Info-Leeches and other E-Invertebrates

Several of the foremost of London’s restaurants are still stated to be a few of the leading globally. Gourmets regularly move mountains to dine in any of these venues & often one may be obliged to book beforehand to get a place, or at the very least to be content to park yourself in their bar for one or two cocktails till a dining table is free. A principle venue to dine in is the Ping Pong restaurant; this is an attractive, offbeat restaurant to sup in. This flawless & elegant place provides some of the very best Dim Sum menus that you will ever taste, a good assortment of delicious teas and first class cocktails. If you delight in Dim Sum meals, this spot must surely be up there with the principle restaurants to sup at.

Likewise, Nobu is a fresh and new Japanese venue. This venue is their very 1st United Kingdom enterprise and it’s done admirably. Nobu’s dining is awesome & acceding that their courses can sometimes be on the small side, this place shouldn’t be a problem, seen as you will presumably buy a range of portions - enjoy the superb professionalism rather than just the quantity. Principally, this place provides wonderful food, has nice personnel & a superb delivery. You can see a guide to restaurants in London with Time Out.

Electric Birdcage restaurant, situated in Saint James St. is a restaurant where one’s imagination may run truly wild. In this great, new restaurant and cocktail bar their menu is based on modern day Asian meals & it has been declared as a must try - the bar’s cocktail drinks are superb and it’s specialities must be sampled by aficionados. Our capital incorporates lots of expensive, classy restaurants, but on the other hand keep in mind it also consists of oodles of cheap locations, & often these are London’s modest and unseen gems.

This metropolis, as is well appreciated, is presently one of the most interesting metropoles of the world - however, don’t forget it is sometimes a bit costly. If you’re searching for beautiful, uncostly snacks then you’re also in the right area to get it, providing that one is looking around the correct location. Our capital has tons of first-rate selections - pizza grills, uncostly Italian restaurants & loads of vege hot spots. The Gourmet Burger Kitchen’s a cracking burger grill that’s been inspired by multitudinous marvellous burger joints in Great Britain. There exists any sort of burger one can think of, and that implies it’s got burgers for each and every one of us. GBK is definitely competitive, & their servings are similarly extensive, there’s absolutely no compulsion for getting additional dishes in this spot. Masala Zone’s an ambitious series of innovative Indian restaurants. These restaurants are similarly quite low priced and serve Indian Street cooking, excellent for periods when you have to eat, all the same folk’s dinner plans mustn’t linger for overly long, alternatively fun for days when you are about with a group of buddies & you are searching for a place with exquisite sustenance and a backdrop to match.

Turning Problems Into Possibilities
by Alan Tutt
http://www.KeysToPower.com

Many times, a problem is an indication that there is something we must learn. Other times, a problem is simply an outworking of a previous use of Power that was directed through a negative channel. In the Keys To Power, there are a couple of things we can do depending on which situation we are faced with.

Most of us are content to keep things the way they are until there is a problem. This is fine, and there is no reason to change this (unless it becomes a problem, that is). When we are faced with a problem, one of the things we must consider is whether the problem is the result of the way we’ve been doing things. If it is the result of our pattern of action or inaction, then we must change our patterns if we wish to avoid having the same problem in the future. If the problem is not a direct result of what we’ve been doing (or not doing), then all we have to do is deal with the issue at hand and be done with it. This is how most of us are used to dealing with problems.

In the Keys To Power system, we recognize that everything that we experience is a direct result of our pattern of action or inaction. There is absolutely nothing that we can say was purely chance or the fault of someone other than ourselves. Yes, we are directly responsible if there is an earthquake that destroys our house, and we are also responsible for the idiot on the road that cuts us off and causes us to run off the road.

While this may seem harsh and unforgiving at first, it becomes extremely liberating once you learn about the Power that you control and direct. If you are alive, then the Universal Power of Life flows through you. This Power picks up the essence of your thoughts and feelings and proceeds out into your world to create experiences based on those thoughts and feelings. And once you learn to control your thoughts and feelings, you are able to control what that Power creates in your world.

