This is a guest post by John Easton, a recovering corporate executive turned entrepreneur. Through his Charlotte website design company, John creates video, web and multimedia tools that turn “browsers” into “buyers.” Follow John @jeaston1.
Let’s face it — we don’t like working out. No matter what new fangled Wii Fit device or belly bustin’ technique hits the market, we still hate interrupting our daily work routine to break a sweat. But what if we could get paid to work out? Well, you can, and I’m going to show you how through a new concept I call “exer-preneurship.” It’s a new way of looking at exercise that keeps you fit and paid at the same time.
Yep, that’s me. Suited up, Blackberry in hand and ready to build my business and my body on my elliptical trainer. Let’s start with blogging. It’s one of my favorite exercise routines. That’s right, I blog while I exercise, and it’s one of the best things I do for my business. Continue Reading…
One of my favorite recent discoveries is David Allen, author of Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity. (affiliate link) Allen’s book is wildly popular and his methods are used by some of the nation’s most well-respected organizations. Recently, my friend Tasra Dawson told me about the video of part of a presentation David Allen delivered to Google employees about how to master your work flow.
(If you’re reading this via email or RSS and can’t see the video, click here.)
Allen says that someone has called this “knowledge work athletics.” I found his points so compelling that I jotted them down to share with you. It’s worth 45 minutes of your time to watch the video, but if you can’t, take note of these 5 keys to gaining control of your work flow. (These are my summaries of Allen’s words, not Allen’s words.) Continue Reading…
This is Part 5 in the “How to Turn Unused Space Into a Video Set” series, and am learning a lot as the dry wall goes up in the new Indie Business TV set. In this video, the contractor says we should be ready to paint and decorate in a few days! All it takes is a plan and a little bit of elbow grease to create a special space where you can share your products and ideas with the world.
(If you’re reading this via email or RSS and cannot see the video, click here.)
Here are just three of the reasons (and there are lots more!) why video is indispensable to your business today. Your “video set” doesn’t have to be fancy (as you can see), but without one, you are selling yourself and your customers short. Using video is an extremely important requirement for small business success today, and that is one reason why I am sharing you how we are doing this — step by step Continue Reading…
For those who may be new here, I am the president of the Indie Beauty Network, a trade organization representing small manufacturers of soaps, cosmetics, candles, fragrances and aromatherapy products. IBN members also make confectionery products and jewelry, and many members provide services to the companies that make products. I am an attorney (though not practicing one at the moment). I am not a lobbyist. I am an award-winning advocate for small businesses, most particularly very small businesses that are bootstrapping incredible companies in industries across the economic spectrum in this country. I follow business issues closely, especially as they pertain to the tiniest ventures in cities and towns nationwide.
This morning, I shared the following commentary at Stacy Malkan’s blog in response to her post about the defeat earlier this week of the Colorado Safe Personal Care Products Act. My comment is now awaiting moderation. After I submitted my comment, I realized that the information I was sharing was so important that it should be at my blog, so I could share it with you directly. If you are a small business owner in any industry, pay close attention. You too must fully embrace your legislative advocacy power. Continue Reading…
A few weeks ago, I posted about enjoying lunch with my daughter at her school. For such a short post, it generated a lot of discussion, perhaps in part because it struck a nerve with other women who simultaneously perform professionally and as mothers, without compromising either “career”. I’ve posted in depth about these issues before, here and here.
The post shared how glad I am that I quit my traditional job because doing so put me in the position of being able to have lunch with my daughter in the middle of a workday without having to answer to anyone. What I didn’t say is that I have to turn her down sometimes too. In fact, I did it last week. Twice. Continue Reading…
Yesterday was another fun FaceBook Friday! If you missed the previous FaceBook Friday about ways to attract people to your Fan Page, you can read it here.) This week’s question was aimed at getting a sense of what small and independent business owners consider when decided whether or not to join a competitor’s FaceBook Page. Turns out, they think about a lot!
Below are a few of the many well articulated thoughts of the people who responded to the question. You can read all of the comments here. As always, IBN members are marked with the Indie leaf, and the links are to their Fan Pages, if I could find them! (If you’re here without a Fan Page link, it’s because I don’t think I’m a fan — you must let me know how to fan you in the comments!) Continue Reading…
. (affiliate link) Allen’s book is wildly popular and his methods are used by some of the nation’s most well-respected organizations. Recently, my friend 
