In just a few months time, I have interviewed over 45 women and mom business owners.  The power behind these women are incredible.  These are everyday women working on side jobs, full-time jobs and all are focused on building while also living their very full lives.

With all of the women I have interviewed in The Power Squad Project. 

At first I will admit I was initially shocked to learn that most of the women, if not all, work on multiple projects at one time.  Actually, more often than not, this is the case. We are not locked into one boring position. 

In fact, many of us are are protected by multiple streams of income.

I have the best job ever and love love love that I get to talk with these amazing women on my podcast about the work they do.  Not only am I curious as to how they do they what they do but what they do.  I want to know everything from the most basic level!  

How did you get started? Why did you get started?  What exactly are you doing it??

In just a few months time, I have interviewed over 45 women and mom business owners and was initially shocked to learn that most of the women, if not all, work on multiple projects at one time.  Actually, more often than not, this is the case. 

I find that information sits really well with me.  

It's the new way we diversify.  

It's the new way we can try different things and see what we like.  

We are not locked into one boring position.  We are protected by multiple streams of income.  

We are challenged by different projects.  

We are able to build our community.  

Build our income.

Build out our lives.

Build. Build. Build.

Below is a list of the different jobs these wonderful women work on now or has in the recent past as just one of their gigs.   (Note: Where there's a link, they have been interviewed. The others without a link, the interviews have been completed just not published yet.)   Can you guess who each woman is??

1. How to Be A Freelance Writer Course Creator
2. Amazing New Curling Iron Maker
3. Chemical Free Stainless Food Container Maker
4. Graphic Designer
5. Building Manager
6. Co-Packager
7. Chocolate Maker
8. Article Writer
9. Jewelry Maker
10. Candle Maker
11. Stock Photography Photographer
12. Wedding and Family Photographer
13. Nature Journalist
14. Charity Event Planner
15. Baker & Dessert Maker
16. Blogger
17. Podcaster
18. Affiliate Marketer
19. Marketing Company
20. Purse Holder Maker
21. Waxing Company
22. Handbag Maker
23. Day care owner
24. Online Business Management
25. Project Management
26. Pilates Instructor
27. Health & Nutrition Consultant
28. Healthy Meal Delivery
29. Healthy Living Monthly Membership
30. Viral Video Maker
31. Video Production
32. Actor
33. TV Host
34. Event Planner
35. Media Production
36. Children's Label Maker
37. Life Coach 
38. Speaker
39. Poet
40. Workshop Facilitator
41. Stylist
42. Home Stylist
43. Subscription Box Maker

Each of these women take opportunity with their arms wide open.  As our businesses evolve so do our income streams.

This is how we, this is how they, make. it. happen. 

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As an Online Business Manager, I hear it all! Everyone always tells me how they have no technical skills and couldn't even begin to imagine how to create a blog or a website.  They need help bringing their business ideas to life.

 To be honest, back in the day, it took a lot of work.  Wordpress makes my head spin.  I went from ugly site to ugly site as I tried my hardest to create something beautiful and meaningful.  

Then as a "creatives" with so many ideas, I popped in excitement when I really started to learn about SquareSpace and how easy it was to pull together.  That was I was looking for without even knowing it.  If only I could put my ideas there in, an inexpensive manner, to see what and where I really want to spend my time.  We don't start sometimes because just thinking of the process of creating it, whatever IT may be is so darn overwhelming.   That's what happens for me, at least.

Now you don't have to have any technical skills whatsoever.   All you have to do is 2 things and things only.  

1. Pick a Domain & Buy It

This is probably the most fun part of starting something.  It's the first step.   Yes, I am putting my idea out there.  I am locking it down.  I am choosing a domain name.  

How. fun. is. that?! 

Go no further than Bluehost.com to find your domain name and buy it. Enough said, don't put anymore thought into if you should or shouldn't - allow yourself to have the fun and pick your domain name.

Yeah, you may have to play around with spelling or adding adjectives (hint) but once you lock it down, you will be excited and have fun.  So don't forget to congratulate yourself on that one too! 

The thing is you can buy one or multiple domains for a small fee and feel out which one works best for you!  It's that easy.  Not even kidding.  Bluehost.

2.  SquareSpace It.

It cannot get any easier to create a website than SquareSpace.  I have tried Wordpress and I am now here to tell you that yes, Wordpress is good, SquareSpace is what most modern and most clean and most easy. to. use.

SquareSpace is so easy if you are getting married you can quick create a site.  If you need to put a resume online.  If you are starting something new and just want a place for people to go.  If you don't have anything yet but want that place holder to collect interest and emails.  You can create a Cover Page and a cover page only.  I think that is $4 / month.   One page and it gives you all the templates in the world.  No creativity, no technical skills are required just you taking the steps.

If you are ready for a little bit more, for I think $10 / month you can create an entire site.  The site can have a Blog and an About page.  It will help you create a contact form or display your social media. And just like that, your business idea is now a reality!

SIDE NOTE - HERE ARE A FEW RELATED POSTS TO KEEP YOU GOING...

• 4 Easy Side Businesses I Wish I Had Time to Create
• 2000 Instagram Followers in 2 months
• How to Start a Podcast for $12
• 3 Quick Ways to Surprise & Delight Your Customers

A Few Additional Thoughts on Building Your Blog

How long does it take to set up a website?  

Well, there are two types of websites you can create.  A single page "cover" page.  This is used as a placeholder or for very specific invitations etc.  Those take all of maybe 8 minutes to create.  And I am saying 8 to give yourself time to play around a bit too.  

The website itself?  Let's say you have a Home page, an About page, a Contact page and one other maybe that's a blog page or Product / Services page.  SquareSpace offers you about 30 different templates to choose from.  In each template there are About page and Contact pages.  You just have to change their wording to yours.  So you are starting with a clean, nice structure.  If you are focused and know what you want, then a few hours.  If you are still working out what you want then add on more.  It's not rocket science and I firmly believe you (anyone) can build a beautiful site.  

The other great thing is you can change anything at any time.  Get started.  Let me know if you need any help.  

What other costs are there?

None really.  You have to buy the domain for a few buck and you pay a monthly fee for the website.  You can choose to purchase photos for your site (directly from within the site) for a few dollars more or you can choose to use your own.  

Good luck!  Let me know how it goes!

FTC Disclosure of Material Connection: In order for us to maintain this website, some of the links in the post above may be affiliate links. Regardless, we only recommend products or services we use personally and/or believe will add value to readers.

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Once you've started implementing your business idea, you need to start marketing. People need to know who you are. Exposure. Mom life and lengthy magazines do not go hand-in-hand. Precision and ease are key. Here's how you'll do it.

Disclosure: Yes, there are some affiliate links below, but as you can tell, I will only recommend things I actually use and recommend.  In fact, I have intentionally left off some products I have tried out but would not recommend.  Just sayin'.

I'll admit it. I am new to social media.  I had to do a deep dive in learning because I was so pumped up about my podcast, I wanted others to get the same benefits I was getting to talking with these amazing mompreneurs!

So, I had to learn about social media.  As much as we want our online world to be organic it is far more strategic than one would ever imagine.  So pick your platform.  

