March 20, 2007
The Mic Is On: We’re Finding Our Dreams in Business and in Life. . .
ME Liz Strauss wrote this at 7:00 pm
It’s Like Open Mic Only Different
Here’s how it works.
It’s like any rambling conversation. Don’t try to read it all. Jump in whenever you get here. Just go to the end and start talking. EVERYONE is WELCOME.
The rules are simple — be nice.
There are always first timers and new things to talk about. It’s sort of half “Cheers” part “Friends” and part video game. You don’t know how much fun it is until you try it.
We’re Talking About How to Find and Follow Our Dreams in Business and in Life. . . with Guest Host Tariq Khan from The Kitchen Table
We might talk about
- finding our bliss
- finding funds to do what we want
- how to set a plan
- how to get there
- how to be what we see
And, whatever else comes up, including THE EVER POPULAR, Basil the code-writing donkey.
Oh, and bring a link, if you have one to share.
–ME “Liz” Strauss
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316 Comments to “The Mic Is On: We’re Finding Our Dreams in Business and in Life. . .”
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Tariq Khan said
Hi, Liz
Monique Attinger said
Hi! I made it… Looking forward to this topic…
Char said
Hi Tariq & Liz!
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Monique! Welcome to Liz’ place.
Marti said
Lifting up the couch cushion looking for my bliss…
LOL
Evenin’ !
Gayla McCord said
Hi Everyone! I’m here and I’m dreamin’ big!
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Char.
I hope everyone had a great day. I’m looking forward to this topic.
Marti said
Hi Tariq, Char, Monique and Liz!
Char said
Hello Monique, Marti and Gayla!
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Marti and Gayla!
Gayla McCord said
I’ve had an amazing day — tracking all the goods from Elite Retreat. I’ve learned SO much!
Nneka said
Hi everyone! Happy Open Mic Night!
Monique Attinger said
Ah, darn it… Akismet has my number again, and I’m having to go in and out of browser sessions to post comments…
Hi everybody! I may just “listen in”…
Tariq Khan said
Gayla,
Whatcha dreamin’ about?
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Nneka!
ME Strauss said
Hi Everyon! Monique, Char, Gayla!
Hi Nneka!
Tariq Khan said
Monique, sorry to hear the monster’s still hungry.
Marti said
Tariq, are you hosting for Liz tonight?
Hi everyone!
Brooke said
Hey Liz et al! I am excited for this topic! It’s great to have Tariq as a guest host!
Marti said
Ah! There’s our girl!
ME Strauss said
Hi Monique,
Hi it’s no missing commeent sna Akismet is off! What happened to your comment? I don’t have clue!!
Gayla McCord said
To be the top blog of course LOL
No, seriously, hubby and I have four teens at home — need I say more?
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Brooke!
Marti, I’m guest hostin with Liz about finding our dreams in business and life.
ME Strauss said
Hi Marti,
I’m here! I was just making sure that all is in great working order . . .
Hi Brooke!
Tariq Khan said
Gayla,
I hope you make it there.
Four teens is certainly a handful!
Char said
When it comes to dreams, how many of you have written down short term and long term goals? How often do you reevaluate them?
Brooke said
So Tariq - what is your dream?
Marti said
My dream is to be recognized as a great writer (who is terribly modest LOL)
Nneka said
Great topic! Just this week I’ve experienced a number of synchronicities to leap my dream forward. I want to raise consciousness in the workplace and I’ve been introduced to a few Conscious Capitalists.
Brooke said
Good ques Char - I’ve wrirren some down. I usually verbalize them - talk to my husband.
Joe said
Hey Liz and All,
I just got a call. Pop just took a turn for the worse.
Please say a prayer.
Thanks.
Joe
Gayla McCord said
Char ~ A couple of years ago, I read a suggestion of creating a poster board as a ‘time line’ of sorts. On the board you would create a visual that would be from where you are now and ending at where you want to be.
It’s a great tool to have handy to keep you focused on striving for those goals.
Even placing actual photos of a car, a trip, a home, a pool, a college, etc. It was one of the best tips I’d heard and it kept me going for a long time.
Now, I’ve gotten so used to that one, I need a little something else to light the fire.
Marti said
Thoughts and prayers to you, Joe
Brooke said
Joe - I am so sorry to hear that.
Tariq Khan said
Brooke, I have lots of them, most to do with helping people reach their dreams. One of my ideas is to use social entrepreneurship to help alleviate poverty by helping the unserved have sustainable food, water, basic resources and employment — basic empowerment.
Char — written and evaluated every quarter.
Tariq Khan said
Joe, will do.
Robert Hruzek said
Yee-Haw and Howdy Everyone, I’m back in the great state of Texas and ready to rock! Yikes! 4 minutes late, and already 40 comments behind~~~
See, Liz, I told you Tariq was “good people”!
Michael A. Stelzner said
Hey Liz;
Mike here. Happy Tuesday to you all!
One thing that can help us all achieve our goals in business is to learn and study from others that seem to be doing it “right.”
I came across this amazing example of a well written marketing document and tried to summarize the lessons we all can learn from it.
Check it out here: http://www.writingwhitepapers.com/blog/2007/03/20/lessons-from-a-great-white-paper/
Char said
Prayers for you Joe.
Gayla McCord said
Keeping your family in my thoughts and prayers Joe
Robert Hruzek said
Joe, our prayers are with you and your father and family.
Nneka said
Joe, will do.
Marti said
Thanks for the link, Mike
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Robert and Mike.
The Cookies n Cream is in the cooler. Milk and water are near the drinks. Yes, I remebered some prefer milk, so you have whole, 2%, skim, and lactose free. I thought about half-and-half but decided the ice cream would have to do.
Char said
Tariq & others - I would love to know everyone’s techniques for setting goals and then going about setting a plan for achieving them.
I am at a crossroads in my business and after quite a bit of thought, I have a vision of where I’d like to be by September but need to also project beyond that.
Tariq Khan said
Thanks, Mike, for the link.
Tariq Khan said
Char, what industry are you looking at?
Marti said
Tariq, a friend / co-worker at Squidoo is involved with “Kiva”. Have you heard of it? They make small loans - person to person, to third world individuals to help them start a small business.
ME Strauss said
Hey Joe,
Praying already. My heart and my head.
Ashley Cecil said
ugh, sorry I missed it! Maybe next week.
Ashley Cecil said
oh wait, you’re an hour behind me.
Robert Hruzek said
Tariq, let’s not forget the Blue Bell either. Remember you’re in Texas!
Nneka said
Hi Char, I work big picture in.
For example, first I figured out my purpose in 4 lines. Then I wrote a list of lifetime goals that would make up the picture of that purpose (as much as I can tell anyway). Then I wrote down 1 thing I could do in one year for each one of the lifetime things. Then I broke it into what I could do each month to meet this year’s goals. Some are down to daily tasks.
I keep a spreadsheet of my monthy targets so I can tell whether I do them or not.
I tried using Joe’s Goals ( http://www.joesgoals.com/ )to track, but it wasn’t as handy as the spreadsheet.
