Increase Adsense clicks thru ads in between posts

Guess what, I am now close to getting my first Adsense paycheck. A few months ago I thought I will never be able to get this far. But things started to change. I think it was because I moved my Google ads from the sidebar to the spaces in between my blog posts.

It wasn't easy transferring the ads. In fact, it was complicated placing them in between posts in (Blogger) blogs like this one. After successfully doing it, I couldn't help but write about it. Google probably noticed our plight and added some tweaks in Blogger to enable us to do the job with a few clicks.

Here's how. (1) From your dashboard, click on layout. Then, (2) click on edit blog posts. In the dialog box, (3) check the box opposite "Show ads in between posts". The dialog box will then show the configuration options of your Adsense units. After configuring, (4) click on save. Voila! You now have Google ads in between posts.

A quick note. This shortcut is not seamless. I tried doing this with my Bol-anon blog but the resulting ads turned out to be misaligned. I ended up keeping the ads on my sidebar. On the other hand, the trick worked quite well on my Quick & Random blog.

How about you guys?

Be a stock trader with five thousand pesos

In the Cashflow 101 workshop I attended a few months back, I learned that it is not enough that you save. You must know where to invest your savings, know how to make your money work for you. One suggestion was to invest savings in stocks apparently because stocks offer a higher return on investment.

Simply put, a stock is a share in the ownership of a company. It represents a claim on the company's assets and earnings. It is also referred to as a share or equity in the company. As you acquire more stocks, your share in the ownership of the company also increases.

Like anything of value, stocks can be sold and resold. The trade of stocks are usually done through a stock market or a stock exchange. In our country, stocks are traded through the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE). Its history goes back to the founding of the Manila Stock Exchange (MSE) in 1927 and the Makati Stock Exchange (MkSE) in 1963.

Traditionally, the buying and selling of stocks had to be done on the floor of the Exchange through licensed brokers. With the advent of technology, however, online trading is already possible. That means you can now buy and sell stocks at the comforts of your own home or office.

There are now 7 authorized online stock trading facilities authorized by the PSE. These facilities are in line with PSE's efforts to promote more local investments in companies listed with them. They provide greater access and removes many of the barriers to stock trading.

The big surprise is that you can now get an online stock trading account with as low as P5,000 pesos. Transaction charges are also very minimal at only .25 percent. With this, I think it is now very possible for you and I to earn from the stock market. For those interested, you may want to attend the orientation seminars conducted by Accord Capital's Philstocks.ph.

A word of caution though. Everyone says online stock trading requires a lot of research and monitoring. It is because when you are trading online, you practically don't have a broker to rely on. While your earnings can be limitless, your losses can be tremendous as well.

Still, I'm excited to plunge into this thing called stock trading. I feel like this is the beginning of something great. God bless me.

Attend a coaching session with a magazine

Mansmith and Fielders, Inc. in cooperation with Business World and the De La Salle Professional Schools Ramon V. Del Rosario, Sr. Graduate School of Business presents "Entrepreneur Coach Marketing Rescue" to be held on October 6, 2007 at the 5th floor of RCBC Plaza, Makati.

The session will feature Josiah Go of Mansmith who will answer questions submitted by the attendees themselves. It is designed to encourage entrepreneurs to discover, innovate, get ahead and be on top of the entrepreneurial game. It will teach them how to stay focused on their marketing strategy despite limited time and resources, and despite uncertainties and emergencies arising left and right.

To reserve a seat in this marketing coaching session, you just have to email your name, company, position, contact number and email address to entrepreneurcoach@summitmedia.com.ph. To send in questions, you may email them to the same email address.

And your ticket to get inside? You just have to get a copy of the October issue of the Entrepreneur magazine available at the venue itself.

Negoskwela's upcoming seminars

Got a copy of Negoskwela's schedule for the second half of September and October this year. As usual, there are lots of interesting topics in the list. My present personal favorites are those on meat processing, reflexology, massage and spa products. The registration fee for these seminars is just P1,600+ and thus affordable to the likes of me. See the schedule here (updated).