I love Instagram.  I am pretty pictures kind of gal.  If there is a quick quote for me to read, great.  If there is something cute, sweet, tasty or neat, I buy right into it.  I am a mom.  People magazine is too dense for me.  US Weekly?  I don't even know who those people are anymore.  But I like the pictures. 

Once I started learning how to expose aka promote my account, the climb started.  

(And don't get me wrong, I totally love to read.  But reading People, US Weekly, Facebook and Instagram are completely different than reading a great book.  I even wrote this post about how to be a mom and read again which you can check out too if you like.)

Okay, so with Instagram being my preferred platform, I took to learning all I could.  

First, Curated Photos are Key.  

Everyone says pic a theme and stick to it.  I could not agree more.  Even so, my style in the last few months has shifted.  I realize I am more one way vs another.  Can you tell by my feed?  Use the photos that you are attracted to. 

I was also introduced to PicMonkey around the time I started to get serious about working online.  It's the editing app to resize your photos, brighten them up, slightly correct them if you need to.  Add a filter or a bubble or some verbiage.  I lived on PicMonkey. 

PicMonkey also helped me creating my cover photos for my blog posts.  You can set the size you want (square for Instagram) and then add in verbiage if you want for a quote or to make a comment.  The filters are plenty and it's beyond easy to use.  Even for the non-techie like me.

Exposure Exposure Exposure

Remember my podcast interview with Rosemarie Groner??  She's from The Busy Budgeter and is making some serious waves.  I will never forget her words of wisdom, starting with stating something like "helping someone become successful does not take away from my own success."  She so right and absolutely lives those words.  She acts like a mentor as she keeps increasing her stamp on this world.  When I interviewed her near the beginning of the year she was 1 1/2 years into blogging and was hoping to make $8,000 for the month.  She surpassed that number by a zillion and now regularly earns $20,000+ a month from her part-time blog.

“No one is going to find your stuff. You have to put your work out there. ”

— Rosemarie Groner, The Busy Budgeter

She also made it crystal clear that you YOU had to be the one to put your work out there.  It's up to YOU to get your work published, your products found sought after.  If YOU don't do it no one will.  

And with that mentality in mind, I became a believer in finding and creating exposure.

How do you get exposure on social media??  You create it.  You engage.  

When you like someone's photo, that is exposure for your own profile.  

When you comment on someone's photo, that's exposure for your own profile.  

When you like someone's activity at one of your favorite places, that's exposure to your own account.

When you like photos from a specific event or hashtag, that too is exposure for your account.  

Adding a Place or Location to your photo, that is exposure for your account.  

Hashtags categorize your work and guess what else they do - they are expose your account.  

Actively "liking" a profile, a place and your favorite work in hashtags creates exposure to your own account.  Just like you would put out your blog post or your product and promote it, when you like something on Instagram you are promoting your own account.  

This is exposure.   You want exposure.  

You actively want to expose your work to your target market.  Expose.  Like. Comment.  Like. Comment. Like. Comment. 

Consistency

Consistency is hard, I am going to admit.  And there's a wide variety of opinions on how much to post.  There are people out there that think you should post 5x a day.  And there are others there that think 1 is enough.  Most people agree that posting photos 1-3x on a consistent basis is enough.  As far as I can tell there are two programs that allow you to schedule out Instagram photos and that's Hootesuite and Schedugram.  

Hootesuite is a program that allows you to review and schedule postings for all of the different platforms.  If you want one place to post from and one place to schedule from the free option allows you load in, I think 3 accounts.  If you have more than that you want to manage from Hootesuite, I again think the fee is $10 / month give or take.  Actually what I like about their set up is they allow me to see if I really will use / need the program before committing to a monthly expense.  

schedugram helped me this past month when i was busy with morning meetings or company.  i was able to schedule a few postings and not worry about letting my exposure and engagement lapse.  love it when i can be ahead in the game!

While I really like Hootesuite as a whole, for Instagram, I prefer Schedugram.   In Schedugram, I can see in calendar format what is going to post when.  I am a visual person and this really helps me.  When I started focusing on gaining exposure to my Instagram account I scheduled almost my entire week out.  It took me about 2 hours per week to do so and then I plan to add specific postings (like podcast specific posts) manually during the week.  

Now, as I am busier and busier, I use it as a tool to assist me when I know I am going to be super busy.  If I have back to back to back meetings I will try to schedule back to back postings so my account is not sitting that long, nor is my exposure dwindling.  With Schedugram, I can upload multiple photos at once and simply leave them in Draft mode too.  I have a bunch of quotes that I love and will scroll through them when I am looking for inspiration or the right post to set how I am feeling.  

 I really prefer this program for Instagram and can't believe so many people do not yet know if it! 

Special Treat: If you choose to sign up with Schedugram, will kindly give you and me a $5 credit to our accounts.  Just Use Referral Code: MOF. 

Training

With all this talk, there are people out there that have hundreds of thousands of followers.  There are people out there that have 10s of thousands of followers.  As I got into my research, I just wanted to know / had to know what these people were doing differently than I was.  

Oh! And it's important to mention that I also came across in my path some information about apps where you can BUY followers.  The descriptions on the apps are enticing and I downloaded one (maybe 2?) for like 1/2 second.  On one app, I was immediately hacked and on another app it was so weird how people with one or two followers (like a zillion of them) would become your fake follower.  Or something.   Once I figured out how big a scam that stuff was, I immediately deleted the app and accounts.  It was weird.  And that's also how I know I can look into any account and see if you / one is paying for scammy followers!

In any event, I still was / am trying to learn all about Instagram. I came across Alex Tooby's tutorials, she has one account @menandcoffee that has over 350,000 followers, so I figured she knew what she was talking about and I signed up!  Her in-depth Instagram course Infamous to Influential was the tips and tricks I think everyone else is doing - or should be doing.   I immediately saw improvement in my engagement.  I couldn't believe, I finally found the information I was looking for.  How do you actively expose your account and connect with your target audience??  How do you make progress strategically not slimy? Her focus is to teach you how to expose your work and connect with the people you want to.  Targeted.  Connected.  And real.  I would share, and hope I have throughout this post, some really key takeaways.  That said her courses are great if you are serious about wanting to grow your Instagram accounts.  Not kidding one bit.  

Iconosphere

Finally, to help track and manage comments and progress, there's Iconosphere.  

It's really fun to pull statistics that say you are on an upswing of 269% for this and 240% for that 109% for that.  And this was just at the beginning!  

One of my favorite features besides the great graphs is that it allows me to add in a few "competitors" to study and watch.  I can see what they are doing compared to what I am doing.  It's another set of analysis that helps along the way.  

I love Instagram.  It's my favorite platform.  I am a pretty pictures, in the moment, kind of gal and I am excited to see progress and engagement made. 

Hey - Have you checked out my Instagram account yet?  

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You need a podcast. Whether you want to share working mom tips, a passion for the outdoors, or share business ideas for women (like I do!!) you just need to start. Podcasting is absolutely the way of the future.  On demand is what we want and this is a powerful form of on demand radio.  Imagine, 2 years ago there were podcast but not even its own app.  2 years ago, 12 million people were listening to podcasts.  Now it's 17 million.  Imagine what it will be when cars have easy access to podcasts.  That's our future. 

