Indie Business Blog

Wow! I Coulda Had A VA!

A Virtual Assistant Can Help Keep You And Your Business Fit

In this week's issue of my newsletter, I talked about incorporating some new health and fitness strategies into my life, including more exercise and less time sitting in a chair in my home office. But while I want to take better care of myself, I don't want to become less productive, nor do I want my IBN members to suffer or feel as though I am any less accessible.

                  

Enter Ginger Derrickson, my new Virtual Assistant. I turned to Ginger (who has served previously as my VA) last month, and lo and behold, she had time in her busy calendar to add me!

Ginger joined me to share a little about her profession, and how hiring a VA can keep you from one day hitting yourself upside the head, screaming, "Wow! I coulda had a VA!" (Geesh, I thought that was funny ...)

Taming the Email Monster

Don't Let Email Overwhelm Your Work Day

Email may just be the 8th wonder of the world. It's practically free, keeps me in touch with the entire universe and helps my business run smoothly and efficiently. ... or does it?

          

According to Marsha Egan, a professional coach and authority on email productivity at Egan Email Solutions in Reading, Pennsylvania, while email is effective, inexpensive and efficient, it can also get in the way of productivity. I've heard this before.

I've also heard the suggestion that you check email twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening, so as not to interfere with important tasks. But because my business relies on email for just about everything, this is bad advice for me. It's also bad advice for many of my clients, so I started wondering what the good advice was.

I turned to Marsha for clarification.

New Year's Resolutions

Have Yours Fizzled or Sizzled?

It's the last day of the first month of 2008. Have your new year's resolutions fizzled or sizzled? Let's admit it, we Indie Business owners can easily set ourselves up by making resolutions that are a little unrealistic. And while hope may spring eternal, the reality is that specific goals beat lofty resolutions any time.

         

Take Indie Beauty Network member Kayla Fioravanti of Essential Wholesale. Kayla, pictured here with her oldest daughter, advocates keeping things simple. Here are her top three suggestions to help Indies set the rest of the year on the best course possible.

1. Set goals and take one step forward at a time
2. Forgive yourself for mistakes
3. Review and renew your passions

Suck It Up Princess!

Cut The Excuses To Look Your Business Best

The guest on today's Indie Business Radio Show was Kim Duke, the Sales Diva. The audio won't be ready for download for a few days, but in the meantime, I wanted to share something Kim said on today's show that I thought was wonderfully instructive.

          

Kim shared her philosophy that you should never print your marketing materials on your printer because self-printed materials look cheap, and in turn make your business look cheap. I asked Kim what she had to say to Indies on a tight budget -- maybe that's all they could afford. But Kim had no mercy.

She said, "Suck It Up Princess!" Surely you can cut corners somewhere so you can have your business card professionally printed!"

Think about that. We can all cut back somewhere in order to make our businesses look their best. Good graphics designers don't cost too much these days and online printers with good rates are everywhere.

Suck it up Indies! I'll let you know when my interview with Kim is available for download so you can get her other fantastic sales tips and enjoy her even more fantastic sense of humor.

And thanks to my daughter, Princess Vanessa, for dressing up and letting me take her picture for this blog post. Soon, I'll have to put her on the payroll.

"Suck it up mom!"

Grow 'Til You Go

An Example of Living Well

When was the last time you read something that impacted the way you perceived life? Earlier today, I read "grow 'til you go" as the part of an endorsement on the outside back cover of a book. I can't remember the book or the author, but I do remember that the endorsement was credited to African American musician, Quincy Jones.

         

At 74 years old, "Q" is an example of how following your passion and expressing your God-given talent can expand your world beyond anything you could ever ask for, given the confines of your own finite imagination. Q keeps on growing no matter what, even overcoming a life threatening brain aneurysm that ended his career as a trumpet player and nearly killed him.

