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By:
andrea joseph,
on 6/10/2016
Blog:
andrea joseph's sketchblog
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So here I am sat in my studio/workroom/office typing this. While I appreciate that may not be big news to you, it is to me. It's huge. Its profound, intense, overwhelming, fervent, ardent (yes, I'm just copying out of the thesaurus now). But it is BIG.
This is the first time ever that I have had a space designated to my work. Up until now I've balanced sketchbooks, laptops and
Etsy orders on my knee on the settee or amongst printers, guillotines and plates on the kitchen table. But one of the benefits of holding an Open Studios (in my case open house) exhibition, which I did last week, is that it forces you to focus and get things in order.
That's been one of my problems since going self employed (well, since, always) is keeping focus. It's one of those things I didn't think about beforehand, but now that I have all the time to give to my art and to my business, how best should I use it? And, I'll be honest, the first year and half, of going freelance, has been trying to adjust to that and it hasn't been an easy thing.
My mind is always so FULL of stuff. It never switches off. Ever. It's just full of creative ideas, millions of them. I find being organised really really difficult. The ideas seem to get in the way of getting things done. But now I'm self employed I NEED to get things done because I need to make a living.
So, this is why actually making a room/space for my work has been so massive. I'm hoping it's going to help with how I manage my time and my business. I hope. And, I'm open too, and appreciative of, any other suggestions that may help me focus on the task at hand rather than the million little ideas knocking at the door wanting to take up my time.
Now, back to work.
You want to start a home or small business. Or, maybe you want to take an existing business to the next level.
But, but, but.
You’re just not sure you can. You think about and think about it.
Do you have the drive?
Do you have the money?
Do you the skills and/or knowledge?
Do you have a business plan?
The questions can go on and on.
You know what this is called, don't you?
By:
andrea joseph,
on 2/7/2015
Blog:
andrea joseph's sketchblog
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On Thursday evening I went to an Etsy team event in Manchester. For those, not in the know, if you have your
own shop on Etsy you are also a part of a huge worldwide community of Etsy shop keepers. Amongst that community there are a whole host of teams - places where traders can connect and discuss what matters to them. And, sometimes events and meet-ups come out of those discussions. So, I went to see what goes on at these events - I've observed from the outskirts until now - and, to sketch the event - which, too, could be seen as observing from the outskirts.
The team in question is
Etsy MCR. Based in Manchester (obviously), this is a really pro active team of Etsy traders. Over the evening we had talks from members, local creative businesses and a live Skype chat with Etsy UK HQ. It was really inspirational. I've very much come to realise the importance of getting our and about, networking and connecting with other creative folk and small businesses recently.
This realisation has become heightened, of late, now that I've finally, after all these years, taken the leap and given up my day job. Eeeeek. Woohooo. Arrrgh. YAY. Shit. Oh.Oh dear. Oh yes. Okay. Help. Yay. Eeeek. Woo-fecking-hoo. Yes, that's pretty much what's been going through my head since doing so. Anyway, more of that in another post.
Back to Thursday. And, back to the gorgeous setting of
Sugar Junction, in the wonderful creative Northern Quarter of Manchester. And back to Etsy. I'll be honest, I've never made the most of the Etsy community, teams or the tools they have to offer (I've never really had to as I've always had that comfort of a monthly wage) so this has all been bit of a revelation.
It heartens me to know that there are so many people beavering away, turning their passion into a small business, and understanding all those issues and concerns that I too feel. I really do sense a sea change in the way people shop and they way people think about where, and why, they shop these days - since the recession. It's been a long time coming and I guess it takes something like a recession to question those things.
This is the time, if we want it, for the whole shop local ethos to flourish. Shop local and shop independent that is. Shopping in a way that puts money and investment back into our communities - whether that be our local communities, and high streets, or the worldwide community of small independent businesses who are doing all they can to keep their head above water.
Actually, this, just might have, unintentionally, turned into a post about giving up the day job. Sorry about that.
Being in business takes a lot of work . . . and time. Not to mention expenses.
Marketing you, your product, and your business is now a 24/7 endeavor. And, if you’re a small business or solopreneur, which includes the book marketer and freelance writer, you are most likely doing it all yourself.