In full disclosure, this blog post contains affiliate links which means if you make a purchase from any of these links, I may make a little money. Thank you in advance for supporting my dream work too!

It's a great time to get into podcasting.  Everyone is still learning, still growing.  They are growing together.  

I love podcasting and talking with my interviewees.  It's a way I can learn, connect and get inspired.  I have a few additional thoughts on other podcasts or how to expand my own but time will me get there.  

In the meantime YOU need to start one too.  Now is the time.  Below is what I did to get started.  

Have a Good Subject & One That You Love 

Okay okay who decides if the subject is a good one or not?  We don't really know.  But you most definitely want to have a topic that you enjoy talking about over and over and over again.   I once heard about a woman traveling the country to talk about the lessons learned from her brother's suicide.  What were the signs, the sadness, etc.  Then she realized how awful it was to talk about over and over and over again.  She didn't want to have her career spent reliving this tragedy.  

Point is, pick a subject you love to talk about.  

Set Your Format 

Will your you be talking on your own, will you be interviewing?  What type of schedule will you maintain?  Once a week or perhaps several times a week?  Set your format now, as best as you can, so your listeners will be ready and eager for the next episode.  

I knew I wanted an interview format right from the get-go.  I wanted / want to connect, learn from, be inspired by, build my tribe around women who have taken the leap.  I knew I wanted to talk with these amazing women right from the get-go.

Get Technically Involved 

If you want to try to have a podcast, you have to get your hands dirty.  I didn't know if it would "stick" so I was willing to learn, to do anything as long as I could keep the costs down at least until I figured out if the podcast was something worth pursuing.  

I knew I wanted an interview format and I was certain that some other interview based podcasts must accept people calling in.  I mean, Billionaire Mark Cuban, has been on podcasts, the interviewer must allow for people to call in from their phones.  I knew I wanted to make it easy for my interviewees to call-in.  If they are busy in their own lives, which I was confident they were, how easy could I make it for them to just say YES! and talk for 30 minutes.  

The Only Equipment You Need

Conference Calling Services

Really, that's all you need.  I signed up for a conference call system where I could record and download the call afterwards.  Actually I used a free conference calling service for my first probably 8 or 9 interviews.  Both parties would call into the conference line, I would hit record, and WA-LA game on!  After the call / super official podcast interview I would hang up, download the recording and begin editing.   That's it.  That's all you formally and officially need to record your podcast.  

It worked well for me.  

I switched from that service to Zoom because I was hosting video conference calls to such a degree that the paid monthly service was needed.  I think it's $15 a month.  If you have a need for video conferencing, sharing screens and recording of that it was and has been a really great service.  I am more than happy to pay the monthly fee for Zoom now.  It has saved me time and time again. 

Whether I am using it for work conference calls, for interviews, for video calls it is so helpful and the quality is top notch.  

Want to Step Up Your Recordings Even Further? 

Zoom's service has been a gem to me all around, no complaints and I still use it often.  For Mother's Day, I was excited to that my husband wanted to treat me to some upgraded podcasting equipment.  I mean, what mom doesn't want a microphone, headphones and a recorder for her gift?

Honestly, I was thrilled!  This is what I got specifically:

1. Microphone Audio-Technica ATR2100-USB Cardioid Dynamic USB/XLR Microphone
2. Windscreen Dragonpad USA Pop filter Studio Microphone Mic Wind Screen Pop Filter Swivel Mount 360 Flexible Gooseneck Holder 
3. Recorder Zoom H4N Digital Multitrack Recorder
4. Sony Dynamic Stereo Headphones - MDR-7506
5. SIM Card - 32 GB

It took some education from YouTube to really learn how to plug everything in together but when it did come together I was jumping up and down in joy!  I think this video was the one that started me off on the right tracks!

Record

Now comes the fun!  Record!  If you are solo or you are interviewing you need to record.  When I first started out I was so nervous and shaky.   I would honestly give myself pep talks but the truth learning how to run a podcast is like learning to ride a bike.  It takes practice and learning to be better and comfortable with it.  In the end though, recording the podcast is the most fun.  Especially if you have a really great guest!  It doesn't matter if you are using a free conference calling service or Zoom!  Have fun! 

Oh! And use your headphones from your phone to talk into.  No microphone is needed at this point, use those headphones.  Trust me, the sound quality is much much better with that added action.

Editing

Be prepared, there is nothing more humbling than hearing yourself talk for the first time.   Errr... .first few times.  But you've gotten this far, don't let fear stop you!

I needed an editing tool because the format of my podcast is interview style.  I wanted to add in an Intro and Outro (as I call it) at the beginning and end of each interview.  Then I also learned I needed to further edit after I got a sweet note from one of my best friends and most loyal listeners that I need to cut out some Ummms and Ahhhs.  

The editing tool I use, GarageBand, is the tool that came with my Mac computer.  I was pleased to hear many other podcasters stick with this free option too.  Once you get over the initial learning curve, it's a pretty great tool! Again, I studied YouTube for videos on how to edit a podcast and found a ton of information there.  It's easy to get sucked into the learning and there were so many to choose from.  Start with this video and go from there.  If you don't have a Mac or access to GarageBand, I have heard good things about Audacity.   I haven't tried it because the need just has not been there but in my research, this seems to be a program people talk about.

All of my saved files are on Dropbox of course.  Does anyone use anything else anymore??  There is no fear about losing files to a crashed computer.  There is no fear that my files won't be accessible.  I can pull anything from my phone, my tablet, my computer.  I can share.  I can do my work, save it to Dropbox and move on.  What else do you need?

Publishing

(Here's where I spent my money when I started out.)

Once your podcast is ready, you have to publish!  How fun!!  There are so many manners on how to publish actually publish a podcast.  Simplecast is the program I choose.  To me, it seemed simple and it did the job.  By this point, I had been to my eyeballs in research and learning, when it came time to publish, I didn't need anything fancy.  Just get the job done.  And I was willing to pay.  $12 a month.  Can't beat that right?? 

Find Yourself

You've done the work!  Now go listen!  How crazy fun and scary was that??  But you did it!   You crossed a big hurdle and did it! Congrats!

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The manner of giving is worth more than the gift.  ~Pierre Corneille, Le Menteur

Doesn’t it always seem like the customer wants “just” one more thing?  Heck, I don’t blame them. I do it myself.  Aren’t we trained to always want more?  Sometimes, even when we get what we want, it isn’t what we really need.  

So it’s no surprise that our customers want one more thing. 

One small thing. 

When you give your customers that one small thing they want ahead of time, they are not only surprised but they are excited to see what comes next.  That one small thing is big because it's big to them. These business ideas will keep your customers happy and increase your referrals.

This small thing is there to make them feel special.  And that’s the ultimate end goal, right? We want our customer to be excited with our delivery and to feel special. 

Now when reality sets in and when we have multiple customers who want multiple additions to what was promised, we can get to a place where we have added on tons of work, higher expectations, and lower profit revenue.   To me, “just” doing one more thing always ends up taking much longer than expected. 

