*
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Get
in Now on the Raging Bull Market of the Coming Decade
As
far as investments go, it doesn’t get much hotter than energy
and natural resources have been over the last few years.
If it comes out of the ground, it’s been going up in price.
And if the last commodities bull market is any indication,
it will be years before we see the end of this bull run.
The
recent, widely anticipated market correction has presented
some amazing buying opportunities. One of these is a Midwestern
company that is sitting on 70,000 acres of highly productive
natural gas property in Texas. This property alone is worth
BILLIONS... and yet the company itself is valued at only
$100 million.
And
the best part is... this is just one part of this company's
multi-billion dollar portfolio of energy related assets.
My colleague, financial expert Andrew M. Gordon has written
a complete report on this opportunity. I
highly recommend you check it out... before this bull
starts running again.
-Will
Bonner
ETR
Insider Report: Fueling Your Profits
By
Charles Delvalle
"Charles,
hurry! I need the latest research. Russia is about to blow
the price of uranium sky-high!"
That's
what Andrew Gordon said as he ran past my desk.
I
knew he was working on the next issue of The
Wealth Advantage and his excitement piqued my interest.
I started digging. It turns out that Andrew was onto something
big. The uranium sector has been going nuts lately.
Here's
what I found out:
Apparently,
U.S. nuclear power companies have been getting cheap Russian
uranium from old Cold War nukes. Naturally, this upsets Russia.
They want to be paid market value for their uranium - which
is why they refused to make an HEU (Highly Enriched
Uranium) deal with U.S. utilities this past month.
That
means the U.S. - which depends on nuclear fuel to power 20
percent of the country - might have to look elsewhere for
a power source.
If
this impasse with Russia doesn't end, we could easily see
uranium hitting $100/pound - soon. And Andrew's picked a
company for his subscribers that's ready to explode right
along with it.
The
recommendation goes out to The
Wealth Advantage readers in a few weeks. So sign
up today to get on board, get the full story ... and take
advantage of this amazing profit opportunity!
[Ed.
Note: Charles Delvalle is the Managing Editor of ETR's Money
Insight newsletter.]
"A
lot of Woody Guthrie's songs were taken from other songs.
He would rework the melody and lyrics, and all of a sudden
it was a Woody Guthrie song."
John
Mellencamp
Man,
Method, and Recasting
By
Robert Ringer
When
my dad and I used to talk about business, he would often
say, "It's all man and method." He was referring
to the reason one person fails while another succeeds in
the same business.
I
think about his words to this day, which is probably why
I've always been somewhat of a maverick. It's a high for
me to move ahead full speed with a project that everyone
insists won't work. "That's outdated"... "It's
been tried before" ... "There's no market for it" ... "The
business model is flawed" ... blah ... blah ... blah.
Trust me, I've heard it all.
Double-Closing
Finesse
About
25 years ago, I read a fascinating article in Fortune about
an airplane broker (his name escapes me) who had made $15
million the previous year.
What
was interesting about this story was that the airplane broker
didn't work on a commission basis. In fact, he took great
pains to posit himself as a principal in the company rather
than a broker. He conducted his business much like the no-money-down
guys who are experts at real estate "double closings."
This
resourceful broker was in constant contact with wealthy people
and big corporations throughout the world. He made it a point
to be in touch with everyone who was looking to buy a used
airplane and to know what kind of plane they were interested
in. He also kept in close contact with entities that were
interested in selling their aircraft.
Whenever
he matched up a buyer and a seller, he would tie down the
seller at one price and get the buyer to sign a purchase
agreement at a higher price. The difference between the two
represented his profit, which usually was far greater than
the normal aircraft brokerage commission.
What
I recall most about the article is that this innovative broker
said he had created his own industry. When I read that statement,
I thought to myself, "No, he hasn't created a new industry.
He's simply recast an old one."
It
occurred to me that I had done the exact same thing when
I was a young real estate broker, positioning myself in such
a way that I was able to maintain control of negotiations
between buyers and sellers. As a result, I succeeded in drastically
reducing the frequency of having my commissions cut - or
completely eliminated. (I won't go into detail here, but
if you've read my book To
Be or Not to Be Intimidated?, you're familiar with
what I'm referring to.)
Later,
I employed the same kind of recasting technique when I became
an author. By publishing my own books, I was able to put
into place a "perception-preceding-reality" marketing
strategy to create three #1 best-sellers. I didn't invent
the book-publishing industry; I simply recast it in a manner
that no one had previously attempted.
