Having founded a couple of web development companies and having friends/family know I can “make web sites” – I’m often asked for my recommendations for a reliable hosting provider. At Gut Shot Studios we prefer the clients to set up their own host and domains, as this allows them to have full control. I think this is important for anyone setting up a web site – as if something happens to the development company you rely on, you still have access to all your files and can point the domain to another host.

After going through 4 or 5 hosting providers that were a pain in the arse to work with, I ended up biting the bullet and getting myself a dedicated server at Rackspace – the biggest hosting company in the world. Servers at Rackspace are not cheap, but their up-time and support is worth every dollar and for me, more than pays for it’s self within a day.

While working on a new project, I decided to give Media Temple a try, a host that many high profile brands, developers and designers use. I started on their shared hosting plan and was instantly impressed with their user interface, support and up-time, that a few months later I got a dedicated server with them. I know have a dedicated server at both Rackspace and Media Temple. Not surprisingly, these are the 2 hosts that I recommend.

Don’t be a cheap arse!

I’ve recommend Media Temple (shared plans) to 10 clients, family and friends this year alone. However, only one has taken my advice. Yes, just one! Instead, I’m given login details to hosts I’ve never heard of and cost peanuts per month. One client didn’t even have MYSQL on his hosting plan (For the non techy folks out there, this is a bit like checking into a hotel room without a bed).

I find this mind boggling as the clients are paying my company good money for a quality web site, although they feel the need to skimp on the hosting costs. Personally, I’d take an average site that will be up all the time over a stunning design that has problems.

A shared hosting plan on Media Temple goes for $20 per month (or $200 for a year), which is a fair bit more than the $5 per month deals you can get else where. But my argument is this; If your going to put your time and effort into a web project, pay for a designer and a developer, is it worth skimping on a few dollars to keep your website online and have access to knowledgeable support?

Take my advice, use a good host from the beginning, it saves so much time and head-aches later on.

I’m not saying Media Temple and Rackspace are the best hosts in the world, but from my experience I’ve had with them, they are amazing.

What host do you use, recommend or have had problems with?

The Good Mook Cafe serves really good food and the best coffee in Mukdahan. Plus, they sell beer lao

Thai green curry – one of my faves!

Spicy papaya salad with crispy pork.

Pad Thai with prawns.

Prawn spring rolls.

This was all washed down with a nice ice cold bottle of beer Lao’s finest.

This afternoon I decided to take a break from the keyboard, get some sun on my back and go out to take some pictures. I ended up going down to the Mekong river, along the Indochine Market and finally meeting up with some friends for a spot of lunch.

This represents everything what Mukdahan is about to me. There are many Lao immigrants here, as well as Vietnamese who came over during the Vietnam war. Their presence, culture and food is everywhere, which I really like. (A special thanks to the Vietnamese lady who makes traditional Hue style crispy pankcakes at the market! I love you!)

Although the Indochine Market is marketed as a good antiques market, it’s actually no different from the thousands of other markets nationwide. Food, clothes, household items and a few hamlets, are the norm here.

A sam-lor, which means 3 wheels in Thai. This is the local version of the taxi. They can be loud, and very slow.

The ribbons around the tree are there for good luck and fortune.

I don’t know what Thailand would do without pick-up trucks. From carrying up to 20 people in the back, to converting the back into a Coffee Shop as seen here, is just normal practice in Thailand.

For those that have been following my blog for a while know that I’m a huge fan of outsourcing as much of my work as possible. I’ve been outsourcing since I started out online when I was frustrated with trying to learn how to code, which eventually lead me visiting India when I was 19 to meet developers and designers over there.

One area of outsourcing that I’ve not really looked into until now, is hiring people in the Philippines. So today I thought I’d pick the brains of Dan who lives in Manila and employs locals to help build he’s web based businesses.

Dan runs a couple of excellent pod-cast’s that are worth subscribing too… one on lifestyle business and he’s newest venture, a podcast dedicated to outsourcing in the Philippines. You can also find Dan on Twitter.

Whether you already outsource your work or are considering taking the leap, hopefully Dan’s excellent advice below will help.