So how do we manage both? Surprise and delight our customers and all of them?  This is the power of low-hanging fruit.  Low-Hanging Fruit: What is it?  There's always the core offering or product that you are delivering.  The low-hanging fruit is the thing that helps them that much more, it's something that would make it easier and nicer for them to use or achieve. 

Low-hanging fruit is something seemingly small, a minimal effort, but it provides a surprisingly big impact to the your client. 

Below are some things you can do to make your customer happy while not adding loads of work to you and your team:

1. Powerful & Friendly Follow up.  By checking in with your client you are keeping them engaged and in-the-know with how you care about them.  This could a quick email to them, a text or call.  Give your client an unexpected follow up and have them light right up. 
2. Send them a Thank You Note.  When was the last time you received a hand-written thank you note?  Spend the few minutes to tell your customers how appreciative you are to work with them.  Your client would be thrilled and feel appreciated themselves.  The impact and improvement on the relationship will be great.  
3. Proactively Give Them a Service They Would Pay For. Do you offer services by the hour?  If so, then during that appointment, add in 15 or 30 minutes just for fun.  Time is a commodity and something we all need more of.  Why not give some additional time? Won't your client love and appreciate that?!  

Bonus Steps:

1. Bring Them a Treat. Are you local? Who doesn't want a surprise afternoon coffee break?   The pharmaceutical industry relies on this practice and it truly generates sales for them.  They bring breakfast, coffee, sweet treats.  You're are getting in front of your client, face-to-face.  What better way to remind them you are there than being there?
2. Give Them a Recommendation.  Do you know someone who could use their services?  Do they do good work? Share the good will.   Speak highly of them and recommend them too.  Even write them a recommendation on LinkedIn.  That takes minutes but the effect and goodwill will only improve your relationships.

Making the extra effort for your client will grow the relationship leaps and bounds.   People admit there is always a better service or better price but they enjoy the comfort and loyalty of people they work with.  If you have a relationship where your customer is surprised and delighted, why would they not want to work with you??  Low-hanging fruit is one of the simplest ways to make your customer happy.  You're showing a customer that you are thinking of them when they are not there.  This thing that you do will require a minimal effort on your part but will make big impact to your customer.    

Your customer will be excited, feel special and be happy with you! You'll feel confident that they are there to stay.

Good luck!

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There are so many business ideas going through my head that it's hard to organize them! So, rather than let them go to waste, I want to share some of them with you. I look forward to seeing you grow! The possibilities are endless.

This post may contain affiliate links. 

1. Jewelry

There is some unbelievably gorgeous jewelry out there.  Those stackable bracelets, yep, I make them, too.  Those giant beaded necklaces.  Have lots of them hanging.  I don't know, I can't sit still.  When my husband watches boxing on Saturday nights, I pull out the beads.  I must admit, it's pretty, fun and easy.  Well, it's not as easy as you would think.  My husband thinks these suckers are our retirement and sat down this past weekend only to make 2 bracelets in 2 hours' time.  One, we will dismantle because it is just ugly.  The other, I am afraid to touch because he put his heart and soul into it!  

Here's what I would do if I had the time to really pursue selling jewelry.  

1. Order beads to your taste from Etsy and eBay.  Order lots, and a variety.  Also, you want to order them now.  They aren't that expensive but they come from all over the world.  So it takes time to get them in.  
2. While you are waiting for them to come in, head to Michael's to get some stretch thread in the jewelry-making section, and some Krazy Glue.
3. I would start an Instagram account, hashtag it appropriately, and see if there is any interest.  I feel like having the likes and followers will give credibility when going to boutiques.  Ideally, I would learn how to photograph them properly but I am not convinced it's necessary when you get started and don't have much time. 
4. Make a list of all the local boutiques, hotels, and wineries that you would love to work with.  Gather the names, addresses, and phone numbers of each place.
5. Call and set up an appointment for them to look at your jewelry.  Take your best work and go for it!  

2. After-School Yoga for Kids

After school, my kids always have activities.  Yet there is this time between after school and when they do their AYSO that they want to do something else.  They want to play or do something now that they are free from school!  Hooray!  Oftentimes, the school offers enrichment class but to be honest, I think it's people, experts in their fields, making the offers.  

What if I found a reputable yoga teacher and organized her to come in for an hour or so after school to take the kids through a gentle yoga program?  If the class is at school, and the school is willing, host the class at the school. That way pickup is not necessary until later.  Then have the kids sign up.

Approximately: $30/class.  If you have 10 kids sign up, that's $300.  Pay the yoga teacher and keep the profits.  Not bad for a little bit of work.  If everyone likes it, schedule the class regularly.

3. Accountability Program

We all say we need someone to light that fire under our behinds in order for us to really get something done.  My girlfriend is picking up her pace (training) so she can be a part of a faster running group.  A dad I know is riding a long bike race to raise money for a charity that is near and dear to his heart.  We all have that one thing that we want to do and think about.  I'll be your accountability partner and we never even need to talk. 

Get 10 people to sign up for $10, $20, or $30/week (2 coffees to them) for 3 months.  Send them a quick motivational text in the morning.  Or motivate them through Instagram.  Send them an email or simply follow up.  It takes no time whatsoever, but adds $400 extra a month in your pocket.  

4.  Closet Organizer

I don't know what's wrong with me but I love to go through other people's stuff!  It's so fun!  And I love to organize!  In a heartbeat, I can help someone out just by "going into action-mode" and watching their expressions.  

If you don't love it, out it goes.  

I am totally copying that amazing advice from the book The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo.  Have you read it?  Anyone and everyone I know that has read the book has literally reported how it's a life-changing process.  

I have been through it, and I love it.  Who would not want to have the freedom that comes when living only with things you love? 

Problem is that most us need a little help.  We need a little nudge.  Why not have a good friend over to withhold judgment and help clean out?! 

Am I weird to love it?  I have a friend who paid someone $500 to help her clean out her clothes.  Her closet is amazing.  Her style is amazing.  She now only wears what she loves.  Sounded kind of expensive to me, but who am I to judge?  And she is always in things that make her feel good.  Sounds like a solid and healthy investment, actually.  So, if I had time, maybe I'd start by charging $250.  $250 to change your life!  Who doesn't win here??

There are the 4 business ideas that are on my mind.  I love what I do with Mompreneur on Fire, and that consumes the majority of my work.  If I had time, I would pursue the others.  Maybe you will and have some success, too!  Good luck, and let me know how it goes!

Update w/ 2 More Great Side Business Ideas

5. Blogging, Yes, Blogging 

If you asked me last year or even six months ago about the benefits and revenue sources that comes from blogging, I wouldn't have believed you.  Here's the thing that many people don't understand, you can make money from your blog.  You can create multiple streams of income from writing about the things that interest you.  

My family, even my husband, looks at me cross eyed when I try to explain the revenue and income sources from blogging.  In fact, majority of the bloggers I know will talk about how their family and friends don't understand what they do.  You don't even have to understand quite yet, you just need to start.  

HERE ARE 3 STEPS TO GET YOU STARTED:

1. How to Start a Blog When You Have No Technical Skills.  That was a blog post on its own. It's not a difficult thing to put together but there are maybe 10 steps involved.  I went through the entire process in the post. 