ME Strauss said
Hi Mike,
Thanks for that document. I love the link.
I was going to email you today before I started feeling sickly.
I think my dreams are happening . . .
Rick Cockrum said
Hi Tariq, Liz, everyone else! I’m with your dad, too, Joe.
What’s the difference between a goal and a dream?
Tariq Khan said
Marti, I think I remember. It is a cool concept of microenterprise.
One of the things that I do for a living is to help people start and grow businesses. I’ve worked for some large Fortune 100 energy companies, and have used that experience to help others.
Char, what I often do is to “parse” through my idea and break it into small pieces, then write plans for each. As I build it back up, the mecanics become clearer. That then helps me decide how to approach my long-term goal. My ability to predict is often based on the industry.
Monique Attinger said
Liz — don’t know what is happening… It didn’t occur the first times I participated, but now… this weird thing where I have to actually get out of a browser session and restart in order to post another comment!
In any case, prayers for Joe and his family… and my dream is about writing and speaking for a living! I think I’ll start with a new blog, which I’m working on in the background now. I’ll announce to the group when I’ve got it up and running!
Char said
Tariq -
I have been doing freelance web design for the past 10 years but my youngest goes to Kindergarten in the fall and I am ready to take my company in a new direction.
I want to keep the web design capabilities but do more consulting in new media - interactive web design, blogging, social media, etc…
Here is my dilemma - Help Me! I Need Your Insight On My Growing Business
I would love all insight/input anyone wants to throw my way.
Marti said
Official info
Kiva lets you connect with and loan money to unique small businesses in the developing world. By choosing a business on Kiva.org, you can “sponsor a business” and help the world’s working poor make great strides towards economic independence. Throughout the course of the loan (usually 6-12 months), you can receive email journal updates from the business you’ve sponsored. As loans are repaid, you get your loan money back
http://www.kiva.org
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Rick.
Robert, pardon my prejudice, but Blue Bell is the only one I think of and the one I serve. It’s so part of me that I forgot to name it. Thanks for the reminder!
Robert Hruzek said
Rick, to me the difference is one of action. A dream is something most of us have, but don’t necessarily do anything about. But to turn a dream into a goal requires you to actually DO something.
ME Strauss said
Monique,
I don’t know what it could be??? Everything’s clean at this end Akisment is off and all comments are free!
Monique Attinger said
Robert! Nice to see ya!
Hey, I think I’m able to comment without having to bounce in and out of the browser… Weird.
Just checked Joe’s goals. Seems like it would work best for “repeating” goals, like working out.
Monique Attinger said
Ya, Liz… Seems okay now. VERY weird.
So nice to just participate! Woohoo!
Tariq Khan said
Marti, thanks for the info. The results are wonderful. It can be a profitable endeavor, both for lendee and lender.
Rick, people use terms differently. I think of a dream as overall objectives, not just business. It’s an integration of life. Then from that flow goals.
Char said
Robert - I like the way you differentiate between dream and goal.
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — as well as getting ready to start a new blog, I’m also getting involved in an Internet start up company… Any suggestions for making both happen?
Tariq Khan said
Robert, you’re right about the need for action on whatever we call it. Without directed action there will be little result.
Brooke said
Char - I have been reading your blog updates about trying to grow your buusiness. I think that it is very interesting - I would love to hear more about it.
Becky McCray said
Hi, all! Dreams are a great subject. My grandfather used to call me Dreamer!
Joe, all our best to you and your family!
Monique Attinger said
By the way, a friend introduced me to a “vision board”. It’s basically a corkboard, covered with a nice material / background of your choice, and covered with things that represent 4 areas of your life that you want to manifest: connection to “God/Spirit/Universe” (insert word(s) of choice); new things you want to bring in; wonderful current things you want to continue; past experiences / things you are grateful for.
I like it… I haven’t checked mine lately, but I’m betting that number of things that I had pictures of or otherwise had on my board are now in my life…
Marti said
Difference between dream and goal? Hmmmm…
I don’t physically “write down” dreams or goals, but I do think about them, and try to assess what actions have helped to introduce new people to my writing. Self promotion is very awkward, never knowing when you’ve gone too far and irritated more than informed.
(looks around nervously - lol)
Tariq Khan said
Monique, what type of blog and internet start-up? Are they related to each other?
Nneka said
Ah Char, I see your dilema after reading your post. I must admit that I could not get past that stage in my old business and it ate us alive. If I had it to do over again, I would outsource accounting and operations (in your case admin). Stick with marketing and if you still like, do the actual work. Although these days, you can probably hire a fleet of designers. It’s tough to grow beyond the point of doing everything yourself.
Char said
Hi Becky!
Brooke - what would you like to know specifically?
Tariq Khan said
Welcome, Becky!
Monique Attinger said
A thought: doesn’t dreaming (and pulling that dream into your life) sometimes require letting go of something else (that has lost value in your life)? But sometimes we don’t realize that something has lost value, and we fight the change…
Brooke said
Monique, I was intoduced to vision boards as well. Odd but they do notwork foor me. At least not yet. My dreams are too scattered right now. Things are just changiing too fast for me. But I think that is a GREAT idea.
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — nope! One is a company that is doing something “leading edge”. The blog is an area of personal passion, and something I’d like to have a book about someday… A wise business coach suggested that the blog — done correctly — could make it easy to produce a book from the blog.
(Hey, Liz! Thanks for your wise words. You are a heck of a business coach. Take a bow…)
Char said
Nneka -
I have been doing it all for so long I think it is stifling my creativity. Blogging has brought back a lot of the fire, but it has opened up some new opportunities and I am watching my passions and talents mature.
I am more comfortable outsourcing design now. I just need to work on my leadership skills.
Gayla McCord said
I think I’m with Nneka on that one. Perhaps check into interns like eMom’s Wendy is doing.
I wish I could be of more help to you on that one, but I’m about 10 steps behind you in this online biz thing.
Tariq Khan said
Great point, Monique (77)! It’s a little like rock climbing. Sometimes you have to let go to reach higher.
Brooke said
Char, I am very interested in how it all progresses for you.
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — it’s that brief interval when you have let go of one (safe) hand hold, and you are reaching for the next… THAT’S the killer!
Gayla McCord said
Leadership? Char, I’d gladly send my husband over to help. He’s great at telling people what to do
Rick Cockrum said
Yes, Monique, pulling the dream into reality can be difficult. Counseling for Loss and Life Changes has gone so far as to identify dealing with almost any change as doing a type of grief work. I wouldn’t go that far, but it can be difficult.
Robert Hruzek said
Hi Monique! Glad you can finally talk without getting eaten by Askimet!
Monique Attinger said
In the meantime, while trying to bring new things into life, I’m also trying to keep some current irons in the fire, because (while I love dreaming) I still have to help feed the family… Life is one heck of a juggling exercise! Between children, spouse, family, friends and fitting me in there somewhere, it can become a bit overwhelming…
Becky McCray said
“We grow great by dreams. All big men are dreamers. They see things in the soft haze of a spring day or in the red fire of a long winter’s evening. Some of us let these dreams die, but others nourish and protect them; nurse them through bad days till they bring them to the sunshine and light which comes always to those who hope that their dreams will come true.”