You’re the product designer, the marketer, the sales person, the content marketer, the social
You already know WordPress.com as the best platform to start a personal blog, but did you know WordPress.com makes creating a website for your business a breeze? We have all you need to establish a professional web presence with minimal effort, and support is there when you have questions. Meet …
One of our bookselling partners, ChrisLands, is having a birthday this month. It has been ten years since they opened up shop as tool for independent booksellers to set up their own e-commerce websites (ie: sites which can take credit card details and sell online). James, the site's creator, just sent us a note mentioning that as part of their celebration they are having a special offer for booksellers
In their 10 years, ChrisLands established themselves as a well-respected member of the online bookselling community. Well known for understanding the needs of independent booksellers, they continue developing their base product, updating old features, and adding new features based entirely on booksellers’ needs.
As their birthday gift to you and to celebrate 10 years in business, ChrisLands has a special birthday sign-up offer of 50% off the signup fee for new stores from now until June 30th, 2011. Don’t miss this opportunity to get your own online bookstore. Visit ChrisLands.com to learn more about the features and benefits of this company and to see examples of great ChrisLands sites.
At BookFinder.com we think it's great because every time a bookseller opens a ChrisLands account it means that there are more interesting books available online for all of us to find when we need or want them, and remember this is another good way to make your books searchable by BookFinder.com if they are not already.
[Now Reading: Indignation by Philip Roth]
By: 1questionaday,
on 10/15/2010
Blog:
One Question A Day
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There are many challenges to running a small business. It should come as no surprise that funding always seems to be near the top of the obstacle list. Thus, we here at MJM Books are always on the lookout for new and inovative ways to save money. And since we’re always looking to help out our fellow man (or woman), when we do come across something noteworthy, we feel it is our civic duty to pass the info along.
Google Voice
Enter Google Voice. Google Voice is a new, and get this, free, application from Google. But what exactly does it do?
Well first and formost the application gives the user a completely free phone number. This in itself is a huge bonus for many small businesses as the monthly costs and contracts of maintaining an additional phone line can be significant .
How the phone number works is simple, a caller dials the user’s Google assigned number and then the call is forwarded to another number. This process is completely seamless to the caller. So, for example, if you have a cell phone you can have your Google number forwarded to that cell phone. Or, you can have the Google number forwarded to multiple phones at the same time.
Then, to make things even cooler, your caller ID will tell you that the incoming call is from your Google number! Now, instead of answering calls from your customers with your typical “Hello” you can add a much more professional “Thanks for calling Bill’s Widget Emporium. How can I help you?” This gives the impression that your customers are contacting a proper business rather than some guy selling widgets out of his garage. (Not that there is anything wrong with selling widgets out of one’s garage… but I think you get the point! 
)
Google Voice also comes with a host of cool features like voicemail and voicemail transcription. Anytime you get a voicemail you’ll get a nifty email with not only the voice attachment but an easy to check written transcription of the message.
Currently Google Voice is in a pseudo-beta period and numbers are only given out by invitation. However, I would encourage anyone with interest in this to sign up. It really is a great idea and has a slew of practical applications.
Heck, you could sign up for one of these numbers and then give it out to all the telemarketers. You could record a nasty voicemail message and really give those bothersome folks an earful!
My day yesterday was about the liars who are in our life. We fired one of them.
Firing him did not bring the predicted relief of a cooling rain storm, rather it raised clouds of doubt. Why had all his references checked out? Why had the last person he worked for recommended him? Why did everyone think he was a nice guy, when he has a crack in his character that cannot be filled with quick patch?
Liar, liar, liar, pants on fire. Now I think of him like a greasy hair clog that sits in the drain. You don’t want to touch it, but you have to. It’s gotta come out of the drain — it’s blocking the flow of water. It’s useless, of no benefit to others, and its only proper resting place is in the garbage.
He’s so good at lying that when he gets caught, he has this act where he looks like he’s going to start crying. Awww, so sad for the big fat liar. He needs his job. He has Catholic school tuition to pay. How come he can’t do whatever he wants on our time and paycheck and then lie about it?
“Listen, this is not a Catholic confessional booth, all the business meetings we had. When you confessed to the really big fat lie, which we had to catch you in, we don’t have the power to absolve you of your guilt so that you could go on lying again until the supposedly next business meeting. First of all, we’re not Catholic. And secondly, and far more importantly, we’re not God. And by the way, God is on our side too. He is the only explanation for our busy summer in a bad economy. I don’t recommend messing with God by being a perpetual liar. Either you will answer to Him here or in the afterlife.”