Stand Out with Josiah Go and Francis Kong

The Markprof Business Academy presents Stand Out, an event featuring Josiah Go and Francis Kong to be held on October 3, 1:30 to 5:3o pm, at the Philam Life Theater at the UN Avenue in Manila. Go will speak on "Strategic Focus on via Blue Ocean Strategy", while Kong will talk about "You Inc.: Creating your Personal Brand".

According the Markprof, "Stand Out" is about growing demand and breaking away from competition. It is also about building your own life brand and making yourself stand out.

In his topic, Go will help us understand the tools and framework that sets blue oceans apart, and to perceive the Blue Ocean Strategy not only as a strategic tool but also as a scientific approach in systematically taking smart strategic moves for your brand.

Kong, on the other hand, will help us understand the tools and principles that creat strong personal brands, and help us learn how to equip oneself with tools, behaviors and attitude to maximize individual potential and enhance individual contribution for ultimate personal achievement.

Seminar investment (registration fee) is P1,200 for early birds (before September 18), P1,500 at the regular rate (before September 28), and P1,800 onsite. To register, download and fill-up this form and fax or email it back to Markprof.

To pay, you can just deposit in the Metrobank account of Markprof Foundation, Inc. no. 189-3-1895-12652 and fax the deposit slip to Markprof with the name of your company, contact person and telephone no. To reserve, call 8282038 t0 40 local 103, or email desmdeleon@yahoo.com.

Lowest housing loan interest rates ever

I have always been happy with PAG-IBIG Fund. I have always found their employees very friendly and efficient. And that is not the only reason. There's more.

Out of all the statutory deductions to your monthly salary (SSS, GSIS, Philhealth, PAG-IBIG and withholding income tax), only PAG-IBIG can be considered "savings". Unlike other deductions, all your contributions to PAG-IBIG, plus all your employers' share, will be returned to you in full upon maturity of your account.

On top of that, your "savings" will also allow you to get a housing loan at very low interest rates. In fact, in a seminar I attended last Saturday at their Corporate Center, I learned that interest rates were further reduced last June 207 to only 6% for loans up to P300,000, 7% for loans up to P750,000, and so on.

And, while PAG-IBIG may "re-price" your housing loan after three years, the interest rate can only be increased by not more than 2%. Meaning, for a P750,000 loan, the highest interest charges you may incur is only 9%, way below the interest rates offered by banks, even today.

With the lowest interest rates ever, and with the assurance that the rates cannot be increased by more than 2%, I sincerely believe that now is the ideal time to get a housing loan and build your own home.

Photo of the PAG-IBIG Member Relations Desk inside the Atrium in Makati which houses the Corporate Center of the Fund.

Got a Thinking Blogger Award

For some reason, I got a Thinking Blogger Award from Selaplana of www.selaplana.com. I assume it is an award started by the Thinking Blog and now being passed on from one thinking blogger to another. Selaplana had this to say about me:

Gibo for informing about Skim-boarding. His blog Bol-anon, actually reminds me my first ever visit to Tagbilaran City last July 5-6, 2007.

Bol-anon of course is one of my blogs which I recently turned into a group/community blog on Bohol and the journeying Boholanos. My other blogs include Pinoy Seminars, Quick and Random, Batasayti and Kontrakablag.

I thank Selaplana for choosing me as one of his 10 awardees out of the many members of his community. I now would like to pass on the award to a great set of bloggers who has been making me "think" for some time now:

1. Eu-Leh of Entrepinoys Atbp.
2. Gcol of Pinoy-Negosyo-Techs
3. Gwen of the Thegrapebunch
4. Maia Jose of Manila Mom, and
   
5. The people behind Mag-negosyo.
   

Stop renting, start investing

A few months back, I read an article about buying your second home first. The idea was that, it is not advisable to invest all your savings, or borrow unthinkable amounts of money, just to buy or build your dream house immediately.

It is more advisable to invest in a reasonably priced “second home” first which you may amortize using the money you are now spending monthly for rent. Of course, there are lots of low-cost housing subdivision around, but one option you may want to consider is Eastwood Residences in Rodriguez (formerly Montalban), a municipality which is just beside Quezon City.

