This is my weekly project update, where I tell you what I’ve been up to this week in my business and share what’s on my mind.

The keyword this week has been: Preparation.

What I’ve Been Doing

This last week has been all about preparing for the next thing, namely the Inner Circle program.

I’ve been preparing content, brainstorming, researching tools, programming, modifying the blog – the list goes on. Anybody who has spent time on the technical side of blogging knows what a time suck it can be.

This next week, I’ll likely begin posting some of the Inner Circle content to the site. The first people who will be able to access it will be my existing Blog Masters Club students, to whom I’ll be giving a free membership to for several months. Because they rock.

Me – Beyond This Blog

I’ve been “out there” this week with some writeups and guest posts.

First, James over at TheInfoPreneur declared a good old-fashioned bro-mance with me. I thank him for the writeup and the ego boost.

Aaron Darko, from Millionaireat24, has published an interview with me while we were both at the Underground Seminar last month. This one is in video format. Every time I see myself on a video like that, I think, “Moooooo!”. But, that’s another topic.

Yesterday, Darren posted a guest post of mine over on Problogger, called Poor Bloggers Focus Too Much On Blog Posts. The reactions to this post were interesting. Some got it while others resisted it. The point of the post was to get bloggers thinking beyond their posts littered with ads as a way of monetizing. The resistance was interesting. Seems some bloggers prefer to cling to the idea of just writing and hoping the money comes. Another guy disagreed with me and used affiliate links and paid reviews as his way to say content does pay (oh, please).

Here’s the thing… my model of online business isn’t the only one which works. But, what we have here is the difference between going horizontal with a market and going vertical. I am a believer in vertical – stick to a niche and just frickin dominate it. Now, with the horizontal approach, you basically cover the gamut of niches and chase the money. These are the people who start up little niche blogs all over the place, build them up a bit, litter them with Adsense and affiliate links. Can that model work? Sure. But, it isn’t sustainable, you’ve got no brand as a result, and you’re dependent on other companies (i.e. Google).

It is the difference between building a real business and playing the stock market.

On Being Real

I find it rather interesting how people seem to love my style and make a point to tell me so. They say I resonate with them, that I tell it like it is, that I’m a straight-shooter.

It is nice when people say nice things about me. Hey, I ain’t gonna lie. However, I find it weird because the way I blog seems, to me, the only way to do it. I couldn’t possibly imagine trying to be anything but who I am.

I always recommend that people just BLOG and let it be a reflection of themselves. Say what you mean and mean what you say. It doesn’t mean that you have to be purposely blunt just for effect, but if you’re going to say something, mean it. I admire this quality about Nathan Hangen, as well, who I believe has been coming into his real voice in the last few months and who I’m finding is a real “partner in crime” when it comes to just being real.

Here’s the thing…. when you are just being yourself on your blog, you will naturally attract people who are right for you. And in a weird sort of way, you’ll find they just come out of the woodwork and find you.

On The Gadget Front

I picked up a Kodak Zi8 camera on Ebay. I’m not usually one to frequent Ebay, however this deal came up while I was surfing around casually and I took it. Ended up saving like $50. Yay me.

I’ve only had the camera for a day and haven’t played with it that much yet, but it seems to be almost the ideal camera for bloggers. What makes this camera stand out from the Flip is that it has an external microphone jack. For decent audio, that is a must-have.

I haven’t done much with my Youtube channel, so perhaps this will serve as a kick in the pants for me to start utilizing video more. I know how important it is and I’ve used it effectively many times, but I’ve failed so far to build up any kind of regular habit of doing videos.

What Are You Going To Get Done This Week?

Brand new week coming. What are you going to get done? Make it count.

Whatever your goal is, be sure to make real progress on it this week. Use some of my time management tips if they’ll help.

If you feel like stepping up, then post a comment here and let us all know what you plan to accomplish this week with your blog. For many, just proclaiming it publicly serves as a accountability and a motivation. Try it.