I know, hype-y headline, right? But this “secret” deserves it. How about a little more?

What would you say if I told you you could get (a lot of) the benefits of journalling or coaching without spending more time or (much) money?

That’s exactly what I do every day when I shower.

My secret weapons? A laundry marker and any ol’ sheet of paper.

Say what?

Okay, the premise: when I take a shower, my mind wanders. I ponder life, the universe, and everything. Or I indulge random worries, letting them flit in and out, bringing stress with no clarity. And even when my thoughts are relaxing, they don’t give me the oomph I need to jump into the day.

Last year, I read a post by Peter Shallard about increasing motivation by asking good questions. He identified some powerful questions and offhandedly said:

Print off and laminate a list of five “power questions” and hang it in your shower. Ask yourself these questions, until you get answers, every morning. This really works.

I was immediately captivated by this idea… but frankly, I’m not big into preparation, and getting something laminated sounded like a big pain. So I didn’t do it.

The real-life solution

A week later, I went to my first swim session for the triathlon I was training for, and my coach gave us all laser-printed workout cue-sheets. He said, “When I started swimming, I would set my workout sheet at the edge of the pool, and constantly had to pop half-way out to see what was next. Then I looked around and saw what other people were doing: they just dunked the paper in the pool and slapped it on the side where they could see it with every lap.”

Something clicked. I realized I didn’t need to laminate my paper, just print it out, get it wet, and slap it on the shower wall. (I never really got good at the swim workouts, but that’s a separate issue. ) So that’s what I did.

“Great” is the enemy of “done”

I used the stock questions for a while, just printing out a small stack to keep near the shower, but I quickly noticed Peter has places in them where you’re meant to insert a specific task.

My unwillingness to spend prep time meant I didn’t use those at first—in order for them to be relevant to the current project or task, I’d need to run downstairs, fire up an editor, type in my specifics, print, and head back up for the shower. Not happening.

Then I realized I had a laundry marker from labeling my kiddo’s clothes for pre-school, and I could use that to fill in the blanks because it was waterproof (enough). So I did.

But the real a-ha moment (you might be wondering why it took so long!) was when I stopped printing altogether, and just wrote something fresh every day. Not only does this take almost no prep (woot!) but it keeps my brain from getting bored and ignoring the familiar.

From motivation to problem-solving

At first, I stuck with the motivation-only questions. Those are fantastic, and still work shockingly well for getting me moving. But I’ve also discovered along the way that this is a great way to use my brain’s amazing brainstorming power in a pleasant, passive way.

It’s easy. I just write a question related to the biggest challenge I’m currently facing, and scrub-a-dub without putting any particular effort into answering it. But as I’m shampooing and face-washing, my eyes repeatedly land on the question and my brain goes to work solving it. More often than not, I emerge with a solid plan and the fire to git-r-done.

Now, to be clear, I do work with a coach. This hasn’t and won’t replace the value of having a sounding board outside yourself. But I’ve found the effects very similar to our conversations, and also to journalling (which I get real value from, but have a hard time setting aside the time to do consistently).

What kinds of questions?

I ponder anything and everything. Here’s a sample of questions I’ve considered lately:

• “How awesome will I feel when I finish everything on today’s task-list?” (Straight from Peter’s success-priming questions.)
• “What content should go on the homepage of my site?”
• “What will I do today to have fun?”
• “What’s the most important thing I could do in the next hour?”
• “What am I doing regularly that I don’t enjoy and could outsource?”

And sometimes when there’s nothing major on my radar, I’ll put some kind of uplifting affirmation or statement that makes me smile (often quirky, like this couplet from Regina Spektor).

Try it tomorrow

Intrigued? Don’t wait. You can get the pen from Amazon if you like, but I’ll bet you could use a ballpoint pen or a basic marker or, heck, a crayon in the meantime.

You can use pretty much any paper, too. I’m currently working my way through one of those notepads everyone ants to give you at tradeshows. 3″x5″ cards work. Printer paper works. Junk mail envelopes work.

Just keep a pen and paper near your shower so you don’t have the friction of having to get them, and stop for five seconds and think, “What is hanging over me?” and come up with a question to help you solve or get excited.

So what do you say? Will you give it a go? Please do, and tell me how it works for you.

The post My $2 motivation and inspiration secret (of showering!) appeared first on WP Moxie.

Whether you’re outsourcing your code or doing it yourself, there are a few things you can do from the get-go that will save you lots of time and/or money.

For this post, I’m listing them with a short, high-level explanation; in future weeks, I’ll elaborate on each of them and link this post to the more detailed information.