1. Tell us a little about yourself, your projects and how you got involved with working in the Philippines?

My name is Dan and I am an entrepreneur. I love traveling around and doing business. I’m also a big foodie so it’s pretty obvious why I’m a loyal reader of MyEggNoodles.com. My new hobby is telling everyone how awesome it is to outsource here to the Philippines. I’ve always been interested in outsourcing to scale companies faster. In the past, I’ve set up offices in China and Vietnam, and I’ve worked a lot with remote assistants/developers in India and North America. I’m currently based in Manila, the capital of the Philippines. The prospect of setting up shop in the Philippines’ didn’t show up on my radar until 8 months ago. Once I understood the opportunity that exists here, I got on the next plane and haven’t looked back. If you are interested in following me, here are the best places: LifestyleBusinessPodcast.com, or @TropicalMBA. If you are an entrepreneur and want to outsource to the Philippines, check out outsourcetothephilippines.com.

2. Why did you chose the Philippines over other countries such as India or Thailand?

I’ve met a handful of entrepreneurs here in the Philippines who have begged me to keep a lid on this stuff! The world is going to be hearing a lot more from the Philippines in the coming decade.

First, the Philippines is an English speaking country. Everyone speaks English in this country. All the street signs are in English. Television is in English. In the second largest outsourcing hub in the Philippines, Cebu City, they speak a language called Cebuano. Here in Manila, they speak the “official” language Tagalog. I asked my Tagalog teacher what she speaks when she travels to visit her friends in Cebu. You guessed it! ENGLISH. Being an English speaking country gives the average Filipino a huge advantage over non-English speaking countries, not only in communicating via phone or email, but also in understanding Western cultural nuances, copywriting in native tone, and keeping up to date on the latest tech trends and software documentation.

Second, the Philippines have a huge availability of young, well-educated employees. The educational infrastructure is very strong here. There are tons of university educated professionals with exceptional English skills and broad range of highly sough after technical skills, including software development, web marketing, writing, legal, medical training, you name it.

Third, the Philippines is a country with a western mindset and culture. They’ve been colonized by western forces since the 16th century. The Americans only officially stopped governing the Philippines in the 1940’s. In terms of mindset, the Philippines doesn’t feel close to any other Asian country, and a lot of the cultural challenges you face when outsourcing to places like China or India are non-existent here.

Finally, it’s not only the best value outsourcing destination I’ve come across yet, but its also the cheapest.

3. Tell us more about what’s it like to work with the locals over there

Working with my staff here in Manila isn’t too much different than working with folks back home. I don’t feel much of a cultural divide here. While the average Filipino obviously has a much different life experience than a Westerner would have, in terms of attitude, approach, and basic understandings we have a lot in common as cultures. I can relate very well to friends and colleagues. If you would have told me that 8 months ago I wouldn’t have believed it.

4. What’s it like to live in the Philippines?

Big question! In terms of logistics, the Philippines is hands down the easiest place for a westerner to navigate. Everything, including court documents, is in English. Every landlord, shopkeeper, and taxi driver speaks English. The visa situation is very friendly and operating a business is relatively easy. Logistically, this is the most welcoming country in Asia for entrepreneurs. If you are in to adventure sports– diving, boating, treasure hunting, island hoping, kayaking, kite boarding– you’ve found your place! The islands and beaches are largely untouched and they are gorgeous. Many SCUBA divers believe the Philippines is the best country in the world for the sport.

Culturally, the Philippines can be a bit of a letdown relative to the rest of South East Asia. As a result, it doesn’t see close to the volume of tourists as its neighbors, and the ones who do come here are generally after either women or SCUBA diving. You also won’t find large groups of relatively young educated professional/academic class expats like you will in other Asian hubs. On the surface, the cultural offerings of the Philippines can be difficult to appreciate. This isn’t a great touring spot if you are in to history, food, or urban centers. All of the best restaurants are located in malls (incredibly awesome malls, if you are in to that sort of thing), there isn’t the great street food that you get accustomed to in the rest of Asia, and the architecture, ambiance, and filth of most of urban areas is positively depressing.

Part of the reason I ran the Tropical MBA program out of Bangkok is that I thought Manila would be too difficult a transition and not enough fun for an inexperienced world traveler. What’s exciting about Manila, and the Philippines in general, is the people (Filipinos are super cool and fun people), and the sense of opportunity you feel here. Also, the live music is incredible.

