Why you need to bother with branding
The idea of branding can conjure up a number of negative thoughts for a business owner: Branding takes research. Branding requires creativity and the brainstorming of new ideas. Branding uses valuable time that could be spent manufacturing product, serving customers,...
Six Reasons Why Your Business Needs to Be on Social Media
I’m guessing at the year, but it had to be around 2008. I was sitting on my backyard patio with two of my very best friends, enjoying a warm summer night and a glass of one of Michigan’s finest wines, when one of them asked, “So, are you on Facebook?”
“What, are you kidding?” I asked rhetorically. “I don’t have time for that crap.”
Little did I know, here I would be, nearly a decade later, telling you why you — and your business — better make time for it. . . .
The three biggest reasons why you should work from home
I know, I’m crazy — but taking a pole dancing class with my daughter sounded like it could be fun. On the first day of the class, we attendees all had to introduce ourselves and share what we did for a living. Of course, I said I was a creative specialist who worked from home. “Oh, wow, that’s so cool!” exclaimed a fellow classmate. “I wish I could work from home.” Moments like that always remind me, it is SO COOL that I work from home — and I am blessed. . . .
Is working from home right for you?
A few years ago, I was speaking at a networking meeting, specifically for women who were entrepreneurs, and when I said that I had my own business, in some way, shape, or form, for more than 25 years at that point (now more than 30), there was an audible gasp from the audience. I’m not sure if that illustrated amazement at how long I’d been working my business or how young I apparently looked despite having done so for that long. It made me laugh out loud — and I’d like to think it had something to do with my looks — but it did make me wonder. Maybe, for women who are first starting to create their own businesses, 25 years does seem like a LONG time — perhaps even too long for some? Maybe. I say that because, having now been there and doing that, I’ve come to realize that there are two sides to the work-at-home coin. . . .
The six elements of successful change
Over the last decade, I’ve gone through major transformations and I’ve been through a lot of changes, both positive and negative. When I reflected on what it takes to move from one way of doing things to another, I came to the conclusion that successful...
When does it make sense to outsource?
For the solopreneur looking for growth for his or her business, outsourcing can be a natural first step. You can bring on the help you need, as you need it, without the full commitment of hiring employees. But I was slow to climb on board the outsourcing train. In...
The business and life lesson I learned from Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner has spent most of his adult life — more than 60 out of his 91 years— running a business based on lust, something viewed traditionally by Christianity and other world religions as a sin, and while I’m sure he’d argue a very different perspective on it, I...
Avoiding copyright infringements with online images
Yes, it’s just oh-so-easy to copy that image and use it online for your own purposes. But as tempting as that might be, don’t go there. Chances are, that image is protected by a copyright, and if you use it, you’ll commit copyright infringement.
Six simple steps you can take to reach any goal
If I had to choose any one trait to pin on all entrepreneurs, I’d have to say it would be the adjective “goal-driven.” Entrepreneurs are successful in a huge way due to their tenacity in setting goals and then achieving them.