display on your site, your digital DNA will by default be displayed all over the Internet connected to each item you link to.

This works as a strategy for two reasons. One, people have an insatiable appetite for things that are unique, different and entertaining. Two (don’t get mad now) people are inherently lazy. They would much rather someone else go to all the work of gathering, sorting, displaying and updating all these interesting things than to take the trouble and time to do so themselves.

But, can you do it?

Of course you can. All you need to do is plug in a question to your favorite search engine designed to identify the most poplar search criteria for that day. Then you follow the links, read the material, write a two paragraph (sentence?) summary of the post. Add an interesting graphic then post your summary, graphic and their link.

The next thing you know you have become a jumping off point for anyone searching for that most popular topic.

Another of the major points of the BoingBoing popularity is free stuff. This is another element you can easily duplicate. Choose a niche (say free pencils, pens, downloads, mp3 files,T-Shirts) maintain a constantly updated set of links for the latest on (insert your item here) giveaways. People will come back to your site constantly to see who else is offering a free promotional item.

Next, solicit reader input. There is an old adage that goes, “Nothing is so sweet to the human ear as the sound of one’s own name.” The same goes for seeing your name cited as the source for a particularly clever post on a popular blog.

The remains, are you more driven by financial success for your site or do you feel compelled to maintain your site focus. Both answers are correct.

As you know, most people don’t blog. Not only that, but unless you are in North America, Australia or Oceania the majority of your national population doesn’t even use the internet. So, it probably isn’t worthwhile to direct your resources toward such a small market share right?

Wrong.

That small market share is about 230 million in North America alone. That’s not a potential audiance I’m willing to ignore or alienate. How about you?

But, let’s say you do want to alienate those folks for some reason. Maybe some Pinky and The Brain plot to take over the world. AND let’s say you want to accomplish this by destroying one of your best avenues for reaching those folks, your blog.

Well, my good and gentle reader, I think these five steps will destroy your blog like sowing salt in your fields.

Step 1: Don’t Link to Anyone Else.

Links help internet users find interesting, entertaining and useful content. In bound links especially stir up attention from search engines like Yahoo, Google, MSN Search, Ask Jeeves, or Lord forbid, Dogpile. Generally the more incoming links a site has the higher it is rated. You wouldn’t want any of that pesky traffic slowing down the death of your site.

Step 2: Stop Posting the Comments of Your Readers.

Commenting, or offering feedback, on a blog creates communication. Communication generates new ideas and understandings. Understanding your readers might cause you to write about something relevant to them. You should avoid be relevant if you are trying to kill your blog.

Step 3: Never Post Anything that Varies From Your Own Narrow Viewpoint.

If you want to maintain the superior feeling of being a legend in your own mind, you should never post anything that causes you to rethink, or modify you current position. The dangers of having an open mind can be disastrous to your plan of destroying your blog and your credibility.

Step 4:Ignore or Disregard Folks Who Have Published on Your Site in the Past.

One of the most time honored methods for this practice is to ignore the person altogether. The Upside it requires very little energy on your part. You integrity rating immediately become a 0/10. Since we are trying to totally destroy your blog and all credibility, this is a strong way to go.

Step 5: Become a Trawling Vessel that Gathers Up the Hard Work of Others and Never Create Anything Yourself.

There is actually software designed to help you destroy your reputation via this method known as a “blog scraper.” This insidious little program scans hundreds of thousands of blogs per day looking for content to steal which you can then take credit for on your own site. I can personally attest to the devastation of seeing my work publicized elsewhere without so much as a tag line.

This is truly an excellent device for getting your work ostracized by anyone with the most minute trace of a moral compass.

How does Steve Pavlina pull in 700,000 visitors to his site per month?

According to Steve he follows these seven tenets.

1. Create valuable content.
2. Create original content.
3. Create timeless content.
4. Write for human beings before search engines.
5. Know why you want high traffic. (to help people or to further a mission or to make money)
6. Let the audience see the real you. Be genuine.
7. Write what’s true for you and learn to live with the consequences. Don’t eschew controversy.
8. Treat your visitors like real human beings. Don’t treat everyone who visits to be a tiny cha-ching in your bank account.
9. Keep money in its proper place. Give thought to how you earn money rather than how much money you earn.
10. Focus on helping others and the first nine steps will fulfill themselves.

Hey, I can do that. 700,000 here I come!

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