2. Then when you want to actually get serious about driving traffic to your site, this guide, is an amazing guide.  Literally, I use these strategies everyday and for months upon months now I am only seeing major traffic growth.  The big, I mean big, bloggers use these strategies too.  

3. THEN when you really want the income to come in you must learn more about affiliate marketing.  I cannot believe I went months and months and months and months without this information.  I cannot believe there are 20 year old bringing in 10s of thousands by these (relatively) simple steps they put in place.  Michelle Schroeder's Making Sense of Affiliate Marketing course is not that expensive and has amazing tips on how to generate real income without having to do the whole ads thing.  Trust me on this.  It's ah-mazing!

6. Sell Stuff On Amazon

Think eBay, only better.

You do the fun part, finding product to flip. Then Amazon handles all of the details of fulfilling orders. It’s called Amazon FBA, for “Fulfillment By Amazon.” You ship the inventory to an Amazon warehouse, they store it for you, and then when a customer buys something, Amazon picks, packs and ships it; they handle any returns, too.

Think about all of the stuff you have lying around the house - from books to toys to kitchen gadgets - and how great it would be to ship it out and then cash out! If you could find 20 items at home that each made $10 in profit, that’s a cool $200 to start. And you hardly did any work!

If you wanted to put in a bit more effort, there are lots of stories of people who make six figures selling on Amazon, and most of them will tell you they do it with part-time hours. The Selling Family’s Amazon Boot Camp is a great place to learn step-by-step details about running an Amazon FBA business.

I'm curious - in the comments - tell me what ideas you have that you think would be easy to start and set up??

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Do you love listening to Podcasts?  Or do you not really know what one is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone. 

Today’s podcast just warms my heart.  Kristen Littell from WeeWork For Good started with a mission in mind and that was to teach her kids understanding and compassion.  One family activity - of throwing her kids in the car - lead to another and another and another.  Her kids saw "the other side" and they all wanted to do something about it.  They wanted to help and so they started to organize pay-it-forward parties.  One event led to another and another and another.  This family activity grew and grew so many more could benefit from their generosity.  The community-wide activities then led to launching a non-profit and in this past year a for-profit business was created so that one hand can support the other.  

It’s what we all want, right? 

To teach our kids. 

and to work with Purpose.

Yet, how and when do teach those life lessons?  Kristen is leading the charge in helping us teach our children these oh-so-very important lessons. 

You’re going to love this podcast and hear what this mom of 5 is pressing to do. We talk about many things including:

• How punishing her kids became a family activity they all enjoyed
• When everyone gets excited what happens
• What it means to do the work you love 
• The process of building a Foundation and a Social Good Company so everyone can benefit 
• How her experience prepared her for today's business
• Her Mentors and whose most honest with her
• How she manages building a business and prioritizing her family
• What her days look like at home and at work

UPDATES

• What did you want to be when you grew up? 
  • I wanted to have my own business. At the time I wasn't sure what that would be but was always dreaming of the different things I could do and what that might look like if successful.  My Mom always said keep dreaming and you will eventually land somewhere.  It just took me a while. :)
• What was your first job?

  • My first job was cold calling for a Lawn Care company when I was 16.  Yes afraid to admit that was when text messaging, emailing etc.. didn't exist.  We would use a phone book and one by one make the calls. LOL think I learned how to take rejection at a young age but to keep calling/trying because occasionally someone would say YES.

• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • Right now most of my time reading is to educate myself on something to help WeeWork grow.  I read a lot of business and parenting blogs,  but when on vacation I'll take a quick easy book that I can read in a couple days.  One of my recent favorites is a book called 'Scarred Beautiful' written by a friend.
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • My favorite gifts right now are either a wine candle and a matching bottle of wine or LUSH Cosmetics bath products.  LUSH was WeeWork's first Corporate partner and empowered us to grow. I always want to support them and their brand and I love their products. My kids too!

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My primary job as an Online Business Manager and entrepreneur mentor is to get people working.   We need to cultivate our teams to do work that is internally satisfying and meaningful to each team member all the times but really that conversation can be left for another blog post!  What I know to be true is that a lot of the times, we aren't doing, we are delaying.  

Don't you hate it when you are working with a team of people, you have the conversations and think everyone is on the same page only to wait, wait and wait some more for the work to be completed?

In all the projects, large and small, I have managed, the same thing happens.  Everyone is in agreement and then as they go on their own with good intentions a distraction or higher priority arises and your work is put off.

We all start out excited but when the real work is required, we procrastinate.  

I am convinced it is in our nature to be this way.  Maybe it's our culture and we are attracted to the shiny objects always changing, always having a hard time focusing.

Here's the thing, I take this knowledge, that we are going to be distracted or shifted as a given.  I know we will procrastinate for whatever reason, I don't care nor do I judge, I plan around it..  

What I know to be true is that a lot of the times, we aren't doing, we are delaying.  

Why do we procrastinate?  Why do we wait?  Why does it take until the 11th hour to actually start the work??

Then it can be the worst managing over others who are dragging and delaying.  You feel like a mother nagging.  

OR you take a different approach.  

My most effective step to get work done is in a genuinely caring and helpful approach.  

In all the work I have done, I swear by the friendly and powerful follow-up.  

It has helped me cultivate relationships within my teams and clientele.  I have no doubt my products are stronger too because of the caring I go into a project.  

And sometimes, translating what we do into word format doesn't come across quite as nicely as you hope.  So I put together a brief video for you to follow along to. 

Following-up is brief, frequent and worthwhile. 

Good luck!  I'd love to hear what you think or how it went!  

---

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Do you love listening to Podcasts?  Or do you not really know what one is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone.  

Jenny Keller learned how to bake when her little ones were just wee-ons and has since transitioned her hobby to a successful, multi-faceted business. One quick look at her website, JennyCookies.com, and you see Jenny pulls together loads of beautiful work.  Her work includes styling parties and desserts tables, hosting beautiful ladies lunches where women learn a great takeaway, she has a cookbook, has worked with plenty of celebrities and brands, like Neiman Marcus, Anthropologie and the lovable Tori Spelling. Her work is creative and beautiful in a very natural and authentic manner. 

Talking with Jenny was as easy and as it was fun.  It was like talking with an old friend and we talked all things business and family. We talked about many things including:

• How she ended up working with Tori Spelling and other celebs
• Where burnout lead her
• How she balances work and her business
• How her kids are involved in her business
• What she wants her kids to learn
• How her parents influenced her
• How she's developed relationships with brands
• Why she doesn't seek out perfection
• A great tip for up & coming Mompreneurs

LINKS

• Worst End of School Year Mom Ever - Jen Hatmaker
• Chatbooks

UPDATES

• What did you want to be when you grew up? 
  • I wanted to be a teacher when I grew up!  Now I can't even imagine that job! One day as a field trip chaperone and I'm exhausted... how do they do it??
• What was your first job?
  • My first job was at a local tanning salon.  Ugh.  What I wouldn't do to go back in time and take back all the "tans".
• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • I love Jen Hatmaker books, she's hilarious and inspiring.  Her recent book For the Love had me in tears.  My current favorite is Go-Giver.  Great read!  Favorite apps... I don't necessarily have favorite apps other than social media: Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and SnapChat.  After keeping up on all of those there isn't any time left for the others!
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • My favorite gifts to give are fresh flowers, beautiful home baked treats and indulgent items.  It's fun to spoil someone with something they wouldn't normally buy for themselves. 