In priority order, I present to you: five things you can do to make your designs easier to code.

1. Use web fonts. Yes, I know you love that Hoefler & Frere-Jones font. Everyone loves H&FJ fonts. But when it’s time to use them on the web, good luck. You can’t do it in a way that’s both simple and legal. So save yourself some angst later and stick with fonts from TypeKit, Google Fonts, or Font Squirrel (among others).
2. Use seamless or solid backgrounds. One of the big differences between print and web design is the canvas; thanks to huge screens and dynamic content, you need to plan your design to look good even if the canvas is three times wider than you expected. Seamless or solid backgrounds are the easiest way to do it, in most cases, but the important part is to have a plan, any plan.
3. Limit fancy filters. Photoshop gives you all these neat tools and you can hardly be blamed for wanting to dive into them. But if your background has a pattern, applying filters to layered objects on top of it is going to be very difficult, if not impossible, to replicate online. (There are a few exceptions, but if you’re not sure you’re dealing with one of them, limit yourself to transparency adjustments only.)
4. Show everything. It’s easy to identify the sites where content elements were not planned: they’re the ones where some elements look like afterthoughts! The more you intentionally style, the better the overall design will be. I’ll publish a more detailed list (and maybe a resource to help) but start with things like headings, links, paragraphs, lists, and comments.
5. Plan for dynamic content. Yes, it’d be lovely if all content was magically the right length for the bottom of two columns to line up perfectly… but that doesn’t usually happen. And inevitably, someone wants to add another item to the menu. How will your design hold up with real-world content? Some of this will depend on the quality of the coding, but you can help a lot by thinking about it as you design.

The post Five Tips for Codeable Web Design appeared first on WP Moxie.

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Believe it or not, this feature is incredibly useful when you’re making small changes—especially when you want to show a series of options to a client.

Using this tool along with a screen capture tool, you can quickly test and show tweaks.

Why bother?

• As I’ve alluded to above, this approach is fast. No waiting for your graphic design app to open, no detailed export workflow… you just make the change and go.
• Once you’re at the stage of working with a live or near-launch website, accuracy is a big deal. While the differences between Photoshop and browser font display were fine when doing initial mockups, it’s much more helpful to see what it will actually look like on the live site.
• When experimenting, it’s nice to know that you’ll always have the original intact. This is especially important on a live site. Working within the browser lets you get it just right, without having to make a full clone of the site, and without inadvertently introducing new bugs with your changes.

What you’ll need*

• Chrome
• Screen Capture (by Google)
• Basic CSS skills

* Safari, Firefox, and other browsers also have similar tools, so you don’t need these exact ones if you have others you prefer.

Watch and learn, Grasshopper

Keep notes as you code

I mentioned this in the video, but keep track of the changes you’re making. Not only will it keep you from losing them, but if you’re showing the client three variations, you’ll want to remember exactly what it was you did for each of them!

I usually just keep a document open in my code editor where I copy/paste fragments. I’d be a little more formal about labeling them there if I was working on a long-term project, but most of the time, I’ll know the winner a day or two later, so I keep it casual (but effective).

The post Video: how to quickly mock up changes on a live website appeared first on WP Moxie.

Every one of these themes will lend you credibility and inspire confidence—without breaking the bank.

Each theme is well under $100, has a five-star rating (which isn’t the be-all-end-all but does usually mean it’s relatively straightforward to set up and use), and looks good from a design perspective (good, readable fonts, that kind of thing).

Once you have your theme…

If you go this route, here’s what I’d recommend you spend the rest of your website budget on (in order of priority):

• Photography. When the “product” is you (and your experience and advice), you can go a long way by looking the part. Consider the image you want to project, dress accordingly, and get a combination of white-background shots and “real world” action shots.
• Copywriting. Most of us are downright lousy at writing about ourselves, let alone talking ourselves up. Start by writing out the content of the site yourself, and then bring in a pro to fine-tune it. (You’ll save money by giving them something to work with.)
• Website tweaks. These themes will get you 90% of the way there. For that last 10%, if you have the budget for it, you can hire someone like me to make it “just so.”
• A logo. Though many people consider this an essential, I see it as a “nice to have.” Many of these themes show a text-only or basic icon-plus-text logo, and that’s a good enough model for looking professional. But as your client base grows, you may want to work with a professional to get exactly what you want.

The themes

I’ve selected a wide variety of styles to give you an idea of what’s out there. They’re divided into rough categories below, with a short description of what might be appealing.

Many of these themes feature motion and neat effects, so when you see one you like, click through and go to the “Live Preview” to really get a feel for it.