The
reason my marketing strategy had never been attempted is
that no one believed it would work. But I had learned years
earlier that if something has never been tried, it might
be the best of all reasons why you should consider it.
My
exploits, however, are small potatoes compared to an endless
number of examples that come to mind. Following are two of
my favorites.
Recasting
the Image of Glitter Gulch
If
Bugsy Siegel invented Las Vegas, then Steve Wynn reinvented
it. In fact, one could argue that he reinvented the entire
gaming industry (the politically correct euphemism for the
more straightforward "gambling industry").
Wynn
is the ultimate recasting genius. When he built his first
mega-success - the Mirage - in 1990, Las Vegas was in the
doldrums. Worse, experts seemed to be in agreement that its
continued decline was inevitable because the whole concept
of Las Vegas was outdated.
It
was in the face of such negativism that Wynn raised $600
million - much of it through junk-bond king Michael Milken
- to build his dream hotel. The majority opinion was that
he was headed for a catastrophic fall, especially when word
got out that the Mirage would need to do $1 million a day
in business just to break even.
But
the Mirage not only prospered, it spawned a nonstop building
boom in Vegas that is still going strong. Wynn's first extravaganza
transformed the entire city and the way people around the
world viewed it.
Luxury
hotels certainly were nothing new to Las Vegas. What was
new was the idea of a mega-luxurious, mega-themed, self-contained
resort - with a family environment and tight corporate controls.
The real-to-life volcano that explodes every 15 minutes in
the evening at the Mirage is still a major Las Vegas tourist
attraction.
After
the Mirage, Wynn went on to build Treasure Island, Bellagio,
and Wynn Las Vegas, all spectacular mega-resorts, as well
as many other gambling resorts throughout the U.S. and abroad.
The
Advent of Designer Coffee
But
perhaps the best story about recasting an entire industry
is that of Starbucks founder Howard Schultz, who was featured
in a 60 Minutes interview with Scott Pelley.As a young
man, Schultz was a coffeemaker salesman who one day paid
a fateful sales visit to Starbucks, a local coffee-bean shop
in Seattle.
He
immediately fell in love with the atmosphere of the place
and, after working there for a time, came up with the idea
of opening a coffee bar on the premises. But the owners turned
down his idea ... because they didn't want to get into the
restaurant business.
As
a result, Schultz left Starbucks and opened his own coffee
shop, Il Giornale. By 1987, Starbucks had expanded to six
stores, and Schultz was given the opportunity to buy the
little chain for $3.8 million.
Keep
in mind that this came at a time when coffee sales were down
in the U.S. and the world was seemingly moving too fast for
people to slow down, relax, and have a cup of java like they
did in the good old days.
But
Schultz had a vision - and the salesmanship and marketing
skills to transform his vision into reality. Above all, he
had incredible chutzpah - an invaluable asset that most great
entrepreneurs are not shy about putting to use. In the face
of declining coffee sales in the U.S., he charged $3 for
a cup of the world's dullest and most common drink - and
had the audacity to serve it in a paper cup!
If
customers were being taken for a ride, it was a ride they
loved - to the tune of 227 million gallons of coffee a day
... 40 million customers a week ... 11,000 stores operating
in 37 countries ... opening five new stores a day ... $29
billion in sales ... doubling sales every three years. This
in an industry that was thought to be all but dead.
Of
course, with Schultz's recast version of the coffee shop,
we're no longer talking about a dull drink. Starbucks now
stands for designer coffee - 55,000 possible combinations
at last count. Schultz has proven to be a master of hype,
literally developing a "coffee culture" by making
coffee sexy and mysterious.
Schultz's
hype was at its peak in the Pelley interview when he said, "We're
in the business of human connection and humanity ... creating
communities and a third place between home and work. Our
approach for 30 years has been unique and different - not
better, just different."
Mind
you, Schultz didn't mouth these words with a perfectly straight
face, but he did say them with enthusiasm. And the words
that struck home most were, "Not better, just different." So
different that a $10,000 investment in Starbucks in 1987
would be worth $5 million today.
Now
that's what you call successful recasting.
Today's
Action Plan
Walt
Disney and a mouse recast the amusement-park industry into
the world's largest shopping mall. McDonald's recast the
hamburger stand into the fast-food business. Wolfgang Puck
recast the gourmet-chef profession into the gourmet-chef
conglomerate. CNN recast the television broadcasting industry
into the 24-hour-news channel ... and Fox News came along
20 years later to recast it yet again.