5. Do you think someone needs to be based in the Philippines if they have employees there? Or could this be done remotely? In your opinion, what are the benefits of the 2?

Its definitely not necessary to be based here to have employees or even an office. I think all the traditional advantages of having or not having an office apply.

6. Do you need to set up a company to work in the Philippines?

You do not. You can hire freelancers that can work for you as independent contractors. Labor laws here in the Philippines are very flexible and business friendly. If you’d like to incorporate here in order to set up a higher profile operation– say a call center with lots of office space– there are many, very reasonable ways a foreigner can set up an entity, securely stay in the country indefinitely, and manage most of the cash that flows through organization. Take that Thailand!

7. In Thailand, someone without a work permit is not allowed to work (although it goes on everywhere, especially those that work online) – even without any Thai’s involved. Are you saying it’s completely legal to work from your home or is the situation similar to Thailand?

The Philippines is incredibly business friendly and is actively seeking out foreign investors. Just in passing I saw some deal in Cebu where you get a free lifetime visa if you employee over 10 people. I’m not sure if that anecdote is true, but the spirit of it is in line with my experience here. I know countless entrepreneurs who create and manage a lot of cash within the country. Disclaimer: please don’t take my advice on the technicalities of your own visa situation, its definitely worth your own due diligence. The situation is nothing like Thailand, where I’d much prefer to live (I love Bangkok) and might even have set up my business there if it wasn’t such a pain.

8. What are the associated costs with setting up a company/office in the Philippines?

There isn’t one way to do this. You’ll need to consult with folks who’ve been there before and can help you organize your entity in a way that will keep you secure. You don’t necessarily need to incorporate in order to operate out of an office, either. In terms of official licensing fees, its very cheap. Office space rent varies dramatically based on your location.

9. If someone doesn’t want to open up an office, where do you recommend setting employees up to work? From home?

I’ve been in the country working remotely with my team since September! I occasionally meet with them in person to have diner and socialize. I’m only now looking for office space. It’s totally doable, you just need to find ways to ensure you are being productive. We have daily Skype “office hours.” In general, I think its much more productive to have an office, so as my team gets larger the costs of space become smaller than the cost of lost productivity.

10. What can one expect to pay developers, copy writers or designers in the Philippines?

A decent starting salary for a college grad in computer engineering is $220USD monthly. PHP developers are more expensive starting generally at $350 and anywhere to $1000 depending on experience. There is really a broad range. Computer animators start at $220USD. Folks who are more connected to freelancing style internet work can have some inflated rates. You can get really talented people with SEO, Copyriting, HTML, CSS, Photoshop, etc. in the $250 to $600 dollar range. Internet and call center workers can tend to make more than traditional professional, for whom $200 bucks is a great payday. Salaries outside of Manila can be much more affordable.

11. I know you’ve gone over this is a podcast, but can you quickly give us some tips on finding talent in the Philippines?

I’ve been telling everyone this is a great business opportunity. There isn’t a good, cheap solution with a critical mass of users that I know of. The biggest site for jobs in PH far and away is Jobstreet.com. It is the end all be all. Its a relatively expensive subscription service but if you need results, its the place to go. Besides that, I suggest getting scrappy. Blogs, forums, online boards. Most of my talent comes from networking and I’ve received tons of referrals.

12. What are your top 3 tips you would give to someone who is considering outsourcing their web development work to the Philippines?

Do it. Do it. Do it. Okay, kidding.

1. If you can afford it, come here to the Philippines and meet your team. I believe there is a huge long term opportunity available to entrepreneurs interested in the Philippines. Advancements in digital communications are making it possible for most business processes to take place anywhere on the globe. The Philippines has the absolute highest availability of super affordable English speaking trained, westernized people on the Globe. If you are an entrepreneur, you are sure to find some value.

2. Outsource Higher Level Tasks Than You Feel Comfortable With – Forget just sending off a bunch of article writing tasks. Consider hiring someone to coordinate your entire content campaign for you. Filipinos are sharp, they know about the web, and they can communicate with you 100%. I treat my guys (and gals) just like I would a California employee, and they are just as talented. I am lucky enough to have a layout designer on staff who does better web layout work than any designer on my staff in California (that’s 6 highly trained California designers!).