Woodrow Wilson
This is one of my favorite topics, and I have tons of quotes on dreams!
Tariq Khan said
Nneka said, “It’s tough to grow beyond the point of doing everything yourself.” That is a very common problem. One of the things that I tend to do for my clients is to help them look forward and build structures in their companies that are flexible enough to accommodate change and growth. Another piece is to help them secure financing. They often have resources that they do not recognize as collateral.
Char said
Gayla - you are way ahead in some areas - watch out - you’ll be entering into my plan, too!
Brooke - my goal for the next two months is to get my backlog of work cleared out and to get an accountant again (I had one a few years ago, but he was useless). I’d like to scale back a bit over the summer to spend time with the kids and recharge. Then, come September, I want to be in a position to do some speaking, work on an e-book, and move to more of a consulting/visionary role. Make any sense?
ME Strauss said
Hi Rick!
Hi Becky and Robert, I saw you all come in, but I was comment herding.
Marti said
Tariq, I love that rock climbing analogy - may I use it sometime?
Robert Hruzek said
Hey, Becky, why not post a page of quotes on Dreams for us!
Brooke said
Regarding dreams - I really wanted to be more a part of the online community. So seveal weeks ago I heard about open mic nite - I came and man - did it light a fire under me. I met so many great people and they all have great blogs I have been reading on a regular basis. I lso started to enlist more outside freelancers to help grow my business. THANK YOU!
Monique Attinger said
Rick (86): I DO think it’s a kind of grief work… That great thing that you’ve got has turned out to be only a stepping stone / stopping place and not “IT”. Whatever definition we have of ourselves is constantly becoming too small, whether we notice it or not…
When we do notice it is when the grief for the “lost” self starts. Except it’s not so much that we lost ourself, as that we’ve lost the comfortable definition of ourself that we had…
Nneka said
Hi Char, I may be coming off as bossy, but I’ve got one more tip on the leadership front. It may seem like you don’t have time to do this, but volunteer to be on the leadership team somewhere in your life. It could be in your kindergartner’s school or the captain of a local sports team. You’ll learn to delegate in something that does not seem so life or death.
Also, it will force you into a position where you have to turn a piece of your business over to someone else because you won’t have the time.
Robert Hruzek said
Hey, Nneka - what you said! Very good advice!
Becky McCray said
Robert, thanks for the idea! I’ll get to work on a page of quotes about dreams.
Nneka said
Cool site Tariq! I learned a lot from that first endeavor. One day I’ll post the lessons learned on my blog.
Brooke said
Agreed Robert! Nneka has great adviice!
Tariq Khan said
Becky, Woodrow had a way with words, didn’t he?
Monique, letting go is tough. The risk can be mitigated somewhat through due diligence, but the risk remains. Having good people around you is important, even if they are not directly involved. — Cue for Liz to take another bow for being a coach to Monique and many others –
Monique Attinger said
Nneka — the toughest thing is to hand over your “baby” to someone else, whether it really is your 1-2-3-16 year old, or your “business baby”…
Leadership means growing bigger — and a big part of growing bigger is trust that no matter what happens, it can be handled.
Char said
Nneka - I coach competitive gymnastics 3 times a week - another one of my passions and outlets. I will also do more volunteering in the school next year, too.
Hi Rick - and anyone else who is here!
Marti said
I saw Robert Crulwich do a piece on the news the other day, about how people who are stock investors tend to hold onto their losers, because they are afraid of selling when it’s down, as if dumping a losing stock makes THEM a loser, but all they end up with is a portfolio full of losers LOL
(He told it better than me, and had cute dancing graphics - lol)
ME Strauss said
hi Char!
Marti said
The point of his piece was that sometimes you just have to let go
Nneka said
Thanks guys, I learned a lot through trial and error. I once asked a CEO how he seemed so relaxed and was able to do everything, his answer to me was, “I’m lazy.” He delegates everything. His company runs like a well oiled machine. It’s really fascinating to watch. He knows how to motivate and give people wings so that they can take off with ideas. His staff loves it.
Char said
Liz - see, I told you this was a timely topic for me tonight!
Gayla McCord said
Char, is the hesitation more out of fear that someone you delegate to will screw things up royally? Are you like me in that most times it’s easier to overextend yourself and get it done proper as to hand it off to someone else and take the risk? Not to mention the worry?
Did I mention I’m in therapy for OCD? LOL
Monique Attinger said
May I humbly suggest that those who are serious about building their blogging business consider making use of Liz’s services? I know that I’ve used “coaches” in many situations in my life, and have found it extremely useful. Money well spent, especially since a coach can really help you to clarify what your goals really are — especially when your own goals/ dreams are a bit fuzzy. Liz calls herself a Perfect Virtual Manager… she is.
Tariq Khan said
Marti, no problem.
Nneka, thanks for the kind words.
Monique, one of the hardest things for people to do when growing a business is to stay self-aware (in the good sense). We get so focused on what we are doing — meeting the goals — that we forget to realize that what we are doing is coming from within. That’s where I think leadership comes from, as well as confidence.
With external and internal awareness you can see what needs to be done, even if that means letting go to enhance the whole. Same way with children, it’s then easier to let go.
Brooke said
If you want someething done right, you have to do it yourself…that kind of thinking has to go. But it is tough to let go…
Marti said
Did I hear OCD? (she asked nervously, checking five browser windows simultaneously)
LOL
Char said
Gayla - you are OCD and I swear I am ADD! I have so many ideas but shift gears way too fast.
I don’t think it is the fear of someone else screwing up. It is more of an issue of creating a “checklist” for success for myself. I need a roadmap to follow to get started.
ME Strauss said
Monique?
Can I keep you? You are wonderful!!
Gayla McCord said
Marti? You TOO? LOL
Leon said
Hi everyone. When I was in HS my theme song was Dreamer by Supertramp.lol. Lately my dream has been a world without spam.
Tariq Khan said
Nneka, the key (108) was probably that he had good people. Jack Welch did it at GE, and it works for small companies.
Everyone, please use good people — inside and outside the company. It really is worth it.
Monique, Liz would be — and is — a great choice for your blogging businesses!
Monique Attinger said
Liz — I call them as I see them! Thank you again…
ME Strauss said
Leon!
I love that song!
Gayla McCord said
Char, I’m pretty sure I’m OCD, ADHD and mix that with MOM and well, I’m the Queen Bee of Control Freakishness.
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Leon.
Marti said
{{Cyberhugs Gayla, fellow OCDer}}
Yes, I was checking Outlook mail, removing an outdated St. Patrick’s Day ad from the blog, updating conversation in g-mail, reloading SOB for newest comments, and checking TV schedule for husband who was asking “What comes on now?”
LOL
Becky McCray said
If you are looking for a checklist for business success, I pulled together a list of lists that might help.
My favorite was the Startup Nation list, that starts with designing your life before deciding how to build your business.
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — I absolutely agree about Liz.