Let me describe how problems get created. Something happens that you are not happy with. Let’s say that your boss promotes someone else into a position that you wanted. Most people will react to this with a feeling of frustration, and some thoughts will be entertained that suggests that other people get things we ourselves should be getting. Even though this is a reaction to something that has already happened, the thoughts and feelings still direct Power to create future events. Power picks up the feeling of frustration and the thoughts of unfairness and goes out into the world to create an experience.

The amount of Power working to create this experience will depend on how strong the thoughts and feelings were that were entertained, and how long they were focused upon. If there was not much energy put into them, then there will be very little Power to create a similar experience. If these things were dwelt upon for days and weeks with a severe intensity, then there will be a huge amount of Power looking to create a catastrophy. (Don’t imagine this too vividly. You don’t want to create this for yourself.) With only a little Power directed towards frustration, only little experiences will reflect this feeling. With a great deal of Power directed towards unfairness, a person could end up being sued in court with false evidence!

But here’s the reason that this relationship is not as clear as it should be: every day you focus on so many different things, some good and others not so good. Power is directed in many different directions to create a wide variety of experiences. And in turn, this wide variety of experiences will incite an equally wide variety of thoughts and feelings, which in turn direct Power to create an equally wide variety of experiences. A complete circle of cause and effect. Imagine what life would be like if you only thought and felt positive things! Power would only create good things for you, which will incite only positive thoughts and feelings, which will only create good things, and on and on along positive channels.

I’ve had many students who started learning about the Power they control with their minds and started working to direct that Power towards positive ends. And then a few days, or even a couple of weeks later, some major problem comes up and they wonder why. With all the positive Power they released into the world, how could a problem of such magnitude possibly happen? The answer is simple, although not always accepted. At the point where these students started focusing on positive uses for Power, they had already released enough Power directed negatively to create the problems that came up. Some students give up at this point, feeling that they could never become successful in directing Power (a feeling that will create experiences that will reflect this idea). In fact, if they had persisted, the negatively directed Power they had previously released would eventually work itself out and there would be no more to create any problems whatsoever!

So how can we actually use this information? Quite simply in fact. Recognizing that your thoughts and feelings will direct Power to creating your experiences, you can work to control your them to reflect only what you want to experience. This is a process that takes time, and you won’t be able to eliminate all negativity from your life overnight, but it can happen. At one time, I had a very strong habit of getting into angry moods which would be very intense and last for hours at a time. Needless to say, I had a lot of problems in my life.

After trying various methods to gain control over my anger, I found the best method was to simply take time and cultivate the feelings of love, peace, and happiness. I would schedule a time period of about a half an hour to a full hour and sit and think about what these feelings were like. If I tried to remember when I had felt these feelings, I would end up remembering something that triggered more anger, so I ended up focusing strictly on the feelings I wanted separate from any event or experience.

This method proved to be amazingly effective! Not only did I start to feel better within a couple of days, but within the week I was already gaining control over my mind and emotions. One month later and I was reacting to life events with a completely new pattern. And over time, I have learned that the change in the way I reacted to things has completely my “bad luck” into “good luck”. Now, instead of everything going wrong and the good things going to other people, everything goes much better and I get more than my share of good things.

While not all of my students have chosen to work with this method of controlling thoughts and feelings, those who have tried it have found similar results. Not only do they feel much better about life and find that life reacts by giving them more good things, but they also find that they can focus their minds on the things they want in such a way as to automatically attract whatever it is that they desire! They have found that they can specify exactly what they want instead of just a general concept of life experiences!

And this is true Power. To decide what you want and to get it, without undue effort, without strain and struggle, and without worry that it may not happen. With the Keys To Power, you know that anything you want will be yours!

The only other thing to keep in mind when problems surface is this: there is always more to learn. If something is not responding the way you expect it to, then there is more information you need in order to get the response you want. Keep an open mind that looks for the missing information, and you will eventually overcome any problem. You have my word on it.

About the Author

Alan Tutt is the creator of the world-famous Keys To Power Mastery System available at http://www.KeysToPower.com. Alan has recently written a new book called “Keys To Power Prosperity” in which he shares all that he’s learned to attract windfall prosperity in any situation. Find out more by visiting http://www.KeysToPowerProsperity.com today.

No longer limited to patients with fair skin and dark hair, the newest technology in laser hair removal now provides superior results and maximum safety for all skin colors and all hair colors. With the increasing interest in a long lasting treatment for hair removal without the pain of electrolysis, laser technology is adapting to meet the needs of a widely diverse population. With the new advancements, permanent results are now a possibility for people who previously did not meet the criteria for successful laser hair removal.