Which brings me to the other liar. This liar likes to accuse people of stealing things. Things that are broken. Things she has given away already to Goodwill. Things she has hidden so no one can help her find them and she can say, “See, it was stolen!” Some people think she has flushed things down the toilet so she can accuse. She likes to tell everyone she knows that so and so has stolen such and such. Sometimes, people lose their jobs because of her accusations. Most often, people’s relationships become fragmented or strained or conflicted because of her great power.
Her lies deeply wound the people she supposedly loves. What kind of love is this? It’s like the care a cattle rancher shows his cattle when he brands them with the hot iron.
People are not disposable.
Liars are not very smart people. I say this because smart people know they can maneuver through their life and their needs and their wants through any number of means. Smart people don’t need to lie.
Liars, liars, liars, I hope your pants are on fire.
Dealing with Setbacks
Before you read this article, I want you to take a minute, a few deep breaths, and grab some chocolate. It may begin on a negative note, but I promise you'll be smiling by the time I'm done with you.
If you were to go out into the general public (not SB owners) and poll 100 people on the pros and cons of being the owner of a small business, I would guess more than 75% would be hard-pressed to come up with too many cons. There is a misconception in society. This myth feeds the illusion that owning your own business is "easy," "a piece of cake," or not like a "real job."
Being a woman only increases the negative comments received. One of the most frustrating things for a woman is for anyone to refer to their business or career as "that little thing you do." Or someone at a social event asks what you do, and when you tell them they say, "Oh, how nice." You can almost feel the negativity roll off of them.
Don't let it get you down. You are a WOMAN. You are what keeps the world from ceasing to exist. Women bear the children that ensure the future of our world. So why does that world generally refuse to acknowledge our accomplishments? I have been pondering this question for some time now. I still don't have an answer. What I do have is a way to get back at them all. Yes, I said GET BACK! Never let them see you sweat. Each time you show weakness, there is someone waiting to poke a stick in and make that hole bigger.
When someone targets you for their negativity, the only way to fight it is with your own positive response. When the grey cloud of doubt walks into the room, you push it aside with the brightness of your smile. When someone tackles you with an obstacle, you pull back those strong shoulders and you charge it head on with a bounce in your step. That bounce, born of your heart, will take you over that obstacle with room to spare. When someone say "You can't." You DO!
There is nothing in this world that is strong enough to rob you of the success you deserve if you truly desire it. Lack of money? Work smarter. Not enough time? Re-organize and delegate. Not enough help? Enlist friends who do support you. Let the Real You shine.
Do not deny yourself happiness and success because someone else doesn't think you deserve it. Your dreams are YOUR dreams. Embrace them and live for them. The joy your accomplishments will bring you are the icing on the cake.
Surround yourself with other successful women and draw from their energy. The world is full of women just like you and they deal with the same issues. You want success? You deserve it!
©Karen L. Syed
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Aahhhhhh! Thirty thousand and still counting. That’s a great deal Erica. WordPress always flies above the seas. Great Going guys. BTW Are they working??
Reblogged this on Portal of Delusion and commented:
That’s a Me….Christopher!
Great article.
Like my blog: http://proverbsaroundtheworld.wordpress.com
Have a look on my page: https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=406211512813349&refid=5
Voila! I am on the right track then! Exactly doing the same things since last last few days. I will give here the link of my new blog once I finish it.
Thanks for sharing, I am already using the blog as a way to start my business, but will undoubtedly need a website. I will take a look and start planning.
Gary
http://www.owlandash.com
To me, WordPress is the best for both individual and business use of blog online
Reblogged this on Egill and commented:
If not, you should!
I’m thinking of 1+3 WordPress.com site for my business but it has still 2 missing key features for me:
1) Showing posts randomly on front page. (I think it would be great for photographers too)
2) Advanced search function for visitors. Something like with dropdown menus, tick boxes, in order to detailed search through the site.
I’ve already contacted with WordPress.com support 8 months ago. Support was great as always, and made notes for keeping it in mind for future updates. I’m still looking forward to hearing from WP about these features.
Great article. I love the paragraph about the static front page. I just set mine up and couldn’t be happier. I’m publishing a post about it today, so reading this was great timing. Thanks again for all your support!
This good to know. Thanks
Fabulotastic article! Cleared up a lot of questions that had been accumulating inside my pea-size brain. Now my headache’s gone, yay Team WP!