And another thought: if we are trying to pull a dream into existence, sometimes we need to borrow someone else’s “faith” in the dream and in ourselves. Working with someone like Liz can really help in those moments when we might abandon our dream on our own.
I really do find that coaches are a great addition to an overall strategy to realize a goal.
Rick Cockrum said
Hey Leon.
Monique Attinger said
I’ll quit singing Liz’a praises now…!
Tariq Khan said
Monique, what are the ways to know that you have a good strategy before you implement it?
Marti said
Greetings to all previously ungreeted…always a delight here.
New Firefox SPELL CHECKS comments - how cool is that? LOL
Gayla McCord said
Marti ((( Cyberhugs back ))), I can SO related. I’m down to four browsers now. I’m reading up on all the Elite Retreat goodies from today.
Tariq Khan said
I’ll open that up for everyone — what are the ways to know that you have a good strategy before you implement it?
Monique Attinger said
Becky — just checked the “Startup Nation” page… LOVE it!
Char said
Becky - those are exactly the type of resources I have been looking for. I have been flying by the seat of my pants for the first 10 years of my business and I really want to enter the next chapter better prepared, smarter and more efficient.
Thanks!
Marti said
MONIQUE SAID: “‘ll quit singing Liz’s praises now…! ;-)”
Liz deserves an entire choir!
Char said
Gayla - why don’t you share some links to the best Elite Retreat posts from today.
Leon said
Hi Rick, Just checked your blog and thought (in context of this blog) of some caveman interpreting the paintings as “Eat at Uggs.”
Tariq Khan said
Amen to that about Liz.
Marti said
Hooray for Gayla for unspooling. Down to four here as well - lol
Tariq - “what are the ways to know that you have a good strategy before you implement it?” Afraid I’m clueless…..I have tried and failed at so many things - lol
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — a good strategy before I implement it…? I’m a bit of an intuitive, so I think I trust my gut, first and foremost…. I also “follow my passion”. If I’m really passionate about something, and it has “staying power”, then I go with it. If I’m all fired up, but it fizzles, then I’m inclined to walk away.
I’m a bit of a ‘brute force’ type when it comes to strategy. It likely goes a bit like this: do the work / take regular steps towards what I want (at least weekly if I’m really working on a goal); feel the feelings because there’s likely something to learn or I would have got this thing I’m after BEFORE; create the (new) metaphors to support where I want to go; visualize / pray / journal… Kinda like that… Unless I’ve totally misunderstood your question! After all, the specifics of a strategy will have some uniqueness for each goal. But this is what I think of as the “meta strategy” that applies in all situations.
Renée said
Hello Tariq and Liz and everyone….
What a great topic to share! For me, my journey is really a long one–one journey leading to another but they somehow interconnected! I just have to be very patient and walk through it as I reach my final destination (which I have no idea of that actual date, month or year.)
Joe, I’m saying a prayer for your dad!
Becky McCray said
Marti and Monique, you can help me develop the award Liz deserves!
Monique and Char, so glad that I was any help!
Marti said
People shouldn’t fear trying new things, even if you don’t get the result you hoped for…you learn so much from it. You just dust yourself off and try something else.
“I have not failed. I have discovered 1000 things that do not work. Thomas Edison”
Rick Cockrum said
I’m glad you like it, Leon.
Becky McCray said
Now, Marti, if you open this up to talking about the importance of failure, I will absolutely inundate you with quotes and what I think on it!
Gayla McCord said
The two MUST reads are:
Kris Jones at PepperJam
http://www.pepperjamblog.com/index.php
And of course my favorite eMom Wendy Piersall at:
http://www.emomsathome.com/blog/
Both are doing a bit of LIVE blogging and Wendy even has photos of her with the likes of Jeremy Shoemoney and Darren Rowse.
ME Strauss said
Becky,
Let’s see the award will be to throw the book at me while I get a bottle over the head and a sugar pie in my face. I can deal with that.
Smile smile, smile, smiles, smile, smile
ME Strauss said
Renée
I’m so glad you came! Tarig is quite wonderful at this.
Tariq Khan said
Monique, all good thoughts. Every strategy can also be benchmarked against the past, even if it’s totally new. market analysis can be revealing, as can forecasting. There are many more tools.
The difficulty is for someone who has a track record that has been less than expected to trust their own judgment. Experts can help at that point.
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Renee!
Monique Attinger said
Liz! No sugar pie in the face! it’s to be savoured… especially with that heavy cream on it…
Oh, goodness. Don’t get me started!
Marti said
Leon said
Rick, five years of uni and an Anthropology degree comes in handy sometimes.
In this context it is a reminder to me of how our dreams can change because the dream didn’t survive much after graduation.
Tariq Khan said
Becky, let the quotes fly!
Liz, Thanks for the kind words.
Becky McCray said
Liz, your humble streak is showing again!
Monique Attinger said
Tariq — yes. Benchmarking, market analysis, and forecasting… all good stuff. And I find that it generally is the last thing I do — I do the other stuff first and this only “confirms”. In fact, I often miss these steps completely.
Suppose that’s not a good thing…
Char said
Renee - I love your blog. Even though our Rhodesian Ridgeback is a large dog, I need to do some reading at your site.
Tariq Khan said
If you are starting a business or running one, how do you when you need an expert? What methods did/do you use to pick one?
Marti said
I’m not starting or running a business, I yield the floor
LOL
Becky McCray said
Develop success from failures. Discouragement and failure are two of the surest stepping stones to success.
- Dale Carnegie
The person interested in success has to learn to view failure as a healthy, inevitable part of the process of getting to the top.
- Dr. Joyce Brothers
I cannot fail; I can only learn and grow.
- Larry Wilson
Teach a highly educated person that it is not a disgrace to fail and that he must analyze every failure in order to find its cause. He must learn how to fail intelligently, for failing is one of the greatest arts in the world.
- Charles F. Kettering
There’s lots more where that come from!
Tariq Khan said
Monique, those things are good for narrowing choices, measuring and then having markers to measure progress against. They will often be helpful in making the measurements that you were talking about.
They will also be useful for Char in setting her long term plans. A forecasting model can help you quickly test assumptions, and can help speed learning without having to get the hard knocks. It’s much like a flight simulator — you can crash without serioous injury.
These things do not have to be complicated or expensive. I have done them for many of my one-person corporations, and they seem to help operate and finance the company.
Renée said
Char, though my blog is cater to small dogs, but most of the theories are applicable to all dogs, including mutts. The difference is that they all wear different coat but share similar personality!
BTW, RR has a very gentle soul. And thanks for visiting my blog.
Rick Cockrum said
The most important thing I learned in school was how to learn, Leon. What your degree is in doesn’t matter. Dreams are NEVER smashed, though the implementation may have no resemblence to the original.
The best thing about having a roadmap and a strategy isn’t to stick to it slavishly, but to have taken the time to consciously decide where you’re going, how you’re going to get there, then how you’re going to act on the inevitable changes that have to be made, rather than just reacting to circumstances occurs.
Tariq Khan said
Rick, excellent encouragement and advice!