Nearly 50 percent of the world’s population are people of color. Early lasers used for hair removal were slow, often painful, and limited to treating fair-skinned people with very dark hair. Aesthetic laser hair removal is no longer limited to those with the contrast of light skin and dark hair. The recent advancements in laser technology have greatly reduced discomfort and have expanded into hair reduction on patients with either tanned skin or pigmented skin.

The basic principle of laser hair removal is to target the hair follicle and disable it with the energy from the laser. The laser works by turning light into heat in the melanin. With the early lasers it was difficult to selectively target the melanin in the hair from the melanin in the skin if there wasn’t enough color in the hair and contrast with the surrounding skin.

The newer laser technology utilizes lasers with longer wavelengths. The longer wavelengths absorb less melanin in the skin, which makes treatment safer for darker skin types. When the lasers are combined with variable pulse durations and aggressive skin cooling, it is possible to safely and more comfortably treat a wider range of skin colors and hair colors than was possible with the older equipment.

When searching for a laser hair removal provider, it is important to consider the equipment they use as it can impact the results you will achieve. The newest technology provides safer and more comfortable treatment as well as treating a wider range of hair and skin color and types. The newer Diode, Alexandrite and YAG lasers are approved to treat all skin types. The new ELOS (electro-optical synergy) technology is specially designed to treat all skin types (e.g. Indian, Asian, African-American), including tanned skin, and remove all colors of unwanted hair, including white, gray, and red.

Similar to earlier laser hair removal systems, hair is destroyed when in the active growth cycle. As hair grows in cycles and not all hairs are in the same cycle at the same time, multiple treatments are needed to achieve optimum results. The total number of treatments needed varies from patient to patient based on their unique skin color, hair color, hair type, and treatment area. Most treatment areas show minimal regrowth after three to five sessions.

When selecting a provider for laser hair removal, it is important to remember that this is a medical procedure, and your decision should be given the same care you would give to selecting any other medical specialist. The laser hair removal procedure should be performed by a licensed medical professional in a professional setting with proper medical treatment available if needed.

Want more Information about Laser Hair Removal Cosmetic Surgery?

Find a qualified Laser Hair Removal Clinic in Your Area at http://www.aboutlaserhairremoval.info

As early as their mid-teens, some men begin to see signs of thinning hair, and by their twenties and thirties, almost 1/3 of men have some degree of balding. In many cases, this is the result of male pattern baldness, a hereditary condition that affects millions of men.

In addition to male pattern baldness, there are other causes of balding in men. Loss of hair can be a side effect of stress, pollution, infections, some medications, and exposure to dangerous chemicals. Vitamin deficiencies can also play a role in hair loss, particularly deficiencies in iron or zinc.

Whatever the cause, dealing with hair loss is difficult, and can even impact self-confidence. Finding effective treatments for balding can be confusing. The choices are many: strong chemical treatments, hair-replacement surgery, or even wearing a hair piece. But in today’s health conscious society, many men are looking for natural solutions for thinning hair. They are increasingly discovering the benefits of organic hair care products and selecting this natural, healthy way to care for their scalp and hair.

Fortunately, a wide variety of organic hair care products are now available. These organic products are beneficial to keeping existing hair healthy and stimulating hair growth, without exposing the skin and scalp to even more chemicals that may exacerbate the problem. As with organic foods, no pesticides or hormones are used, which makes natural hair care products an attractive option for treating a not-so-attractive condition.

About the Author:
Pam Lange Products offers a complete line of affordable all-natural hair restoration products designed to help regain hair health. For more information on these 100% organic products, please visit http://www.PamLangeProducts.com.

Our dogs add so much to our lives, giving us unconditional love and affection. Here are some suggestions to help your dog live a comfortable, happy life.

1. Regular exercise and fresh air helps your dog’s immune system function at its peak. The exercise doesn’t have to be strenuous in nature, but a consistent walk or friendly play at a local park can work wonders for a dog’s mental as well as physical health.