Conservative and solid

If you work with really conservative companies, or you simply prefer solid, tried, and true, these themes will emphasize stability and reliability.

Innovative and fresh

If you or your clients are distinctly out-of-the-box, you’ll appreciate the clever design approaches and fun feelings.

Clean and minimalist

Somewhere between the last two categories, these themes embrace modern design sensibilities while drawing deeply on classic whitespace and grid-based design.

Conventional with a twist

These themes all almost make it into the “Conservative and Solid” category, but each of them brings something a little unconventional to the table.

The post Premium themes for consultants appeared first on WP Moxie.

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Or, “How can I make Facebook show something other than the first line of my blog post?”

Maybe, “Where on earth does Facebook get the pictures it shows next to my posts?!”

Or simply, “How do I get Facebook to show what I want?”

You’re not the only one! Most bloggers, web designers, and marketing folks are asking the same questions… and for good reason: it’s not obvious, and there’s not much in the way of clear instruction.

If you have your own WordPress site or blog, I have good news for you: with a small investment of time now, you can get everything exactly how you want it for the foreseeable future.

Build the foundation

With that out of the way, your first task is simple: install the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin.

Once it’s installed and activated, it’s time to set sensible defaults.

Go to “SEO” > “Social”.

Check the box that says “Add OpenGraph meta data”. If you have a Facebook page, you can also use the “Add Facebook Admin” button but it’s not necessary.

Another optional setting (but one that many people will appreciate) are the Homepage and Default settings.

The Homepage settings change what shows up when people share (you guessed it!) your homepage… which is a pretty common page to share, particularly if they’re typing it in.

The Default settings control what image is used if a given post or page doesn’t have any images. For a personal (or personality-driven) site, this is the perfect place to use a photo. (Note that you’ll need to upload it through the “Media” area and then copy its URL to this box.)

And that’s the entirety of the setup! Of course, the WordPress SEO by Yoast plugin does a lot of other things, too, but this is all you need to get started with your Facebook improvements.

Prepare your post

Now that you have the general settings in place, it’s time to get your post ready.

The image

I’m starting with the image because it’s probably the single most frustrating element when it comes to sharing on Facebook. Here’s what you need to know:

• WordPress SEO by Yoast will offer Facebook every image within your post. Facebook won’t make all of those available. Specifically, any image that’s smaller than 200×200 pixels won’t be included.
• Every image over 200×200 pixels will be put in a stack for the person posting on Facebook to choose from.
• The image with the largest dimensions (in pixels) is the one that will be the default. It doesn’t matter if it’s first, last, or in the middle of your post.

The title

If you scroll down past the window where you’re typing your post, you’ll see a new section called (not surprisingly) “WordPress SEO by Yoast”.

There are a couple of tabs that are relevant: the first one is the “General” tab, and it’s the one that’s open by default.

The setting you’re looking for is “SEO Title.” This setting is optional, and you only need it if you want to use something other than the regular title.

Why would you want to do that? Well, if the title of your post or page is something that makes a lot of sense within the context of your site, but wouldn’t be obvious without that context, you can change the title that shows up on Facebook, Google, and other sites.

The description

The “General” tab also has a “Meta Description” field. You can use that to set the description that shows up in Facebook and Google (and a bunch of other sites) if you want to do them all in one fell swoop.

On the other hand, if you only want to set the description for Facebook sharing, you can move over to the “Social” tab, and set it there. (There’s also another option to set the “Google+ Description,” which is similarly useful if your readers use Google+.

Think of these options as an extended version of a text ad: the goal is to convince people to click on the link, whether they’re looking at Facebook or Google.

Test!

This happens all the time: a blogger adds a new (bigger) image, or updates their “Meta Description,” but when they post the link on Facebook, they see the same old thing as before.

Well, you’re not crazy: Facebook is ignoring your changes. But there’s a good reason.

Most blog posts and pages don’t change once they’re posted, so typically, there’s no value to Facebook in grabbing a fresh copy every time. Instead, they sensibly keep a copy unless they’re told to update it.

So you have to tell them to update it. Fortunately, this is both easy and useful, because it also gives you a chance to double-check that everything is as it should be.

All you have to do is go to Facebook’s Debugger tool, put the URL of the post or page into the box, and click the “Debug” button. That’s all you need to do if you just want Facebook to get a fresh copy—but I recommend looking over the results so you can see why they’re showing what they’re showing.

Your turn

Let me know if this works for you, and if you have any questions or run into any trouble. I’ll continue to update this information to clarify anything that’s muddy.