Rick Cockrum said
Hi Renee!
Char said
Renee - Ridgies are my all time favorite. My parents have always had them and I have had two.
Tariq & everyone - the pointers are fantastic. I am trying to carve out a bit of time each day to work on my new plan. The research is turning out to be so much fun.
Becky McCray said
Tariq, you are an excellent host! You must have gone to the Liz school of Encouragement and Support!
Tariq Khan said
Becky, Liz is by nature a great teacher and positively influences those she comes into contact with — including me. I am blessed to know her.
Tariq Khan said
Becky, thanks for the kind words. It’s easy with this great group.
Leon said
You’re right about learning to learn Rick. That never ends. The dream isn’t dead I guess as much as it has been transformed. Such is life.
Tariq Khan said
Thanks, Char!
ME Strauss said
Tariq is a gifted student. He didn’t need to study at the Liz School of Encouragement and Support.
Leon said
Well, I must run. I am taking a break from fighting spam and content theft to go see a zombie movie. Zombies are a better class than spammers.
Thanks for the conversation and thanks to Liz and Tariq for being good hosts.
Cheers.
Marti said
I’m working on a book with several friends in my spare time (snorts at what a joke “spare time” actually is - lol) Anyway, it is titled, “7 ways people screw up their life - and how to unscrew it” Done in a humorous vein of course, but incorporating many of the principles discussed here tonight.
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Leon!
Liz, you are too kind!
Marti said
Bye Leon
Tariq Khan said
Marti, sounds like a good read.
Becky McCray said
This has been a great subject! Thanks for reaching out to share with us. Looking forward to more great collaborations like this!
I’m off for this evening. All my best to everyone!
Marti said
Thanks, Tariq
Bye, Becky
ME Strauss said
bye Leon!
Rick Cockrum said
Good night, Leon. Enjoy the zombies!
Rick Cockrum said
Bye Becky.
Tariq Khan said
Hey, Marti, did you ever find the bliss you were looking for under the cushion (5)?
ME Strauss said
Bye Becky!
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Becky. Have a good rest of the evening!
Renée said
Hello Rick,
“I learned in school was how to learn” this is an interesting thought, and I’ve to agree. Knowledge comes when you are on the field.
Gayla McCord said
Marti I like your humor LOL
Char - I’m sure the answer will come to you when you least expect it
Tariq - thanks for taking the lead tonight
Liz - as always, thanks for an enjoyable and educational evening.
Everyone else, pleasant dreams - my pillow is calling.
G’nite
Char said
Bye Becky! Thanks for the two links - they really are perfect.
Marti said
LOL to Tariq
Actually, I find it wherever I look.
I see it in my family.
I am constantly “writing” inside my head.
I get to be involved in incredible conversations like this…..
Char said
Gayla - goodnight - I’m sure you will be an integral part of my advisory team - whether you like it or not.
Marti said
Thank you Gayla - goodnight and sweet dreams
Tariq Khan said
Would any of you be interested in asking specific questions about your own businesses? I’d be happy to answer as I can. For those who don’t know, I advise businesses on how to start and grow. They range fromsingle entrepreneurs to some very large companies.
Rick Cockrum said
Good night, Gayla.
The book sounds fun, Marti. You can use your bingo winnings to finance it.
Marti said
***warning - shameless promotion ahead***
My bliss would be sharing my writing with all of you - LOL
Books available at the blog
***end transmission****
Tariq Khan said
Goodnight, Gayla.
Marti, I’m glad you’re finding your bliss, and this is a great conversation.
ME Strauss said
Gppd night Gayla!
Marti said
LOL Rick! I didn’t win anything today - not even a box of Kleenex!
I am so tired. I think I must call it a night, I’m getting silly and probably annoying - LOL
Thank you for such an enlightening evening.
Peace and joy to all.
Char said
Tariq - you are a very gracious host - especially as I feel like I have been “talking” too much tonight.
Everyone ask away - let us answer some of your questions!
ME Strauss said
Marti!
I got the gift of your wonderful books!
What’s shamelss its that you should worry about promoting them. They’re beautiful and great to read. Come to SOBCon and bring some for prize so that people can see them!!!
Rick Cockrum said
Sleep well, Marti.
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Marti.
ME Strauss said
Good night, Marti, Great writer that you are.
Tariq Khan said
Char, your comments are always welcome, and thanks for your kindness.
Marti said
Oh, Liz, you are welcome. Bless you, darlin’
Would that I could. I will be with you in spirit.
{{Cyberhugs}}
Mark Goodyear said
Did I miss it? My kids just went to bed.
Marti said
(blushes and waves goodbye)
Brooke said
This was great reading and conversation. G’nite all!
Char said
Where’s Chris tonight? Cookies and Cream ice cream just isn’t the same as a Klondike.
Rick Cockrum said
Have you worked with marketing for any local small bricks and mortar businesses, Tariq?
Mark Goodyear said
Well, I just wanted to say that I got approval to come to SOBcon today. I’m going to register and get my flight and stuff now. See you soon!
Rick Cockrum said
Bye Brooke.
Renée said
Actually I have a few, Tariq!
One of the things I struggling with now is outsourcing. I’ve a PA (part-time) but she handles my offline stuff (nothing related to my online chores). I’ve work with her for many years, and would love to get her help for some of my online stuff. But decline many times as she couldn’t afford the time and commitment plus she hates techie stuff. I’ve tried outsourcing but had many failures (largely on their delivery). But what’s my concern is that, my online revenue doesn’t justify the expenditure. I don’t wish to use other revenue to offset it–for short-term (which i did)I’m ok but not for too long.
ME Strauss said
Here you Char, [tosses a Klondike bar]
Chris had a wake to attend and he left the the Kondike bars here as ge drive past the blog on the way there.
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Brooke.
Rick, I have. In fact, I put together a strategic marketing plan for a brick-making business in rural towns in Texas. the business went from $0 to $10 million in profits in less than three years.
ME Strauss said
Bye Brooke!
Steli said
Hi Tariq & Liz! I guess it´s better to be late then…
Char said
Hi Steli! Nice blog. I love seeing educators who can embrace technology.
Tariq Khan said
Renee, I’m sure that you’ve tried asking aound for quality outsourcing. If you cannot find it, then there is the usual workaround — find someone cheaper or who will work for money in the future, raise money (stock sale, loans) or use help in spurts (try to get the same person each time). As more cash comes in, you can add to the staff.
The problem can be that if you do not add more people, you may not get over the growth threshold that you are encountering. Spending the money can also hurt. You will have to find a balance, or seek outside help — a consultant.
Tariq Khan said
Hi, Steli.
ME Strauss said
Hi Steli!
Nice to see you over here!!
Char is right. It so great to see a teacher with techinogy. Did you know I’m a teacher too?
Rick Cockrum said
Hi Steli. Welcome!
This is the first time I’ve seen bricks and mortar literally become bricks.
Steli said
Hey Char,
I´m still learning alot (and always will) and this place is just perfect to meet cool people and learn from them! Lookin´forward to learn from you too 
thankx for the compliment
Steli said
Hi Tariq,
Hi Rick,
nice to meet you guyz
Hey Liz, you are a teacher for sure! But what kind of teacher are YOU talkin about?