---

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Don’t really know what a podcast is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone.  

Jessica Valant is a pilates instructor and a physical therapist.  She just sold her studios in Hawaii and is now focusing her time taking care of her little one AND running an online community and membership-based health program at HappyHourMama.com. I wanted to talk with her because she not only because I love the idea of an affordable health program (think workouts and food guides for the busy mom) and I love that she is a mom making it happen.  She’s transitioning from Brick & Mortar business to Online all with a kid in tow. 

My questions are endless but start with: What? How? Why?

Jess was great to talk with and I don’t doubt you’ll enjoy the conversation as much as I did.  A few of the things that we talked about included: 

• Her first product
• How she's taking advantage of traffic from YouTube
• How she saw saw a missing element in the market and created it
• What drove her to become entrepreneurial
• The FUN first experience in setting her own schedule
• How she’s transitioning her work from hands-on to online
• How to stay true to yourself while also branching out
• Her goals
• Her Sunday To-Do List (LOVE!)
• "White space" exercise
• Her mentors
• Amazing lessons learned about listening to oneself

LINKS

• Scoliosis Workout
• Pilates Anytime
• Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield
• Marie Forleo B-School
• Screw the 9-5
• Nikki Elledge Brown 

UPDATES

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • I saw the movie “Regarding Henry” when I was 14 years old and knew I wanted to be a physical therapist. Before that I wanted to be a rock star :)
• What was your first job?
  • First job - 14 years old - a hostess at Le Peep restaurant in Kansas City where I grew up. 

• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • Books - “The Fire Starter Sessions” by Danielle LaPorte, “Break Out!” by Joel Osteen, “Carry On, Warrior” by Glennon Doyle Melton
  • Apps - Word Swag, Pulsar, Bloglovin’, Mindbody (to find fitness classes!)

• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • I always give massages to my husband that I actually do myself.
  • I love giving girlfriends gift certificates for pedicures or something else to pamper themselves.
  • For grandparents I send homemade cards my daughter makes,
  • and at Christmas I always give homemade treats like cookies or spiced nuts

---

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Don’t really know what a podcast is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone.  

“You do your best and if it isn’t perfect, believe it or not, people don’t actually care that much.”

— Deva Dalporto

You may or may not know the name Deva Dalporto from My Life Suckers but most certainly you have seen her hilarious video parodies like the one below that has over 7 million views on YouTube or this one that had me laughing out loud and has been watched over 9 million times. 

Deva graciously agreed to talk with me about all things mompreneur.  How does one even get started in a viral video parody biz?? How do you create this labor intensive awesomeness while also running a home and raising a family?  I don't know what I expected but perhaps it was a larger-than-life type personality but what I got was so much better.  Deva is kind and funny and most shockingly quite real.  Yes, she has highs and lows just like the rest of us and she's embracing this journey in front of her.  But what else?? The woman is busting her butt and I totally appreciate that.  Yes, she's enjoying it and she loves it but I give props to the hard worker too. 

That and I love the gift that she gives us.  Her genius is to give us laugther and lightness during some of the most stressful times out there.  I know I'm appreciative!

We talked about many different things here are just a few: 

• What her workweek looks like
• How she's doing the work she loves and kind of stumbled into it
• When and where she's not perfect
• How she keeps Zen
• Her mentors
• How her community has grown

LINKS

• Her daughter's parody The Momster Mash
• Her twenty one pilots: Stressed Out video (I snorted in laughter when I watched this!)
• Male Patterned Blindness 
• Jenn Mann - People I Want To Punch in The Throat
• Ilana - Mommy Shorts 
• Kim Holderness
• United Talent Agency
• iMovie
• Premeir Pro
• YouTube
• Canon C100

MORE FROM DEVA

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • An actress. I knew from as far back as I can remember that I wanted to act. There was never, ever anything else I wanted to do with my life. 
• What was your first job?
  • My first job was babysitting. And in the summer I worked as a production assistant on workout videos blow-drying sweat off of people's bodies between takes. In my years trying to be an actress in LA I worked every job out there. Waitress. Birthday Party Entertainer. Gardener. Overnight Transcriber. Caterer. Shakespeare Teacher. Dog Walker. You name it, I did it. And I still could barely pay my rent. 
• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • Cheryl Strayed's Tiny Beautiful Things is like my Bible. I reach for it whenever I need inspiration or a pick-me-up from feeling down. The only apps I really use are social media apps since I am on social media 24/7. Oh, and I recently discovered Door Dash. I use it to get food delivered when I'm shooting videos!
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • I love giving my girlfriends Sephora gift cards. Probably because I wish someone would give me one! 

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Don’t really know what a podcast is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone.  

"Rejection is Protection" - Diane Mizota

What do you do when you’re tired of waiting by the phone?  Well, you get up and go.  You figure out other things to do.  You light that fire.  You learn.  You proactively ask, help, do.  You participate.  You take “no” as data.  You grow.  Yes, you struggle too but you move, gracefully.  You plan.  You hustle.  You listen. to. your. gut.  

The podcast conversation with Diane Mizota (and all around hustler) was quick - boy was it quick- and insightful too.  She’s a content creator, a producer, a host, an actor, a dancer, and a “full-time working stay at home mom”.  She’s running her household, raising her boy, running to auditions, preparing client work and yes, hosting a style segment on Access Hollywood!

Diane has this storytelling capability that will make the time fly by.  We talked about many things but you will learn what she did to quit waiting by the phone: 

• Learned a new skill
• Act proactively and don’t judge a potential opportunity before it happens
• Started a small business
• A healthy way to look at rejection
• Ask your mentors to help
• About listening to what your gut is telling you

“Even the set backs have lead me to really great things happening.”

- Diane Mizota

LINKS

• Her Interview with Bruno Mars

Update

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • A secretary, Ricky Schroeder's wife and then a dancer.
• What was your first job?
  • Domino's Pizza.  I was employee of the month 3 times, thank you very much. 
• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • I'm reading Rice Noodle Fish by Matt Goulding in preparation for my trip to Japan this summer. On my phone, I'm all about FB, Insta, Snapchat on a good and Words with Friends.
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • I love giving gift baskets from the Broadway Baker- it's like you baked the goods yourself, only you didn't.  Pure Genius.

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Do you love listening to Podcasts?  Or do you not really know what one is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone. 

“It’s not about networking and getting ahead, it’s about scaffolding and bringing people along with you as you make your own way.”

— Ann Imig

Imagine one day you are at a conference going from talk to talk, mingling and smiling, taking notes and doing your best.  And then suddenly you are in a room and realize you are soaking in every. word. spoken.  

You have found your people.  

You have found your tribe.  

Ann Imig, took that moment and built the Listen To Your Mother, a National Reading Series and Media Company production, that celebrates and validates all things motherhood and is hosted around Mother’s Day year now for the last 6 years.  Starting with a single show in Madison, WI, 6 years ago, this year, the show will be in 41 cities across the US, 2000 shows on YouTube.  And just recently Ann was awarded the 2016 Game Change of the Year for the IRIS Awards. 