2. Regular check-ups with your veterinarian are a must. Ask your doctor about the dangers of over-vaccinating and the possibility of checking your dog’s immune system with a blood titer test. A yearly visit with your doctor will give you a chance to ask any questions you may have, and will give your veterinarian an opportunity to catch any problems before they develop into something serious.

3. Provide a clean, safe environment for your dog free of second-hand smoke. Give him or her a quiet, comfortable place to sleep. Most breeds of dogs prefer to live indoors with their family. Only a few large breeds meant to live outdoors to protect sheep are suited to a life in all kinds of weather away from human contact.

4. Give your canine easy access to a fenced backyard or other suitable place so that they can relieve themselves during the day if you are going to be gone for long stretches at a time. A doggie door is ideal, but if this is impractical for your home, there are professional dog walkers who would love to stop by to give your dog a much needed walk during the day or evening.

5. Plenty of fresh, wholesome food and fresh water are key to maintaining a dog’s health. Raw food diets are gaining popularity, but if this is not something you or your dog would enjoy, there are other high grade alternatives. Read the labels of any product you purchase for your dog and steer clear of products with artificial colors, sweeteners or preservatives. The Whole Dog Journal is an excellent source of information and suggestions for which foods are the most nutritious and beneficial for dogs.

6. Daily grooming is important for all dogs, especially those with long coats. A quick brushing before bedtime is important for two reasons. It will remove any loose hair and skin and also will give you a chance to check for ticks or other problems your dog may have developed. Brushing your dog’s teeth is also vital to their oral health. There are special canine formulas and toothbrushes made especially for this purpose. (Never use human toothpaste on your dog.)

7. Positive, enjoyable training is available from reputable professionals for you and your dog. Training should be fun for both of you. Steer clear from any dog training classes that use punishment or adverse methods. Clicker training and reward based training can help guide you and your dog to a happy understanding of what you are requesting of your dog.

Many enjoyable dog-loving years await anyone who sincerely desires to create and maintain a positive relationship with their dog.

© Connie Bowen

Note: this article may be re-published freely as long as the following resource box is included at the end of the article and as long as you link to the URL mentioned in the resource box:

Pet Portrait Artist, and Professional Illustrator Connie Bowen creates stunning pet portrait paintings on canvas from photos. Specializing in capturing the spiritual nature of dogs, cats, horses and other animals in a realistic fashion with impressionistic backgrounds as seen on Oregon Public Broadcasting’s TV show, Art Beat. Over 200 pet portraits completed and counting! Visit http://www.conniebowen.com to view exquisite samples.

Do you wish you had high self-confidence? Some of us go through
our life fighting against that feeling that we are just ‘not
good enough’. We convince ourselves that we don’t matter and
that we don’t deserve to amount to anything…..but what price
do we pay? The fact is that many people are lacking is
self-esteem, yet feel powerless to do anything about it. Poor
self esteem needs to be addressed with a vengeance; it affects
your emotional and physical wellbeing and really reduces the
quality of your life. So it’s time to take action and raise the
bar right now. Here are some tips to help you get started:

‘Not Good Enough’ compared To Whom?

Fair question? Alright then…I have a challenge for you: The next
time you start to berate yourself for ‘not being good enough’, I
want you to ask yourself: ‘what exactly is my benchmark’? Be
specific; to what or whom, have you compared yourself to reach
the conclusion that you are not good enough? If you can learn
nothing else from reading this article, then know this;
constantly comparing yourself with other people is a no-win
exercise! So the next time you fall into this futile habit, take
a breath and say to yourself:

‘I like and respect myself exactly as I am’

Everybody Hates Me

‘Everybody hates me, nobody likes me, I’m going out the back to
eat worms…’ Do you remember that song? As children, we used to
sing this over and over, and then fall to the ground laughing
hysterically…but the sad truth is that feeling as though the
world is against you is no laughing matter. So how do you get
around that feeling? Well, one way is to cultivate the habit of
assumption. Here’s how it works;

I meet lots of new people every week in my line of work. Now, I
could get myself into a fluster worrying about whether or not
they will like me and whether or not they will respect my
opinion….but I know from experience, that this is futile. So to
make my life easier, I make a conscious effort to assume then
every person I meet will like me…and that I will like them.

This technique works because what you give out comes back to
you; communication is 55% body language, and people pick
up on your internal signals. Think how much easier it is going
to be to always meet people who like you! It certainly beats
being in a constant state of panic.