The post How to make your blog posts show up perfectly on Facebook appeared first on WP Moxie.

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Apply the Convert to Alpha filter. Filters > Other > Convert to Alpha.

I haven’t done enough playing around to know if this only works if your background color is the same as the color you want to make transparent, but it worked perfectly on my image:

Before and after

The post How to make a background color transparent in Adobe Fireworks appeared first on WP Moxie.

There are many things that can be done to help in this situation, but today I want to talk to you about our Plan B—what to do if everything goes wrong and the host can’t handle the traffic. All of the clients in question are using budget hosts and don’t want to pay for premium hosting unless it’s absolutely unavoidable—but they don’t want their sites to go down, either.

There are high-end solutions to this problem, but typically they’ve been both expensive and complicated. Fortunately, there’s a now simple set of preemptive measures that give us the affordability of budget hosting and the ability to hightail it, fast, if need be.

Before the traffic hits

The great thing about this plan is that there are only two things you need to take care of before the traffic hits (and you should be doing at least one of them anyway!). Obviously you should also do what you can to improve site performance so that it’s less likely to go down in the first place, but all you need to do for your backup plan is this:

1. Have backups
2. Use CloudFlare

You should already be making regular, automated backups, but if you needed a reason (you know, beyond hackers and hardware failures), this is it. Make sure you’re backup up the database and all the files you can’t easily replace (like your media uploads and theme files), plus your wp-config.php file (if you’re using WordPress).

The second point, using CloudFlare, may help your site stay up in the first place (it reduces the stress on your site by serving some of the files for you, and by keeping most folks with bad intentions away). But if your site goes down, CloudFlare is the key to being able to quickly move to another host.

A crash-course in “DNS as it applies to your website”

Your domain name is basically a catchy, easy way to refer to the place where your site is hosted. Think of it as the equivalent of a street address; it’s easy to tell someone and gets them to the right place. But where your site is actually hosted is more accurately referred to by a series of dots and numbers, called an IP address. Think of this as the equivalent of GPS coordinates. Yes, you could tell someone you live at 45°31′12″N 122°40′55″W, but it’s so much easier to say “123 Dimmick” or whatever.

In order to keep track of which domain name goes to which IP address, there are servers called name servers that have all the info web browsers need to get to the right place. Behind the scenes, when someone types in “wpmoxie.com,” a lookup happens that finds out that the relevant name servers, and then asks them where to find the website represented by ”wpmoxie.com.” Each name server typically only keeps track of the sites hosted by the host running the name server.

An important fact: the records that point to the relevant name servers are not updated continuously. Your internet service provider (and all internet service providers around the world) only grab a new copy of this information on a scheduled basis, because otherwise it would be overwhelming and impossible to stay on top of. Most ISPs get a new copy of this information somewhere between “every two hours” and “every two days.” Once most ISPs have the current information, your change is said to have “propagated.”

Here’s the reason this all matters to you: if you switch hosts, you (usually) have to switch name servers. But when you switch name servers, that means that a good chunk of your visitors will continue going to the old host (because they can’t help it) for hours or even days after you make the change.

How CloudFlare saves our bacon

As part of the process of setting up CloudFlare, you change your name servers to their servers. This initial change takes the standard amount of time to propagate, but after that, your name servers will stay the same (they’ll be CloudFlare’s) even if you change hosts. Instead of changing name servers, you’ll just change a couple of settings with CloudFlare, and the changes will take effect for almost all visitors, almost instantly.

The nitty-gritty: how to change hosts

1. Get the new host set up. If you want to be really prepared, you should have your backup account all ready to go. But if you’re really watching the budget, you can keep your backups ready, and sign up for the new account as soon as you know there’s a problem, and then upload as quickly as you can. (If you’re going this route, you’ll want to make sure you know what the signup process is at the new host—some hosts do manual account verifications, and that could unacceptably delay the process.) The setup process is the same as for any site move; you upload the files, create the database and database user, import the database, and update the config file. (If that sounds like greek to you, you should probably have a pro on call.)
2. Make the changes within CloudFlare. I made an off-the-cuff video showing you how:
   
3. Make sure anything extra services (like email) are also transferred, if needed. The last thing you want is to stop getting your email at a critical time!

What if you don’t have any warning?

It’s great if you know it’s coming, but what if the traffic is unexpected (or you just turn out to have an unreliable host)? Well, for those potential reasons, I recommend backups + CloudFlare to everyone. The beauty of this setup is that you don’t have to know it’s coming: if you have backups and are using CloudFlare, you can make the change just as quickly.

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