I won't weigh down this post with his many accomplishments, which you can enjoy at his Wikipedia profile. Reading it takes at least two cups of coffee, but it's worth it to consider what one human being can do when he puts his mind to it and his back in it. And he never ever stops growing.

Since I want to know what Q plans to grow next, I asked to be notified when his new website launches. Imagine that, launching a new website at age 74. Hope I get my turn someday. Q and people like him are knocking the word "retirement" right out of the English language. I say, "Good riddance!"

Mow, Edge and Blow

This morning, I saw a man tending to a neighbor's lawn. I asked him for a business card just in case I ever need his services. He told me his rates, and then he said, "I mow, edge and blow -- for dough."

            

It reminded me of what we do in our businesses. We mow to cut back unruly growth and uproot things that don't belong there. Then we edge, so everything is neat and tidy and has "curb appeal." Then we pave the way for new growth by blowing away useless cuttings so they don't clog things up.

So here's the tip. Whenver you are in a rut or feel "stuck" about what is the next right thing to do in your business, remember to "mow, edge and blow." Ponder that for a few minutes and I bet you'll think of something to do.

Preparing For Rain

Yesterday, I watched Facing The Giants, a movie about how the coach of a losing high school football team motivated his players to the county championships. In the final scene, they were down 23 to 21, with 2 seconds left to play. To win, they had to kick a 52-yard field goal. The longest field goal the kicker had ever kicked was 39 yards, but the coach put him in anyway, telling him to do his best and leave the results to God. A skeptical assistant coach told the coach he was nuts. The head coach said, "I'm not nuts. I'm preparing for rain."

            

As a farmer prepares a field for rain, so we prepare our businesses for rain. But like the farmer, we never know for sure when it will rain. We know that it will eventually rain, but will it rain at the right time? Will it rain enough? Will it rain too much? Will it rain when our fields are ready, or will it rain too early or too late? We don't know, and that's why it's important to be prepared.

It will rain. But the rain will make a difference only if the field is prepared. Make sure your product photos are clear, your website is attractive, informative and easy to use, your products are top notch, your shipping routine works well. The field doesn't have to be fancy, but it does have to be ready.

I know you want to know whether the team won, but it doesn't really matter. What matters is that the coach and his players were ready for the rain. They did the best they could and that's all we should expect from them our ourselves. Win or lose, the lesson is still the same. Do your best and leave the results to God. Then either way, you're a winner.

All Work Is Good Work

Are you tired of posters on light poles inviting you to make tons of money without working? Or late night advertorials featuring couples who "made $5,000 last month without working at all!" We are a nation drunk with success excess. What made us think that we should have mansions, fortune and fame, yet not have to work to get them?

                      

I believe we were meant to engage in meaningful work, so it was refreshing to exchange emails last week with Lynnette Simmons, a graphics artist and member of the Indie Beauty Network. I asked her if I could give her phone number to someone who needed some graphics work. Her reply was, "All work is good work!" I was intrigued by her enthusiasm, and in honor of Labor Day, set out to learn more about Lynnette.

The Value of Vision

Vision is an essential element of any business. If you do not have a vision for what your business will become, you cannot wisely choose which steps to take to achieve anything. This short clip represents the first steps toward implementation of an expanded vision for Indie Business Media.

That was the first show introduction my husband (and business partner) and I put together. We've already changed it and the first episode won't be ready for a few more weeks. But I can't keep it to myself, and because Indies like you are such a big part of our vision to inspire others to succeed in business and in life, I want to share the journey with you. Our first show will feature Augisa Natural & Organic Beauty & Personal Care, a North Carolina-based Indie Beauty Network member. You will be inspired and encouraged by how Nikki Rodriguez, her partner and their 5 children are growing their business.

You can be among the first to enjoy Indie Business TV by subscribing to my weekly newsletter and/or this blog's feed using the links in the upper right. If you have ideas for future shows, including your own Indie business story, send me an email using the email link in the upper left or submit your suggestion using the comments section below.