Tariq Khan said
Rick, I actually work primarily with “bricks and mortar” businesses. What line of work are you in?
GP said
wow tariq… a most blessed guest host …
My dream would be to be an Olympic 3-day eventer, but alas, I have come to the equine world too late in this life.
A quote i came across totally applicable to running a business (or a horse for that matter)
Our experiences with horses can guide us
thru the inner landscape of ourselves….
but only if we are willing to take up the reins
GP in Montana
GP said
Greetings again… did i get stuck somewhere? Last post didnt show up or is it a case of “patience grasshopper”?
GP in Montana
Renée said
Thanks Tariq, I need to ponder a little deeper on your advice.
Tariq Khan said
Renee, my pleasure.
ME Strauss said
Steli,
I taught in school — 1st grade to 5th grade and young adults along the way.
HART (1-800-HART) said
Hi Liz. Hi Tariq. Hi everybody else! And, I add this HI post to the other 221 of 223 posts here .. Well at least that average was based on the first 50 comments! So, I thought I would post my hello, and work backwards
Did anybody break anything yet? There’s always somebody who knocks over a lamp or glass at these functions *g*
Tariq Khan said
To all — fishermen love to tell about the ones that got away. If your dreams were fish, which ones got away?
Rick Cockrum said
My wife and I have a small neighborhood theatre. It’s been around for 40 years. We bought it eight years ago. Some families are on their third and fourth generation. I like to tell people we sell memories. We’re only open on the weekends.
Our marketing consists of a newspaper ad on Fridays, a website that is getting more popular with our younger patrons, and activity in the community. It’s profitable, but not something to make a living off of. We’ve doubled our business since we bought it, but attendance has stagnated.
Char said
Rick - what a cool business to have!
Rick Cockrum said
Hey HART. My computer didn’t malfunction tonight, so if you want to break a glass to keep it that way, that would be spiffy.
Tariq Khan said
Rick,
I think that the idea of selling memories is great! Fell free to ask questions.
Hi, Hart. Thecrystal, china and furniture are OK — for now.
Rick Cockrum said
It is, Char, and I thank my wife every week for it, even while I complain. Here’s a picture of the outside.
Tariq Khan said
Ok, I talked with my fingers and they’ve agreed to cooperate now.
Hart, that theatre is a dream theatre — like the one I wished I could go to when I was a kid, and one I would still go to if I could.
Rick Cockrum said
Is there something important we’re missing marketing-wise? Most of our customers come weekly to monthly. Most of our new customers come from word of mouth.
Steli said
Liz,
thats really cool! Teaching the little ones must be so much fun & inspiring! Every time I play with my nephews I learn soo much from them!! It´s unbelievable.
Rick,
it looks so nice! No old theaters where I´m from. Just imagining visiting your theater lets my imagination fly away
HART (1-800-HART) said
Tariq .. my “Dream Theatre” is a Rock Band
That’s rick’s baby. (Hi Rick!)
I’m all caught up now.
31. Joe! Our thoughts are with you!
157. I’m with Char .. I like Renee’s site too
192. Tariq! I’ve got a question.. How come I get a Stack Overlow 0 on your site?
212. But seriously Tariq, I think my online ventures are like this question .. trying to bootstrap I can’t seem to interest anybody in wanting to start at the bottom earning next to nothing and working for me!
Other than that, my offline ventures struggled last year because of ToDo lists. My computer crashed and I lost everything. It took me about 8 months to finally finding something I like again.
Tariq Khan said
Rick, I think that a good thing might be to ask them. Send out carefully designed surveys to your customers. If you don’t know who they are you can use promotional means — quite cheap — to obtain a decent list.
You can also have survey forms at the theatre and on the website. Ask those that come more often why, and find out their demographic. Targeted advertising to groups that want to come to the theatre can help.
You can also do drawings, games, parties, sponsorships, etc. I hope these quick thoughts help or spur your own thoughts. There’s more on my mind, but this should suffice as a start.
Renée said
Rick, that’s a good website. I wish that picture is much bigger. I miss those old kinda theater which I don’t get to see anymore [she's living an urban life way too long!]
Tariq Khan said
Hart,
I’m new to blogging. What is a stack overflow?
HART (1-800-HART) said
Rick .. have you ever considered having marathons? Instead of back to back movies replaying the same movie over and over .. what about e.g. morning to night rotating movies? Like a Diane Keaton Marathon. An Arnold Schwarzenegger marathon. A musical day marathon.. stuff like that?
I’m just curious. I have no marketing skills or insights into theatre businesses.
HART (1-800-HART) said
Tariq .. something in your site was running extra code or memory and overflowing my memory stack. Maybe it doesn’t like IE7 ?
Char said
Okay all - I have been in front of this computer too long today. I have to call it a night. Thanks for all the insight, support and conversation.
See you next week.
Rick Cockrum said
Thank you, Tariq! You have some great ideas. I’ve been trying to think of more ways to use the website, especially.
Tariq Khan said
Hart, I have no idea, sorry about the inconvenience.
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Char.
Steli said
Bye Char!
Renée said
good nite, Char
Tariq Khan said
Hart, please tell us what you’re going to do.
ME Strauss said
Bye Char!
HART (1-800-HART) said
BTW .. re: Dreams .. I have an anecdote about dreams back in the ’80’s and early ’90’s .. when I was in business with my brothers in a confectionary business ..
In my early days working in the public accounting sector, we were quite familiar with the 3 types of businesses out there. (1) The ones that have lots of gross sales, but no net income. (2) the ones with low gross sales but almost all net income. and (3) those businesses that really didn’t care but sure paid themselves and their family businesses quite well!
Well, when I decided to quit public accounting and partner with my brothers, we started at $100,000 gross sales and net $30,000 and one of our business plans was to incorporate all 3 of the ‘plans’ above (increase our sales, increase our net, and pay ourselves well!). Well - in dollar terms we stated basically, that our goal was to reach $1,000,000 by 4 years.
We made that in 3 years - Unfortunately, we reached that annual level in expenses - not sales.
Rick Cockrum said
Bye Char. Take care!
Better pictures are in the works, Renee. The site is built on Wordpress, but is mostly static pages, thanks to the inspiration of the site for the playhouse Ben Yoskovitz works with.
We’ve thought about marathons, HART, and I would love it, but financially they’re too prohibitive. One year we did run a family film during the matinees, and an adult film at night. People got confused about which show they were coming to, though. Two iron rules we have now - don’t change showtimes, and don’t mix films.
HART (1-800-HART) said
Tariq .. re:238. what am I going to do?
So far, I’ve been sleeping 6 nights a week. Getting behind on my admin trying to train friends and relatives who really shouldn’t be blogging and I don’t “get it”. Offline, I am during my busiest season so last year I thought I would just lay dormant and rebuild. This year, I’m trying the pre-posting once a week (alnighter-days) and get ahead on the postings. For instance, i have 5 blogs now with posts up to end of april, 1 per day.
