A lucky 200 people have been shortlisted for the chance to become the caretaker of a tropical Australian island, dubbed by promoters as the “Best Job in the World.”But tourism officials acknowledged Friday that many last-minute applications were lost because the Web site was flooded with traffic.

Nearly 35,000 people submitted video applications for the job with Tourism Queensland, which pays a salary of 150,000 Australian dollars ($97,000) to relax on Hamilton Island in the Great Barrier Reef for six months while writing a blog to promote the island.

The job is part of a AU$1.7 million campaign to publicize the charms of northeastern Queensland state.

Anthony Hayes, Tourism Queensland’s chief executive, said a wave of 7,500 applications hit the Web site in the 72 hours before Monday’s deadline.

“This massive amount of traffic understandably slowed the site down and regretfully some people weren’t able to get their video application in on time,” he said. “It has been frankly heartbreaking because people have gone to so much trouble, and we have lost some fantastic applications. But to be fair to everyone, we have to be consistent.”

The tourism board will announce 50 finalists Tuesday on its Web site. The public will then have until March 24 to vote for their favorite applicant.

Something else was on Dave Rohlman’s mind when he asked for a volunteer to shoot two free throws awarded his team on a technical foul in the second quarter. His senior captain raised his hand, ready to go to the line as he had many times before. Only this time it was different.

“You realize you’re going to miss them, don’t you?” Rohlman said.

Darius McNeal nodded his head. He understood what had to be done.

It was a Saturday night in February, and the Barbs were playing a non-conference game on the road against Milwaukee Madison. It was the third meeting between the two schools, who were developing a friendly rivalry that spanned two states.

The teams planned to get together after the game and share some pizzas and soda. But the game itself almost never took place.

Hours earlier, the mother of Milwaukee Madison senior captain Johntel Franklin died at a local hospital. Carlitha Franklin had been in remission after a five-year fight with cervical cancer, but she began to hemorrhage that morning while Johntel was taking his college ACT exam.

Her son and several of his teammates were at the hospital late that afternoon when the decision was made to turn off the life-support system. Carlitha Franklin was just 39.

“She was young and they were real close,” said Milwaukee coach Aaron Womack Jr., who was at the hospital. “He was very distraught and it happened so suddenly he didn’t have time to grieve.”

Womack was going to cancel the game, but Franklin told him he wanted the team to play. And play they did, even though the game started late and Milwaukee Madison dressed only eight players.

Early in the second quarter, Womack saw someone out of the corner of his eye. It was Franklin, who came there directly from the hospital to root his teammates on.

The Knights had possession, so Womack called a time out. His players went over and hugged their grieving teammate. Fans came out of the stands to do the same.

“We got back to playing the game and I asked if he wanted to come and sit on the bench,” Womack said during a telephone interview.

“No,” Franklin replied. “I want to play.”

There was just one problem. Since Franklin wasn’t on the pre-game roster, putting him in meant drawing a technical foul that would give DeKalb two free throws.

Though it was a tight game, Womack was willing to give up the two points. It was more important to help his senior guard and co-captain deal with his grief by playing.

Over on the other bench, though, Rohlman wasn’t so willing to take them. He told the referees to forget the technical and just let Franklin play.

“I could hear them arguing for five to seven minutes, saying, `We’re not taking it, we’re not taking it,” Womack said. “The refs told them, no, that’s the rule. You have to take them.”

That’s when Rohlman asked for volunteers, and McNeal’s hand went up.

He went alone to the free throw line, dribbled the ball a couple of times, and looked at the rim.

His first attempt went about two feet, bouncing a couple of times as it rolled toward the end line. The second barely left his hand.

It didn’t take long for the Milwaukee players to figure out what was going on.

They stood and turned toward the DeKalb bench and started applauding the gesture of sportsmanship. Soon, so did everybody in the stands.

“I did it for the guy who lost his mom,” McNeal told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “It was the right thing to do.”

Entrepreneur: What are the the advantages of getting a franchise as opposed to starting your own brand?

Amando Bartolome: Getting a franchise gives you certain immediate benefits. one is a proven business formula, which means that you don’t have to go through trial and error because the franchiser already has a business system that work- one that he has successfully used to grow his business.

E: What one should keep in mind when choosing which brand to buy a franchise for?

A.B: The first consideration should be to find a business model or concept that best suits you. as much as possible, choose a concept you really like or have a passion for.

E:  With so many businesses offering franchises right now how does one distinguish the good from the bad? what are the red flags that people should be looking for?

A.B. : you first need to ascertain the track record of the company seek out some of its franchisees. you should look with suspicion at a company that insist on the signing of franchise agreements and fees as first in the agenda, that resorts to hard-sell tactics as guaranteeing paybacks and 100 percent success. keep in mind that the contract signing and payment of fees should come later in the qualification process.

By rafael santos 

From Entrepreneur