The economy is not being kind to retirees and those approaching retirement. I am a baby boomer myself and have given much thought to how to get the most out of what is already in place and how to get those extra dollars to stretch the budget. In my web browsing I found some useful info & have brought the links to you.

Extra Retirement Money: Put It Where It'll Count | Retirement Income …

www.retirement-income.net12/11/11

Although you might invest some of your extra retirement money in mutual funds or ETFs that cater to big capitalization shares, you should try to include real estate investments…..

Key Concerns That Establish Your Retirement Income – Finance

www.thefinanceanalysis.com1/23/12

May I maintain a good revenue through my retirement? That's the worry of most retirees. Let's get a perspective on what you have to manage.Your.

This one is not so recent, but has some good advice:

Financial Planning : How to Calculate Retirement Income

It can be difficult to calculate retirement income because it's hard to estimate what things will be like in 20 to 30 years, which is the case for many people. Discover why a conservative strategy is useful when planning for retirement with help from…

If you struggled a bit last year in some area of your life or business, the new year is a great time to let go of any feelings of failure, look on everything you have done so far as a learning curve and commit to starting again.

Let yourself get excited at the prospect of being successful and having those extra dollars if that is what you want. Use visualization to see yourself where you want to be but remember, you have to take action to achieve your goals. You don't have to know exactly how it will all come about, you just have to take the first step, then the next step. As you go along this way, different possibilities will come to you and opportunities will be presented to you.

Always keep an open mind – help doesn't always come in the form you expected it to; pathways you hadn't thought of may open up to you. Stay positive, believe in yourself and in what you want to achieve. Never give up.

You may find that this month's free ebook has ideas and information that will help you on your journey. To receive it, just enter your name & email in the form to the right to join our monthly freebies list.

It's Christmas once again, and all around there's lights, food, song and cheer. Yet somehow the hustle and bustle only makes you more depressed and lonely. Do not fear; you are not alone! The holiday blues isn't uncommon, and there are lots of ways you can beat them and have more than a merry Christmas.

1. Know why you are sad.

Is it because of work, family, or the weather? Many people often find themselves feeling low for no apparent reason, but believe it or not, there is always a reason – you only need to find out what it is. Take time to reflect; stay in a quiet corner and allow yourself to think about what's really bothering you. Make a list of everything that's been troubling you for the past few days, the past year, or even your whole life. Understanding the "little details" can actually help to make you see things in perspective, and give you an idea how serious your melancholy is.

2. Accept, forgive, move on.

They say it's never easy to forgive (and forget), but the one reason it's so difficult to do is because we haven't first learned to accept that the thing happened at all. Whatever is making you unhappy is done and cannot be undone, and the only thing you can do now is to move on. However, before you can get to that stage, you must try and forgive yourself – for being weak and getting hurt; for letting another person make a fool of you; for not being able to stop something on time, when you felt you could.

Once you've learned to forgive yourself, it is only then that you can learn to forgive whoever or whatever has caused the pain. By this time, it will be easier to move on.

3. Practice empathy.

Now that you know the reason behind your blues and what to do about it, practice spreading cheer to others whom you think are in the same situation as you. Visit an orphanage; do a good deed for a total stranger; share a listening ear with a hapless neighbor. Or spare some time with the people close to you – send Christmas cards and letters to friends, or save one night where you can watch a Christmas movie with the family.

Christmas should be a happy time for everyone, so even with the blues you can still enjoy the season. All it takes is a little love and patience – especially on yourself.

Best wishes to you all for happy time with families
Trish

A lot of people avoid having a home based business for various reasons.

Some do not wish to have the responsibility associated with one and others are just simply clueless on how or where to start. This article focuses on some help in getting you started with a home based business and getting you on your way to success.

1) Advertising is always the most important aspect of any business. Even if your business is not home based, you still spend a significant amount of money on advertising. Since a home based business does not have a store front or a public office where they can advertise themselves, you must invest money in getting the word out to the world about your company. Consider internet marketing as a way for your business to expand in the world as well as advertising in local newspapers, billboards, and newsletters.

2) It takes time to develop clientele and make a significant amount of money through any business and this is not any different when it comes to a home based business. It is important to keep in mind not to get discouraged because your first few months are tough. Every business out there started somehow and many of them did not grow to be an overnight success. Keep at your business regardless how bleak it may seem at first, and you will eventually build your own trusted clientele and following.

3) Consider what types of equipment you need to purchase to run your business even if it is just a new printer or computer. It is important to shop around for the cheapest prices possible and opt to purchase what you can second hand. Make sure what you need is something that you have budgeted for.

4) It is important to understand the different tax laws and regulations associated with your business. Some businesses need permits as well as tax forms filed before even starting. You need to have a basic idea of how taxes work before starting your business so you ensure you will not lose any money when it comes to filing your taxes for the next year. Many items you purchase to start your business are considered tax deductible and it is in your best interest to research as much as possible to save money.

5) Come up with your own business plan. The most important thing that you can do for your home based business is to come up with a one year plan and what you hope to accomplish in that time frame. Make sure that you keep notes and ideas separate from your actual home information. Reserve a space for yourself within your house where you can work by yourself undisturbed. If you treat your business with dedication and as an actual business, you will more likely succeed.

Although starting up a home based business is a lot of responsibility and can be time consuming, you will find that the time will be worth it. Knowing what to do will provide you more success. It is important to take your time and plan things out and then take the plan and put it into action.

How do you go about creating your eBooks and reports?

With all the free reports available these days, I download and read a great deal of them. You know the type of reports I mean, standard format, single column, eBook title, basic contents page and body. It was a pleasant surprise to see something different.

This eBook is from a guy called Daniel Sumner and naturally I was interested in finding out how his eBook differed from mine. His tag line for the eBook is Create Convert Cash-in!

This had me impatient to know what he had to offer and discover what was so special about the eBook Cycle. To my pleasant surprise, this was no regular eBook; it was presented in a novel format, single column, basic contents but it was visually enticing, full of colour, graphics, tips hints and very cool formatting, so kept me reading.

As I read, it was obvious that this was not a 10 minute quickie that you see so many of. There was time, effort and passion put into this mini masterpiece. It flowed nicely as I read, learning everything Daniel was writing and seeing the picture he was creating with his use of the images. I was learning a very important lesson in report writing in a very easy to learn way.

Daniel engages you a lot as you progress, so you feel that you're getting to know him, like him and trust what he has to say. He lets you into his world and you feel grateful for the information he is providing, and at the same time encouraging you to get to work to create your own eBooks better than you have before.

In the eBook Cycle Daniel teaches you:

Why you should write an eBook

• What format to choose
• Getting started
• Essential includes
• Getting your eBook ready
• Free or paid eBooks
• Sales pages and squeeze pages
• Payment processors
• Marketing and traffic
• And a whole lot more

I'm very impressed with this eBook to say the least and will return to it when I create my next report or eBook. Its definitely one for the book shelf and future reference.

But best of all, it's free. Yes FREE! You weren't expecting that, were you?

But believe me; it's true! A 100% Free download for you today.

I don't think I need to say more, so go experience it for yourself at: http://trishlikes.com/eBookCycle Give it a good read and please come back here and let me know what you thought of it. I would love to hear your comments!