Tariq Khan said
Hart, good story!
ME Strauss said
Hart!
If you’re that much in debt, you were worth something!
Tariq Khan said
Hart, lots to do. I admire the preposting, though.
HART (1-800-HART) said
Bye char ~waves..
Rick. I can see why that Adult and matinee wouldn’t mix. And, I can also see why regular times must help too. I think it’s nice to know that, if I wanted to - I could catch that 7:40pm movie (any night of the week) and not worry that the movie started at 7:15pm instead and have to wait until 9:15pm where, I wouldn’t stick around.
There’s this theatre in our town, has 8-movies, that spends about 1/2 hour advertising in between each movie. Last time we went, there was a lot of business cards just zoomed in and placed there in a rotating basis over and over. And, there was a lot of website designers advertising too for some reason. They would alternate between trivia questions. I think they did that to keep the canteen open longer between movies.
Rick Cockrum said
I can’t remember the quote, but wasn’t it Henry Ford who said he must be doing well, with the amount of debt he had?
It’s my time to bid you all farewell. Thank you Tariq, for the hosting and advice. Thank you Liz. Sleep sometime, HART. Good night, Renee. Bye Steli. See y’all next week.
Meikah Delid said
Hi, Liz! Hi Tariq! I’m late because of my blasted Internet connection.
The topic today as usual is very interesting, especially on “finding our bliss.”
For me, I always find bliss when I’m with my kids, spending quality time with them. We would draw, sing (as in Karaoke singing), dance, and just laze around and tumble over each other. Pure bliss indeed!
Steli said
Bye Rick:)
Tariq Khan said
Rick, a pleasure. Good night.
Rick Cockrum said
Actually the advertising is a large source of income for the multiplexes, HART. And with their equipment, they need at least 10 - 15 minutes between shows, even if they don’t straighten up the auditorium. Some of it is to keep the concession open, too. All that money is their’s. They don’t share it with the production companies, the way they do the ticket sales.
Tariq Khan said
Welcome, Meikah. Your family souns like fun — bliss indeed.
Renée said
Good nite, Rick! See you next week!
HART (1-800-HART) said
Liz .. we weren’t really in debt that much actually .. it was a matter of cash flow that led to our downfall and vertical integration with our supplier.
We were selling meat snacks and confections to all 7-Elevens in Manitoba and NW Ontario, and the sales were used as contras towards purchases. But - maintaining our many refrigerated 5-ton trucks and paying all of the salesman and buying other products ate up our cash. Our best year in sales was $950k when he hit $1m in expenses etc.
Rick Cockrum said
Hi and bye, Meikah. I really am gone now.
HART (1-800-HART) said
G’night Rick ~waves.
*gonna type shorter comments now..
ME Strauss said
I know, HART!!
HART (1-800-HART) said
So Tariq .. do you have any answers for me? lol
Liz.. say no more we understand COMPLETELY!
btw .. how’s the SobConf coming along? Are you still sleeping 7 nights a week? or?
HART (1-800-HART) said
Renée .. how do you type your name like that? I’m just copy/pasting the Ren/Capital A with squiggly line over it/copywrite symbol/e as per email .. but there must be an easier way?
*curious*
Meikah Delid said
I’m really lag tonight.
Anyway, let me share with you this link: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/196/story_19693_1.html#
It’s about keeping something beautiful in your heart during difficult times. I think, this can help us find our bliss
Renée said
Well, well, well, it’s about time I get some serious blogging stuff done and then head to my books (serious studying to do).
It’s been fun chatting, should have done more often.
Good nite Liz, Tariq, Hart and all. Will catch up with you guys soon. Thanks for having me, Liz! 
Tariq Khan said
Hart, the answer to your question is 42.
ME Strauss said
Thank you, HART for asking that!! I’ve been wondering and never thought to ask her!
Tariq Khan said
Bye, Renee.
Renée said
Hart, I’m using Firefox with caching stuff (don’t ask me too technical, all I know it works on my end) Btw, I stop using IE7 or whatever so long along–the waiting is really killing me.
Take care. Nite y’ll! [She's gone to blogging]
HART (1-800-HART) said
42 .. ut-oh . not THAT again .. actually, it’s 54 if I recall .. (base 13)
:Ptftffttf
reading Meikah’s link now.
Steli said
Bye Renee:)
HART (1-800-HART) said
oh .. it was a sound clip .. too loud, otherwise dogs will wake up spouse
G’nite Renee! ~waves
Tariq Khan said
Hart, seriously, if you have a specific question, I’d be happy to try to answer it.
ME Strauss said
Good Night Renew!
HART (1-800-HART) said
Tariq .. I think I asked it already
but, I can try to be a little more specific.
One of the reasons I moved towards blogging and online ventures is because as a professional, offline earnings is pretty much limited by (1) the hours I want to work and (2) hourly rate and (3) number of hours in a day that is billable.
I’m at that stage now trying to expand my opportunities at HART-Empire Network and need to either make more money doing less work - or build my base bigger and grow by hiring writers or others to work or assist or partner.
Unfortunately, offline work prevents me to focus on first option and lack of sleeps catches up on 2nd option.
I’m looking for that elusive 3rd option.
Tariq Khan said
Thanks, Liz for the pleasure and privilege of hosting with you tonight.
Everyone, I’ve enjoyed our conversation. Good night to all.
HART (1-800-HART) said
♫ ♫ ♫ ♫ ♫ ♫
*whistling*
Steli said
Good nite Tariq!
HART (1-800-HART) said
G’night Tariq ~waves .. (oh well)
HART (1-800-HART) said
Oh~ Hey Steli .. how’s the Supercool stuff happening?
Steli said
Hey HART - we´re doing good
Hopefully the website will be ready for alpha soon…but the same problem here - time is something I have to learn to use better ( if there is really no way to get more time out of a day)! I´m thinking about doing a distraction diet…
HART (1-800-HART) said
what’s a distraction diet?
Tariq Khan said
Hart,
I posted my goodnight before seeing your comment.
I’m a business consultant, but also a lawyer, so I understand the dilemma.
I can tell you what I did, which was to sacrifice big time to build a business that required less hours and made more money for me. I consciously built my practice around my passion rather than an income, hoping that income would follow. I’m now starting to turn the corner after several years of patiently sowing seeds.
However, that story may not offer you much, because there’s no general answer. You are caught between constraints, but they are well known to you. Just by looking at your site I can see a hint of yur skills and intelligence, and I am convinced that you not only know all of this, but also what to do.
If I may venture an opinion — yes, I know what they are worth! — I think that you will come to a place where you will want to take a plunge, and your circumstances, skills and resources will help you commit to a course without much regret. I say commit because you have options, it’s really a decision.
I also think that you know that too. I’d be happy to continue our conversation by email if you’d like. If you can, please use my blog email. If not, please ask Liz to share my email with you.
Steli said
A DD is my metaphor for when you analyze everything that´s not healthy for your focus and get it out of your kitchen (enviroment at large). Most of that stuff in my case is bad behavior like having the tv on, listening to music etc. while sitting on my pc. Or stupid stuff like checking mail 20x / day…etc.