3. If you are frustrated with outsourcing, give it another chance.  I’ve tried to do this stuff in India and had some bad experiences with it. If you haven’t yet tried to find employees in the Philippines, its a totally different scene and I believe the chances of it working out are might higher. Focus on hiring employees, not task-specific robots, and you’ll soon find a group of very affordable people on your team working with you to grow your business.

Thanks Dan!

Just a quick update as I haven’t updated the blog this week. I’m now in Mukdahan (North East Thailand) catching up with work while trying to lose my love handles after eating far to much in Japan. I’ve been living a really healthy lifestyle over the last couple of weeks and I feel so much better for it! I’ve been getting up early, swimming/running on a daily basis and I’m sticking to a strict diet of fish, nuts and fruit.

While in Japan, I was focused on renting a house here in the North East which I could use as a base for the year, so last weekend I went over to Khon Kaen to check a few places out. Most pads were requesting 7 months deposit, which meant it would be a real commitment if I was to go ahead. After some thinking, I decided it’s not the right time to stop traveling and therefore will continue staying homeless for the foreseeable future.

So since I’m going to continue on this adventure without a base or home, I did the only sensible thing; booked up more travel plans

Balangan Beach in Bali

Most of my friends back home are either poor or have families/commitments now, so it came as great news that some friends from London and Denmark are coming over to see me next month. The plan is to head down to an island in Southern Thailand to catch up and get up to mischief for a few weeks. Anyone got suggestions on where to go?

Seafood dinner at Jimbaran Bay, Bali

After some fun in the sun I may go over to Vietnam with a buddy, depending on my work load. Then it’s onto Bali and the Gilli Islands for 2 months with the missus – We keep on reminiscing about how much we miss the beaches and the Balinese food (as seen in the pictures above), so I’m really excited about going back. I really like Bali as it’s cheap, the locals are friendly, Bali has some of the best food in South East Asia and the beaches are stunning. Good times ahead.

Finally, I’ll fly up to China and check out more of the vast country and will make a stop in Shanghai for the World Expo.

That’s the next few months planned, so who knows where I’ll end up after that! If anyone is going to be around in the places above, please do get in touch. It would be great to meet more readers!

Posting will be light for the next few weeks, however I promise to make up for this when I’m back on the road

Have a great weekend all.

I took this image at a Swimming Pool in Mukdahan the other day. I like the depth of filed in this image, something I’ve been trying to master since I got my new camera.

Image credit : Dalla

Nearly everyone I know who works online has suffered from insomnia from one time or another, and there are countless others that suffer from sleep disorder too. I select out the people that work online as this is the area I have experience with. You see, the internet does not have opening times, and therefore it’s easy to slip into a routine of working from 3pm to 6am and finding it difficult to sleep when your head hits the pillow. Trust me; I’ve been there many times over.

Having been on both sides of the fence – a 9am to 11pm routine as opposed to a 3pm to 6am routine – I can tell you that the later is no where near as productive as the former. As somewhat expected, you feel like shit most of the time when you’re on the 3pm to 6am routine due to fucked up sleeping patterns, and this naturally has a negative impact on other areas of life such as moral, creativity and productivity.

Why does this matter?

If like me, you let your business take over your life (which is a good thing if handled correctly), your mind will almost always be thinking about how you can improve your projects. You’ll worry when you don’t hit a dead-line, you’ll worry what your customers are thinking, and you’ll start to wonder how that email campaign has performed…. the list can go on and on (yes, you are not alone!).

Caring and loving your business obsessively makes it difficult to “switch off”, especially when you have a heavy work load. In most cases, this is what first triggers insomnia. Your sleeping patterns go crazy and before you know it, you’ll soon find yourself in bed while your head is still running at 100mph.

Getting the balance right

If you have ever suffered from insomnia, you’ll know it’s a bitch. There’s nothing worse than not being able to get some sleep due to your brain going over important issues in your life while your physically tired. It’s pointless and a waste of energy based on my experience as it’s always best to go over big issues with a refreshed mind rather than one that’s tired and agitated.