The
point Robert Ringer is making today is that there's gold
in old - old ideas, old movies, old TV shows, old books -
things that have been around forever. In fact, if a service
or product has hit bottom, it just might be the perfect time
for an entrepreneur (like you) with vision to revive it,
recast it, and create a whole "new" and profitable
industry in the process.
Not
sure how to do it? Check out Robert's personal-development
books on CD
*
Highly Recommended *
Do
You Need To Start Out Small?
If
you don't have an Internet business yet, or if your company
is smaller than $1 million then you need something different...
something that lets you start off small.
One
man I know turned $10 into over $500,000. How's that for
starting small!
Let
me show you how to get a similar Internet income stream
running for almost nothing.
-
Patrick Coffey
Watch
Your Blood Sugar ... Preserve Your Brain Power
By
Jon Herring
For
years, we have known that diabetics have about a 65 percent
increased risk of developing Alzheimer's. And recently, Brown
Medical School researchers found a new connection between
these two diseases when they discovered that insulin is not
only produced in the pancreas but also in the brain.
In
their study of brain tissue from 45 Alzheimer's patients,
they also found insulin abnormalities quite similar to those
associated with advanced stages of diabetes. Furthermore,
the brains of those with Alzheimer's had abnormal protein
deposits similar to deposits in the pancreas of diabetics.
The
team concluded that Alzheimer's is actually a new form of
diabetes, which they call "Type 3." Other experts
characterize the discovery differently - but one thing is
clear: Abnormal blood sugar metabolism can lead to diabetes
AND severe neurodegeneration.
This
is just another bit of news to remind you to take your blood
sugar levels very seriously. Avoid sugars, fruit juices,
and refined carbohydrates ... and work out vigorously three
to four times per week. You will have greater mental energy,
your mood will be elevated, and your risk of ALL degenerative
diseases will be much diminished.
(Reference: BBC)
Notes
From Asia: How to Stock a Hotel Room
By
Michael Masterson
At
the Shangri-La Hotel in Xian, we've been upgraded - I'm not
sure why - to an executive suite. (This is the second time
we've been upgraded to a suite. What gives?) Our living room
is big enough to hold a table and chairs, a seating area,
and a desk. Off the large bedroom is a spacious, marble bath.
The
bed linens are crisp and white. Flowers bloom in every room.
A large bowl of fruit sits on the living room table, silverware
and napkins beside it.
And
the view of the city, from eight stories, is inspiring. Like
Beijing, Xian is a bustling, bursting-at-the-seams city with
clean roads, green parks, and lots of new buildings. The
only negative: smog. The receptionist denies that it's smog.
She says "The farmers are burning something in the fields." And "The
weather will be good tomorrow." The valet gives us the
same story. We'll see.
The
spaciousness, cleanliness, decor, and vista of our suite
put it in a level-one category for hotel accommodations.
Not the poshest room we've ever stayed in, but for $250 a
night, it's pretty amazing - like just about everything else
in China.
What's
really remarkable about this suite is the abundance of little
amenities: It has everything I've ever seen in a hotel room,
plus a whole lot more - including a copy of James Hilton's Lost
Horizon available for purchase beside the bed. (This
is, after all, the "Shangri-La" Hotel.)
If
you decide to go into the B&B or hotel business and want
to astound your guests with thoughtfulness, use this checklist:
-
an
abundant fruit basket
-
a
small bottle of complimentary wine and two wine glasses
-
two
sets of robes, one terrycloth and the other silk
-
a
fully stocked mini-bar
-
an
easy-to-use safe
-
four "free" bottles
of water
-
a
fully equipped desk, including a tray with rulers, staples,
paper clips, etc.
-
a
fax machine
-
high-speed
Internet (cable and wireless)
-
a
welcome letter from the manager
-
a
sofa table stacked with hardbound books on China
-
coffeepot,
cups, and a selection of coffees
-
a
basket of toiletries for women, including skin creams,
hair products, etc.
-
a
packet of toiletries for men, including razor, shaving
cream, and aftershave
-
in
the evening, cotton slippers beside the bed, cookies
on the night table, and a rose on the sheets
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Word
to the Wise: Ensorcelled
"Ensorcelled" is
bewitched, under a spell. The word is derived from the French
for "sorcerer."
Example
(as used by Gina Bellafante in a New York Times review
of the movie "The Devil Wears Prada"): "She
is so ensorcelled by [her boss] that she now uses [the word
'crisis'] when harm befalls a set of accessories."