What if what if what if

Are you a ‘what-if-maniac’? Do you imagine the worst possible
scenario for every situation you encounter? If so, you could be
worrying yourself into an early grave. Next time you get an
attack of the ‘what-ifs’, I would like you to create in your
mind’s eye, a ‘What-if-box’. This box has a one way opening, and
each time you have a negative thought or emotion of the
catastrophizing kind, send it straight through that one-way
opening of your what-if-box. The worrying thoughts will still be
there if you need to go back and re-visit them, so just let them
stay in the box; and while they are in there, you will be free
to get on with the important things in your life!

Know Thy Self

What does self-esteem mean for you? What do you need to do, say
or be to gain greater confidence and self-reliance? More
importantly, how can you improve if you don’t know this? You
need to get clear about what you want and only then can you
begin to make plans to get it. Write it down and while you are
doing this, remember to write down what you want, not what you
don’t want. This is the language your subconscious mind
understands.

When you concentrate on self-development and make plans, you
gain a sense of control over your destiny, and it helps you to
feel better about yourself. So start writing today!

Stand Tall

Do you stand with your back straight and your shoulders square?
Or do you look at the ground when you walk and hunch over? If
you want to be confident, then start with your body language.
Send the message to your subconscious mind that you matter;
watch your physical posture - straighten up, walk tall and look
other people straight in the eye when you talk to them. You’ll
be amazed at how this small thing can make all the difference;
and furthermore, other people will sense your charisma-oozing
body language and begin to treat you differently. Try this
today; it works!

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For many people being told that they have cancer is one of
the most stressful times in their lives. Just as we think we
have everything under control, something comes along that
can shatter even the strongest of wills.

Out of the blue, in September 2002, Sara faced one of the
biggest challenges of her life - her mother was diagnosed
with breast cancer. Having nursed her mother through her
illness, Sara took the step of having a mammogram just to
make sure she herself was clear. All over Christmas she
tried to put it to the back of her mind, but she couldn’t
help worrying.

On New Year’s Eve 2002, she was horrified to learn that not
only did she have breast cancer, but that it was a
particularly aggressive form. Of course, Sara was very angry
at first. She thought, Why me? It would have been better if
I hadn’t gone for a mammogram. She was also very scared.
She said, When someone says, You have cancer, you
immediately think you’re going to die. I have to wait six
weeks before my surgery and I have no idea how I will stay
sane until then. What on earth am I going to do?”

After a few very bleak days, Sara decided she was determined
not to give in too easily. Her mother had, after all, fought
the disease, so she, too, could do the same. When she was
calm enough to answer her question What on earth am I going
to do? several answers came to her, as she was walking her
dog.

Find out as much as possible about breast cancer.

Talk to other people who have faced similar situations.

Be realistic about what she could change and what she needed
to accept.

When Sara opened her eyes and started to believe that she
had choices, she was amazed at the different ideas that
popped into her head. She discovered practical ways to
prepare her body and mind prior to her mastectomy and
reconstructive surgery. She was able to make a number of
choices in her life, including exercise, changing her diet
and learning how to chill out with meditation.

By the time Sara went into hospital in February, her frame
of mind had shifted from a very negative one to that of how
she could take control of her life. She said, I can’t stop
the cancer running through my body but I can change how I
deal with it. It’s taking over my body but it doesn’t have
to take over my mind. I can control how I deal with it.

Sara is certain that her excessive workload, poor nutrition
and lack of exercise had taken a toll on her body and were
contributing factors to her state of health. She sees her
illness as a new chapter in her life rather than the end of
it. As well as conventional medicine, Sara has also
discovered the power of laughter. “It is impossible to laugh
and feel stressed at the same time. I think laughing brings
about release.”

If you are feeling stressed you might not feel like
laughing. But laughter really is the best medicine. As Sara
pointed out, it is difficult to laugh and feel anxious at
the same time! Try it! How do you feel when you have a
really good laugh? As soon as you start to laugh, the power
of the stress is lessened.

I have recently been very involved in setting up a charity,
Clowns in the Sky, which supports children suffering from
brain tumours. Children with tumours spend many weeks in
hospital undergoing painful treatment and we have found that
bringing some fun into their lives makes a huge difference
to their well-being. If they can laugh, so can you!