Eastwood Residences is a development project of Verdantpoint Development Corporation and is only 30 to 40 minute-ride away from the Quezon Memorial Circle. I have been there several times and I can assure you, that 30 to 40 minutes is not an exaggeration.

The project offers a full-set of amenities like a multi-purpose hall, basketball court, landscaped playground, a nearby swimming pool, 24-hour security, provision for commercial areas, among others.

There are various house models available but for starters, you may consider Bianca with a floor area of 25 sqm, lot area of 63 sqm, provision for 2 bedrooms, 1 toilet and bathroom, living room, dining room, kitchen and carpark.

With Pag-ibig Fund financing, initial cash outlay for Bianca will just be around P4,300 a month for 7 months, and the succeeding amortization only around P3,600 per month. Very affordable even to government employees like me.

Another option is Tifanny, with a floor area of 44 sqm (two storey) and lot area of 36 sqm. It has provision for 3 bedrooms, 1 toilet and bathroom, living room, dining room and kitchen. With Pag-ibig Fund financing, initial cash outlay will be around P7,700 for 6 months and succeeding amortization at only around P6,300 per month.

Open house and free tripping on Sundays. For further inquiries, please email me at lumantao@gmail.com or call/text me at 09189387793. I will be very glad to help you get your own home!

Hydroponics, making urban farming possible

I was first attracted to hydroponics when I saw an exhibit by Negoskwela showing a full grown lettuce on a piece of plastic cup. I thought that it was something that residents in urban areas like me can make use of.

To satisfy my interest, I skipped watching the Philippines-Mexico Boxing World Cup last August 5 to attend a seminar on hydroponics by Engr. German Penaranda at Negsokwela. I didn’t regret the decision especially when I learned that our fellow Bol-anon, Boom Boom Bautista, got a big “boom” in the first round.

Hydroponics, I learned, comes from the Greek words “hydro” meaning water, and “ponos” meaning work or labor. It is a technology for growing plants in nutrient solutions (or solutions made of water and fertilizers) either with or without the use of artificial solid medium like sand, gravel, rockwool, coconut peat, sawdust, among others.

The principal advantage of hydroponics include high-density maximum crop yield, crop production where no suitable soil exists, virtual indifference to ambient temperature and season, more efficient use of land area, and suitability for mechanization, disease and pest control.

On the other hand, the major disadvantages include isolation of crop from the soil causing problems related to diseases, pest, salinity, and poor structure, high cost of capital and energy inputs, and high degree of management skills required for successful production.

In fact, to do hydroponics at a commercial scale, you have to build a capital-intensive (meaning costly) setup and buy necessary equipment like pumps and measuring tools, among others.

However, I was also told that you can also do hyroponics at the constraints of your home as a hobby and use things like ice cream gallon containers and plastic cups. You can buy your plant seeds and nutrient solutions at Mother Earth/Negoskwela’s hyrdroponics demonstration farm at Quezon Memorial Circle.

I really felt that we are seeing the beginnings of what can be considered urban farming in the Philippines. Now if we can only master the technology and teach it to the millions of informal settlers (meaning squatters) in Metro Manila…

Negoskwela up close, latest sched

I finally got the chance to visit Negoskwela at North Avenue corner Agham Road, Quezon City. From their bulletin boards, I learned that the livelihood and entrepreneurial learning center was founded by Eladio A. Guevarra on 19 May 1999.

Negoskwela is really an offshoot of the Skill Power Institute which Mr. Guevarra established in Antipolo City sometime in 1987. The Institute is said to have pioneered tertiary computer education not only in Antipolo but also in nearby cities and municipalities. It offered various technical courses and has been accredited by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA).

Negoskwela kicks off were the Skill Power Institute leaves. The people behind it saw the need for short courses to cater to both the young and old, the jobless and unemployed. They started offering a broad range of courses, from arts and crafts, to food technology and culinary arts, to agriculture and aquatic courses, and many others.

When I went there, I found Negoskwela's facilities modest. And yet, there is no doubt in my mind that the center has been instrumental in spreading the gospel of entrepreneurship in the country. Kudos to them. Incidentally, this is Negoskwela's sched for the second half of August and September (updated)