I´ll probably blog about it tomorrow
Tariq Khan said
Hart,
Another thing. There are ways that you can raise funds. I’d need more specifics to be helpful, and am willing to discuss.
Good night, all. I truly enjoyed your company.
Samuel John Klein said
My dream…hmm….
I want to make a well-known name for myself as a graphic designer and writer.
I know I can write. The breaks for design, I will admit, haven’t been coming my way. I’ve not given up, not by a long shot, but I still have an ad-hoc method of self-promotion brought on by battling my own demons of discouragement daily (depression has been a real issue for me in the past) and the demands of a 65-hour work week–40 hours of which are absolutely flushed down the toilet courtesy of an employer that treats me with contempt that is less thinly veiled as the years go by.
People have given me hands up. Liz made me an SOB (which shall ever be displayed with pride on my blog (http://zehnkatzen.blogspot.com)), and a fellow named Pariah S. Burke has been giving me what mentoring he can (he has created the sites http://designorati.com and http://quarkvsindesign.com, news sites for designerly folk, and in those sites he has allowed me much room to write and to explore).
What is really frustrating is that I can’t seem to tap the secret of making those advantages into solid improvements. Today, three years after creating my ‘blog, and despite the building of Brand Me I’ve been doing, I still get only about 20-30 hits a day. If I’m inspiring or interesting anybody, I don’t know it.
I have come on to one possible useful tool. I don’t know how many of you have heard of this, I have just stumbled on it but I understand it’s been rather wildly popular self-managment concept over the past few years, and it’s called GTD (Getting Things Done). This fellow has distilled what seems to be common sense concepts into a workflow that can be followed.
It’s strange, I’m compelled to digress, that all the things that make up GTD are things that have occurred to me at one time or another but it took the insight of one man to knit it all together in one neat chain.
There’s an article on GTD on Wikipedia here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GTD. It’s quick to read but says everything that has to be said about it. One look at it and I knew that this was a tool I could get some use out of. And I don’t have to buy a book to get it.
Anyhow, it looks like GTD will allow me to add a little something that I’ve been missing from my repertoire most of my life; discipline. See, I swear that whoever came up with the tautology “hard work pays off eventually; laziness pays off right now” watched me. There is something to inertia; getting going on anything for me is accomplished by setting off a box or two of TNT under myself.
So, after all this thinking out loud, what again are my dreams:
To be a design voice of note.
To be in demand as a graphic designer.
For my ‘blog to be everyone’s second-favorite ‘blog (look at it this way; Kings come and go. Courtiers are forever. One of the Moody Blues once said they wanted to be everyone’s second-favorite band. Look how historic and respected they are).
And I gave you all some links already. I’d say the most important is the Wikipedia GTD entry. Here’s one more I found quite engaging:
http://www.taskfreak.com
Taskfreak! is a PHP application that allows you to implement GTD by keeping a simple list of what you got in the air on any machine that you have a MySQL server on (my personal desktop machine mounts MySQL). In addition to giving me experience in working around with PHP and MySQL it also makes putting what I want to work with up in front of me and also makes it easy to alter, reorder, and fun to play with. It comes in two flavors–single user and multi-user. If you don’t have MySQL access you can put it on your machine (get it from http://mysql.org…hey, there’s another link!), the MySQL Community Server is free of charge, as is Taskfreak!
Next I’m going to look into Thinking Rock, but I have to upgrade my Java to 1.5…
HART (1-800-HART) said
Welcome back Tariq ..
I might take you up on that and be in touch via email.
Years, eh? I’m almost at year#2 ..
I remember that our firm once had a client back in the mid-80’s who was a high priced lawyer making a great living .. and then all of a sudden he quit to buy a popcorn franchise. Smartest thing he ever did and made much more than being a lawyer.
There’s always an internal conflict (and related party conflicts like spouse and family) when you are trying to do it all .. stuff you are really good at doing, and stuff you really like doing. Anyway..
… and G’night again
HART (1-800-HART) said
Steli .. that’s hillarious! Because I used to turn off my TV to make me more productive, but now I seem to turn it on so I know what time it is! I have all these preset channels flipping automatically around the dial on every hour .. from Star Trek, Stargate, Lone STar Channel, Comedy shows, and even Ambient music if I’m desparate - but, when it switches to a new channel - I know I lost an hour.
Michele Moore said
GREAT Site, I’ve learned a great deal, many thanks! Please check out http://HappinessBlog.com or (I’m moving from blogger soon!)
Michele Moore - author of
How To Live A Happy Life -
101 Ways To Be Happier
http://www.HappinessHabit.com
Steli said
ME Strauss said
HART and Steli,
After the last few comments, I picture you two sitting together watching TV eating a lawyers popcorn.
I’m losing it. I’m going to pack it in now.
Sweet dreams, guys. Keep the bad guys away.
Steli said
hehe…good nite liz!
HART (1-800-HART) said
G’nite Liz .. never lose it
Samuel .. that’s a big post! I started to look at TaskFreak .. but then I got off an a tangent wondering who Moody Blues wanted to be the 2nd best band in the world behind .. was it Pink Floyd? Oh well.
I’m going off to multi-tasking and then G’nite to myself too. // ~waves to all here there and everybody and even those coming in after me too
Meikah Delid said
Liz, sorry, bad Internet connection. See you next time. Good night!
Easton Ellsworth said
Anyone else still up?
HART (1-800-HART) said
I’m on 28-hour-day/6-day-a-week schedule, so .. yah. I’m still up. How’s it going Easton?
Carma Dutra said
So this is where everybody has been all night. Catch you all next time.
Easton Ellsworth said
Good HART (and Carma). Just burnin’ some midnight oil working while trying not to wake the household up with my sniffling (allergies).
On tonight’s topic, I am following my dreams by working hard on several online publishing fronts … but also trying not to fall into dreamland doing it!
HART (1-800-HART) said
I’ve got a similar dream happening… working late and burning the midnight oil. Everytime I go to print some reports, my dogs wake up from the noise and wakes up my sleeping wife, who is now on OT hours, waking up at 4:10am every morning now. So, my dream is to get a better soundproof door one day here in my office!
HART (1-800-HART) said
PS.. what are “online publishing fronts” ? Is that just a fancy phrase for catching up on your blogs?
Easton Ellsworth said
Yes. I descend into euphemisms pretty bad when I’m sleepy.
Easton Ellsworth said
Over and out. Hope to see y’all at SOBCon!
basketer said
I have to work on my thesis tonight. I am not actually following the dream of the thesis. Its just to keep my other dreams alive that I have to go through this act too :P. So its not always about the dreams we follow.
ME Strauss said
What a conderful night it turned out to be. I even had dreams after I left it. Thank you everyone for coming!!
Wendy Piersall said
A day late and a dollar short, but looky there - I was here in spirit with Kris!
Can’t wait to fill you in Liz - the conference was awesome!!!! Let’s catch up soon!
W
ME Strauss said
Hey Wendy,
I bet you were part of what made it so awesome! Yes!