In the conversation not only was I trying to soak in what she had to say, but I was a little nervous too.  Ann was kind and informative.  Real and knowledgable.

Below are a handful of things we discussed:

• When she feels stuck.
• What Blogging was to her in the beginning
• How being a stage actress prepared her for today’s work
• The seeds that were planted that began LTYM
• Authentic Connections & Authentic Collaborations
• How her production grew
• How being out of her comfort zone prepared her
• How luck and strategy helped her grow and a really great team
• How she almost did a reality show and DEB helped her without that…
• Who make the best producers
• How she makes it through her busiest time of the year
• What she doesn’t do with her business
• When she’s pulled off the miraculous
• Her mentors
• Her tribe.  Her tribe. Her tribe.

“Authentic collaborations really pushed me to be better.” - Ann Imig

LINKS

• BlogHer Voices of the Year
• Deb Rox

Update

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • A teacher-ballerina-actress-mom
• What was your first job?
  • I was a bus girl at a deli at age 13. I could barely lift the bus-tubs full of dishes after I cleared the tables.
• What are your go-to books and apps?
  • My favorite go-to book is Melody Beattie's "More Language of Letting Go" because I'm very clenched. 
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • I love giving gifts of jewelry, books, accessories--if I seriously consider keeping the gift for myself instead of giving it to the intended, I know it's the right gift.

---

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Do you love listening to Podcasts?  Or do you not really know what one is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go!

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone. 

The conversation starts out with us belly laughing over the realities of being a mom, a business owner and taking on yet another task.  My goodness, Heather from Safe in the City was a real gem to talk with.  W e just laughed and laughed.  This former NCIS Agent turned her badge in so she could be with her kids more and also help women be safer around the country.  She gets thank you wherever she goes and if you ask me, should speak to every Sorority out there!  Heather is kind, real and funny AND as strong and authentic as they come.  

A few of the things that we talk about include: 

• Why we started the podcast belly rolling with laughter.
• Why her balance has been thrown off recently!
• How her personal WHY is the embodiment of her business
• The interesting dinner conversations at her home
• The trigger to make a change from a stable, pension position to an entrepreneur’s life
• How she came up with her idea for her business
• Her differentiator 
• How she got her first big sale
• How her husband gave support 
• Putting things out into the black and white world
• Taking a Leap to a J.O.B.
• The support system to take her through
• Her favorite podcast and business coach!
• Where she feels behind.
• Favorite resources

LINKS

• BizChix
• Meet Edgar
• The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
• To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Update

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • When I was growing up I frequently changed my mind about what I wanted to do when I grew up. When the movie Space Camp came out I was certain I wanted to be an astronaut, but I get motion sick fairly easily, so I thought that might not be a good idea. I actually went to college on an education scholarship. I thought being a teacher would be fun since they get summers off. But once I got to college, I realized I don't really like to deal with groups of children. Lol It took 5 major changes until I figured it out. So...I guess you could say I wasn't one of those kids who just knew I would be a Special Agent when I grew up. In fact if you would've told me the path my life would take I would have looked at you like you had two heads. :)
• What was your first job?
  • My first job was at Old Country Buffet when I was 14 years old. I was a hostess and "muffin lady." If you mean my first "real" job, I was a social worker for the Department of Children & Family Services in Cleveland, OH.
• What are your go to books and apps?
  • My two "go to" books are The Alchemist and To Kill a Mockingbird. They're both very inspirational and anytime I've felt lost in the world, they have reassured me I'm on the right path.
  • My favorite fun app is Bitmoji, it cracks me up! My "new to me" favorite app is Evernote. I struggled to understand Evernote for a long time, but now I'm addicted.
• What are your favorite gifts to give??
  • My favorite gifts to give are from Etsy. I love finding personalized original gifts and supporting other small businesses. 

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PS. You May Also Like ...

Do you love listening to Podcasts?  Or do you not really know what one is quite yet?? Let me make it easy for you.  It’s perfect for you - the super-busy-always-running-around woman that you are.  Pull up the podcast on your phone, plug-in your headphones and listen as you workout, do your errands or even the dishes late night! 

CLICK on the LINK Below & Go!

OR another easy way you can pull up the Mompreneur on Fire podcast via the Podcast App that is already. on. your. iPhone. 

“Personal & professional development go hand-in-hand.”

— Cameron Cruse

“Personal & professional development go hand-in-hand.” - Cameron Cruse

Two running buddies became business partners with a WHY in mind.  Their passion and commitment here has led them down a great path also a deal with Mark Cuban on Shark Tank.  This week’s podcast, I talk with Cameron Cruse Co-Founder of R.Riveter a company owned and operated by military spouses.  Their WHY, to offer mobile income to the consistently moving military spouses, has led them all along.  Their beautiful hand-stitched bags are pieced together around the country.  I talked with Cameron not only excited for them for the deal they landed with Mark Cuban but also because the mission was simply amazing.  

 A few of the things that we talk about include: 

• How their WHY really helped them come this far
• How “jumping right in” paid off
• Their first big break
• How your personal & professional growth help each other out
• Learning about "Goal Setting Mentality"
• Finding the right person for the job
• Finding out what is most important 
• Putting themselves out there
• Hesitation behind Shark Tank and how they ultimately decided to go ahead
• How they celebrated the Shark Tank win - both publicly and privately
• What Mark Cuban is like
• A wish she could have done differently
• Mentors
• Books on her nightstand
• Favorite gifts to give
• Things Cameron simply doesn’t do

Links

• Girl Boss by Sophia Amoruso
• Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande
• Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It...and Why the Rest Don't (Rockefeller Habits 2.0) by Verne Harnish
• Mini Polaroid

MORE FROM CAMERON

• What did you want to be when you grew up?
  • Depending on the day I wanted to be an artist or a teacher. 
• What was your first job?
  • My first Job was folding towels at a high end spa and fitness club, I also worked summers with my Dad in construction. 
• What are your favorite apps?
  • Basecamp for productivity + work. TED app for listening. 
• What's your guilty pleasure these days?
  • Doodling with my kiddos on the weekends + going to bed early on Friday night!

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“Whenever you see a successful business, someone once made a courageous decision.” – Peter Drucker

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What does it take to be profitable?? A lot of small business owners get started with an idea they run with and never create a business plan.  As much as getting a business started can be a leap of faith, knowing what it takes to be profitable is essential in setting expectations and achieving success.  When talking with the successful business owners during the interview series “How’d They Do It”, the business owners all stated that they wish they knew more about increasing profitability and maximizing return on investments (ROI) earlier in their startup stages. Profits are the bottom-line and are critical to you as the owner in the first years of operation regardless of your enthusiasm for the work.  

John, a consulting firm owner, mentions that he wishes he understood what it takes to be profitable earlier. Federico, the owner of a software development and systems integration company, uses his revenues and profits to re-invest in software, aiming for higher return on investments and profitability. 

Greg, a multi-millionaire and owner of three companies, has discusses how he is often approached to participate or partner in business ventures. 

What are his two requirements for starting a new business or partnering with someone?

 1) knowing how much it costs to get the first customers, and

2) that he never invests in something unless he is guaranteed 100% return for his money. 