My favourite films are The Full Monty, Bridget Jones and
Hitch. Why? Because they make me laugh!

This Christmas we tried out a really funny game. Try saying
“purple sprouting broccoli” with your lips over your teeth;
it is almost impossible to do. You will laugh with
frustration that no one can understand you and others will
laugh at you because you look and sound so silly. Don’t
worry, everyone including you will be laughing!

Is everything perfect for Sara? Of course not. Her initial
surgery was successful although she was diagnosed with
breast cancer again a few months ago. The fear that the
cancer might return again has always been the hardest thing
for her to deal with and it is something she thinks about
every day. But she feels much more in control of certain
aspects of her life. She is trying to focus on what she can
change, just a day at a time. She still finds the visits to
hospital very stressful, but she doesn’t allow herself to
dwell on negative aspects of her illness for too long as she
has found it very counterproductive.

Sara didn’t have any choice about having breast cancer. She
did have choices, however, about how she chose to deal with
life each day.

You may not be able to influence and overcome every
stressful situation, but you can take charge over how you
respond.

If you are facing a major change and finding life very
stressful, what changes can you make to how you view the
situation today?

If you want to manage stress in your life, you need to begin
with yourself.

None of us are able to predict the future, but we can make
the present better if we choose to.

What makes you laugh? Do you have a favourite video, a
story, a joke or a friend who helps you to lighten up?

Focus on what you can change and you will start to feel more
in control of your life.

About The Author:

Carolyn Matheson is Author of “Yes to Less Stress”

To receive her free weekly newsletter, sign up today: http://www.areustressed.com/newsletter-signup.htm

Copyright 2006 Anne Wolski

In a world where a person’s worth tends to be measured by
appearance, it is little wonder that we have so many young women
falling into the trap of eating disorders. This obsession with
achieving the perfect figure has led to one of the most
dangerous and life-threatening epidemics of our time.

Bulimia is but one of a growing number of eating disorders
recognized in our modern society. It is a serious disorder
characterized by binge eating followed by forced vomiting or by
purging using laxatives. People with bulimia go through this
ritual in order to avoid the weight gain which would normally
accompany an eating binge.

Why people get this condition is largely unknown and prone to
speculation though it is commonly believed that family and
social pressure, as well as unrealistic portrayals of perfect
body image in the media, play a significant role. The person is
also likely to have intense psychological problems.

Unlike people with anorexia, sufferers of bulimia are not as
obvious as they normally remain within about twenty percent of
their normal weight range. This makes it difficult for a doctor
to diagnose. A person with anorexia has the obvious signs of
emaciation but with a bulimia sufferer, it is really necessary
to observe the binge eating. Because binge eating is usually
carried out secretively, this can create a problem in reaching
an early diagnosis.

The person is likely to come from a middle-class or upper-class
family who are very controlling and put great importance on
achievement. The person is often led to believe that diet and
figure are of extreme importance. Thus, the person with bulimia,
already suffering from a distorted body image, loses their
self-esteem.

Because they suffer from bouts of insatiable hunger, they must
then compensate for their binges by removing the food from their
body by whatever means they can in order to achieve the image
acceptable to the parents and to society in general.

These episodes of induced vomiting and purging bring with them
another lot of medical problems. In the case of repeated
vomiting, the acid irritates the esophagus and pharynx, leaving
them inflamed. The acid also affects the teeth, leaving them
sharp and rough. Laxative abuse can cause hemorrhoids as well as
chronic constipation. Vomiting and the abuse of laxatives can
both cause dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.

Treatment often relies on hospitalization where the person
receives psychiatric counseling to try to uncover the underlying
causes and to help the person to self recovery through
understanding of their own issues. There is often group therapy
involved as well.

The physical problems are treated symptomatically and also
include a diet regime that can control weight without the
dangers that this obsession of bulimia can bring. The person
should continue with counseling for quite some time after
returning home from hospital.

Although bulimia is a serious disorder, death is rare. By
seeking treatment and with the loving support of family and
friends, the sufferer can eventually return to normal eating
habits and a normal, happy and healthy lifestyle.