Insomnia is not only a problem while your trying to get to sleep, it also affects your daily routine, the way you interact with others and your general outlook on life. What I’m trying to say is that there’s little good that comes out of a shit sleeping routine.

I started researching insomnia a while back and found a really interesting article on a system that I now use. I wish I could find the article so I could link to it, and furthermore, email the author a thank you note. I no longer suffer from insomnia, and can now easily manage a balanced sleeping routine that’s not only good for my work life, but also great for other parts of my life.

The solution

The problem lies with the lack of understanding how the human body works. Your body is programmed to routine, so you need to get your body into a routine that knows when it’s time to shut down, and when it’s time to start up again.

The key here is to wake up at the same time every day.

If you currently have insomnia or generally find it hard to sleep at night, you need to start waking up at your desired time right now, no matter how many hours sleep you’ve had the previous night. You’ll feel like shit for 3 days or so due to no sleep, however your body will start to learn it’s starting time and will let you know what time it needs to shut down.

I’m no doctor but I think there’s no set amount of hours sleep you need per night, as this surely differs between everyone based on body mass, weight, age etc. And most importantly, differs on a daily basis based on what you have eaten and how much energy you have burned. I think it’s best to let your body decide how many hours of sleep you need.

After 4 to 7 days of waking up at the same time everyday, your body will start to tell you, via feeling tired and sleepy, when it’s time to hit the pillow. You’ll then have a balanced sleeping routine that will hopefully have a positive impact on your business, and life in general. This sounds so simple doesn’t it? I know. But the thing is, it is this simple (yet so effective when you put it into use!).

If you have no time restraints, a good time to wake up is before 9am in my opinion – as you get to see the day, and getting to see some natural sunlight does something for your mind that I can’t explain.

Like most positive/negative effects with the human body, you need to take care of the beast. Regular exercise is a must, as is eating healthy, nutritious foods.

The results

I’ve suffered sleeping problems due to work for a long time, however I no longer have issues getting to sleep when I wake up at the same time evryday, and I feel great throughout the day because of it.

Even though I’m working fewer hours than before, my productivity has gone way up, and most importantly, I feel great (which should be the most important thing right?). I’m now finding myself scratching my head wondering why I didn’t do this earlier, hence writing this post to hopefully help those out that also suffer from balancing a good sleeping routine.

I’m now back in North East Thailand after an epic trip to Japan, and thought I’d dedicate this Photo Friday to my favorite ramen noodle dish! A difficult decision as I can honesty say they were all equally delicious! I have eaten noodle dishes in every country I’ve visited in Asia and Japan wins hands down.

This was called Hokkaidō Ramen (¥1,000 / $11), and was eaten in Ramen Alley – a little street filled with ramen noodle shops in Sapporo. The soup was spiced curry based with all sorts of goodies thrown in including egg noodles, potato wedges, boiled egg, roasted pork, sliced veggies and a small slab of butter. This was easily the biggest ramen dish I had, and was absolutely delicious!

What’s the best noodle dish you’ve ever had?

After getting up nice and early we headed to the train station to get a train to Tiene, about an hour away from Sapporo to do some  snowboarding. Luckily the JR ticket office in Sapporo station sold packages which included snowboard or ski hire, lift passes and transport which consisted of a 20 minute train journey and bus transfers to the club house.

Our train

This was my first time snowboarding so I was full of excitement, like a fat kid just about to munch into some chocolate chip cookies. After sorting out my snowboard and boots, it was time to head out onto the slopes. It took me about 2 hours to get the hang of it, but after that I could go down a 1 star run without falling over. Now it’s just a matter of practice to get faster and eventually learn some tricks! I had such a blast, and the workout was welcome due to over-eating while in Japan.

View from the Tiene train station

While waiting for the bus to take us up the mountain, I watched this guy feed the pigeons!

Getting kitted out!

I’ve just got onto the snow and can’t wait to get up the first slope.

After a full day of snowboarding, I opted for chicken with green pepper pasta with a boiled egg to finish of a great day!

I can’t until next January to get back up to Sapporo for the Sapporo Snow festival and to get some more snowboarding action in!