There's nothing like being your own boss!

I started working when I was 15, first as a baby-sitter, then as a kindergarden teacher. In my early twenties I worked as a secretary, an executive assistant, a translator and a typesetter. That typesetting gig got me a job at an important publishing firm in Mexico City where I went from assistant to the director to head of the copyright division. Throughout my years as a regular employee I worked for several brilliant men and women in cultural and academic settings, a business tycoon, a well-know orchestra director, a very chic art gallery owner and even a Mexican ex-president.

As you can see, I have been exposed to many different work environments and every person I have ever worked with has taught me something new: from learning how to change a diaper at fifteen (Yuck!) to understanding how to run a business (more or less) by the age of thirty. 

After so many years of working for others, I decided I had the wherewithal to branch out on my own. It is not for the faint-hearted, but I am more of a leader (bossy) than a follower and I knew I had the discipline to make it work for me. It was time to make use of all that knowledge I had accumulated over the years. 

At first I worked very long hours to establish my business. Without the safety-net of a steady pay-check, the stress of trying to meet all of my old and new financial obligations played havoc with my stomach, but as time passed I came into my own and I managed to earn enough to cover all my business and personal expenses. Of course I made a lot mistakes along the way, but I learned from them and worked hard to make my business work for me. And it did work for me, for many years, until I moved away from the hustle and bustle of Mexico City. 

Nowadays I work as a free-lance translator. It's sporadic work and doesn't keep me very busy. For a while I tried to keep my brain active by playing games on the computer –all day, every day (very addictive)–, but there came a point when I became really bored with this and felt the need to do something more productive. Luckily, a few months ago I discovered a new source of entertainment that also gives me the opportunity to earn money and go back to teaching. I love teaching my new and ever-growing team how to build a business and earn a second income. 

I've never regretted branching out on my own. Being independent and keeping my own hours has given me a sense of freedom that no 9 to 5 J.O.B (Just Over Broke) can ever provide. Since I am more of a night owl, I love the fact that I can get up whenever I want and not have to listen to the incessant beeping of my alarm clock; I can sit around and wait for my brain to catch up while I drink my first cup or two of coffee; I can stand outside on my balcony and appreciate the scenery, the smell of freshly cut grass and admire the cheeky birds that come visit for a few seconds before flying off into the wild blue yonder.

Sure, once in a while I still miss that regular paycheck, but not enough to go back to the morning and evening rush-hour traffic, or the office gossip and in-fighting that plague most organizations or businesses. The fact is, I love being my own boss! 

See you next week!

PS If you are curious about what I am up to nowadays, please visit my website: moirasmoneymakingmoves.weebly.com

Earn money, win prizes and have fun at SFI!

 An affiliate/marketing program can be quite overwhelming for many of us. It takes hard work and perseverance as well as commitment. SFI provides the training we need to learn how to make money and supports us every step of the way. But it also gives us plenty of good reasons to log in every day.

SFI has devised a way to keep us motivated by rewarding us with VersaPoints (VP) for every action we take. Each VP we earn is equivalent to one share in the TripleClicks Executive Pool, which means we can make real money each month by doing these actions. And I am not talking about a few VP here and there! The amount of VP we can earn, just from doing these simple actions, is about one third of the amount we need to reach and maintain our Executive Affiliate rank!

Of course the rest is up to us! If we want to succeed, we need to earn more money and VP by applying what we learn about sales, referrals and sponsoring from the training manuals. However, the fact that SFI is willing to reward us with so many free shares, just for clicking on links and reading the contents on each page, is pretty awesome in my book!

SFI also gives us a 'virtual' pat on the back for our efforts by awarding badges for each milestone we reach. These badges are prominently displayed on our Profile and Leadership page to show our team and fellow affiliates how well we are doing and to remind us that we rock!

All work and no play?

SFI goes far beyond the norm by providing extra incentives. For instance, as long as we do enough actions to earn a minimum of 10VP each day, we are qualified to enter the SFI Daily Grand Raffle and win some really valuable prizes. The same applies for those who are E365 Finalists*. We are automatically entered to win prizes, and even cash, in the daily E365 Raffle.

We have even more opportunities to win prizes, and have fun at the same time, by visiting TripleClicks, SFI's online store. Once we have taken care of business, we can relax and go have some fun at the TripleClicks Game Center. There, we can enter the free hourly T-Time contest to win some TCredits; or take a guess at the final price of an auction (PTP contest) and stick around to watch that auction or even participate, if we feel so inclined and have some TCredits to spare.

My point is, you get a whole lot more from SFI than just work, work, work! And let me tell you, there is no better incentive to log in to SFI every morning than knowing that there might be good news waiting for you. What could it be? A brand new Affiliate? A new sale? A new milestone reached by you or someone on your team? Or maybe, just maybe, it's a message announcing that you have won a Daily Grand or E365 Prize; or some TCredits from the T-Time or PTP contests. What better way to start your day?!

So my advice to all you hard workers out there is: Unless you are already working for a company that is as focused as SFI on rewarding you for the amount of work you put in, and as intent on keeping you happy and motivated, you should seriously consider becoming your own boss and JOIN SFI today! If you are a 'go-getter', you can have all this and more, plus you get to spend more time with your family and save money by working from home! Who could ask for anything more?

For more information please visit my website: moirasmoneymakingmoves.weebly.com 

See you next week!

*You are automatically enrolled in the E365 contest the day you join SFI. During the first month, you and everyone who joined on the same day as you (your Class), participate in 5 preliminary rounds. The rest of the year, those who passed the 5 rounds become E365 Finalists and can compete to become E365 Class Champion. It is a big deal because, out of thousands of contestants, there can only be 365 winners: one for each day of the year.