Writing for the Web is a good gig. I make $30 an hour writing at home. And although I sometimes wish my only companion during the workday were not run on electricity, I like my job. I wake up most mornings excited about what I am doing.

Steps to Getting Started Writing for the Web

For those of you who would like to write for the web, here are some steps to finding a job writing Web site content:

1. Get general writing experience. I wrote a little food column and a few feature articles for our local paper. This is a paper where the most interesting sections are the obituary and the arrest reports, so it doesn’t need to be the Washington Post.
2. Learn everything you can about search engine optimization (SEO). SEO is what needs to be done to have the search engines like a Web site, i.e., give it high ranking. The book I read was Search Engine Optimization for Dummies by Peter Kent. Although anything published on computers is generally obsolete by the time it is published, this book is still relevant and will give you a good idea what SEO is about. I would start with the book and then look on the net for additional, updated information.
3. Learn how to write for the Web. In addition to writing in a way that attracts the search engines, Web content writers need to write for the impatient folks who will surf the net. All of the information you need to learn how to so this is on the internet. It can mostly be boiled down to the following: a) surfers scan and don’t read; b) use bullets, lists, and bold to set off the important points (and the key words for SEO); c) keep it short (between 250 and 600 words) and relevant; d) surfers want information not a lot of marketing mumbo-jumbo; e) write short paragraphs; and f) use headings, preferably with key words in them.
4. Learn Basic HTML/XHTML. The content you write for the Web is coded with HTML/XHTML. If you are going to be the one to actually add the content to the Web site, you will most likely be using a content management tool (CMT). These usually require the user to manually code in some HTML/XHTML. I would suggest going through a book that will take you through the process of writing XHTML. You will also need a book for a reference, which may or may not be the same book you used to learn the basics. There are also tutorials at www.w3schools.com that are good. In fact, you may want to start there and see how it goes.
5. Write the content for a Web site, even if you don’t get paid. You have to start somewhere. Ask non-profit organizations, relatives, and friends if they would like you to write Web content for them.
6. If possible, write for an industry you are familiar with. If you know the industry, you will have a better chance getting a job writing for the industry. The more experience and/or education in an area the better.
7. Write a sample Web page to send with your resume. When you send out your resume, include a sample Web page, preferably one relevant to the industry. For my Web page, I researched a topic for a couple of hours on the Web and then wrote the page using everything I had learned about Web writing and SEO. Throughout the sample Web page, I made notes in red explaining what I was doing. For example, “[Note: The search engines give more weight to bulleted items.]” or “[Note: Important key words should be used at the top of the page, preferably in the page title.].” This is, I think, the best way to let people know you have a firm grasp of writing for the Web and SEO.

Sample Web Page

I hope this has been helpful to some of you. I have built a page on the Web site I am working on to give you an idea how to write a sample web page. The page is a food poisoning attorney/lawyer page, and it can be found at http://www.pritzkerlaw.com/Food_Poisoning_Attorney/. Look for the following and think about where you would make your notes in red:

• Key words in page title (in light orange)
• Key words in headings for SEO
• Headings for easy scanning
• Bullets to set apart important information
• Content-rich links (no “click here” links)
• Content-rich links for scanning purposes
• The words “free consultation” in bold to make sure someone who is scanning the page will see them.

The Web site is still a work in progress. I have to work around a bad content management tool that doesn’t write valid code, doesn’t give me access to the key word meta content (an SEO issue), and unduly limits the length of my description meta content (another SEO issue). I also have to use caution when writing because, in addition to copyright and other legal issues, we have to consider legal ethics. Also, Fred Pritzker, the excellent lawyer I am working for, wants the site to be a legal resource and not obnoxiously over-sell him. I am still learning how to balance everything. For example, the page I sent you to above is quite heavy on marketing. Most pages, however, are actually a bit too long and are almost purely informational (See, for example, http://www.pritzkerlaw.com/ecoli/).

You are free to publish this article on the internet. You must, however, give the author credit and provide a live link to the Web site I am working on, http://www.pritzkerlaw.com/. You also may not materially alter the content. You may publish this in segments if you wish, but you must adhere to the above.

© 2006 Kathy Will

Kathy Will is a freelance Web writer who can usually be found shivering at her computer in Minnesota. Her current project is http://www.pritzkerlaw.com/, a legal resource for injured people.