Money being spent on hiring, training, operating and performing are all expenses that must be weighed and prioritized in terms of if the expense is revenue generating. 

These business owners didn’t start out with business plans but the majority, if not all, recognize the value of them and have gone back and have created one.  Davon, a multi-million dollar consulting firm owner discusses wished that he had tracked his money (expenses and revenues) from the beginning.  He also wishes he set higher goals for himself.

One valuable piece of information the business plan will provide you is: what it takes to be profitable.  

If success is comprised of a lot of hard work, luck and a leap of faith, and if most small businesses don’t last more than five years, then learning what it takes to become profitable sooner than later is a worthwhile investment of your time. 

Question: What does it take to be profitable?  

Answer: "Plain and simple, profits occur when revenue is greater than expenses. Additionally, the management of your revenue stream (aka cash) is vital for your business to succeed.  Remember that every expense out is an investment in your company.  Your employees, your contractors, your website, office and training courses are all an investment.  When deciding whether to make an investment, know what, when and how the revenues will come as a result of these investments."

Question: How much will it cost get your first customers?  How much will it cost to get your next customers?

A lot.  Whether it is sweat equity, cold hard cash or a combination of both, do your research and know how you will get your first customers and what it takes.  Hard work and persistence are required.  What else is required in getting your customers?  Knowing this information will lead you to better decision-making, better profitability and a high return on investment faster.  

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Whether your dream is to own a business that supports a healthy lifestyle or to live large, opportunities and sales are an important part of the process that will allow for your dreams to come true. How will you take your business ideas to the next level?

“I feel that luck is preparation meeting opportunity.” -Oprah Winfrey

Davon, the owner of a $10 million consulting firm, believes that “the money is going to come and the opportunity is going to come”, and what you do with both will determine the success that will follow.  He believes a big part of his success has happened because he has been able to make the most out of the opportunities that have come his way. 

“THE MONEY IS GOING TO COME” 

The natural question that follows is how does someone make the most out of a business idea??

1. Prepare For the Opportunity

Your experience, whether it is your life experience and/or your work experience, is preparation for opportunities to come your way.  However, experience alone will not generate the luck required in small business success.  Most small business owners agree owning a business is a lifestyle and that you are always working on it.  Making the most of your opportunities and business ideas is the result of hard work; you must continue to create offers and continue to learn.   As a small business owner, there is a requirement to continue reading and researching, formulating a plan, creating a product or service, delivering the offers and continuing to prepare for opportunities that will come.  This preparation is the beginning of the process in how someone makes the most of opportunities. 

2. Create an Opportunity

Many business owners state that they have created opportunities for their business growth by “pounding the pavement” and getting in front of their targeted customers as much as possible.  Trae, a successful business owner of a promotional products organization, initially started his business with a small list of clients and cold-called prospective clients to generate new leads.  Ralph Velasco, an award-winning travel photography instructor and international tour guide, generated new leads by offering photography classes for the local community.   Taking action by putting offers in front of their target client base is how business owners create opportunities and generate sales. 

It is also important to note that while a lot of time is also spent perfecting the plan, message and quality, business owners agree that the number one requirement in generating customers is generating offers.  By creating an offer to a potential client, you, the business owner, have the opportunity to generate income if the potential client says Yes! Or you have a chance to practice and test out your service, message and delivery.  Each offer presented is an opportunity puts you one step closer to your goals.

3. Recognize an Opportunity

Opportunities may be in right in front of you.  A majority of business is created from extending contracts on current clients or referrals from current clients.  Your product or service, if structured and messaged appropriately, may have a broader reach than you realize.  Use each opportunity as a possibility to grow your business.    

4. Maximize an Opportunity

When opportunities present themselves, make sure you speak up!  An opportunity comes and goes.  Speak up, present yourself and your product! Use the time to generate an offer or practice your skills.  When an opportunity arises, what will you have done with it??

Remember, Davon, the business owner that generated $10 million last year??  He thought one of the top places he was most successful was in making the most out of an opportunity.  What will you do?

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You know your project is going to be late, but your boss does not and worse yet, the customer does not know.  You laid your best plans and gave your best effort in telling everyone when you would be done.  You feel confident that you would have had enough time if you weren’t answering questions, putting out fires or attending meetings you didn’t know why you were attending. 

Hello – you have work to do! 

In the end, you finally sat down and realized, this work is going to need more time. 

And the worst part is - the due date is right around the corner. 

When you do your best, speak openly and honestly, it's respected.  It's appreciated.  It fosters engagement and a willingness to work together. 

So now you have talk with your client and boss that the project is not going as smoothly as you hoped.  What do you?

6 Steps - How To Tell Your Boss the Project Will Be Late: 

1. Determine what you can do on-time.  Can you do 50%? 80%?  Can you do all of the major work but not the nice and pretty stuff? 

2. Determine how much more time would you require to finish the entire thing.  And determine how much time it will take finish the core piece. 

3. Determine whose help, if any, you require to complete the project on time.  Is there someone else who can focus on other details while you hunker down?

4. Next, schedule a meeting for today with the person responsible for the delivery of this project.  That could be the Project Manager, your boss, your Client, the Project Coordinator; it could be a variety of people.  Don’t delay and spend days working on this knowing that you won’t be able to deliver. And if there is no free time on their calendar, walk to their office.  If they are out of the office – email, call, or tell them you require 5 five minutes of their time. (If you can’t get in the door, then that is another issue all together!)

5. In your meeting, in a calm, conversational manner, this is what you SAY:  

I need to give you an update on the project.  As I am looking at the work, I realize it is going to take me X number of hours to complete the task as it stands now and I will have a hard time delivering by the due date.  

I have determined that with X person’s help, we could work together and deliver on time.  Or without (name part of the project) I can deliver that to you on time.  

Where do you want me to focus my efforts? On completing the task with the new deadline?  Gaining assistance from X person and working together to complete the project on time? Or completing the task without certain bells and whistles?

6. Proceed as determined between you and your counterpart.  

I have seen many people panic, work unbelievable hours and run around like their head has been cut off because they are fearful of telling “bad” news to their boss or client.  

In my experience managing many large projects, 99% of the time people are understanding when you are honest with them.  Isn't that the most respectful trait?  

How many of us have started a project or task and once in it, realized that it is going to take longer than expected? Doesn’t it seem that everything you do takes longer than expected??  By working with your lead, boss, and customer on delivery dates as an active, moving piece on what can reasonably be delivered, you are not only managing expectations but forming a deeper working relationship with this group of vitally important people in your career. 

Now, I have given you the steps, the words even, to have the conversation.  

Practice if you need to, come in a manner of openness and good luck!

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If you want your business to be successful, you need to be setting goals and accomplishing them daily. With so much to do and so little time, priorities are a must. As an online business manager, I help keep things organized and keep everyone on task. Here's how you can apply my methods.

Love them or hate them status meetings and regular check-in will actually determine your project success rate.  

These meetings that we dread - actually get-it-done.  

If they are strategically held.  

When I am managing projects, I have several status meetings a week.  They can be 5, 15 or 20 minutes.  This is several meetings each week with my team, and one with the end client.  The team meeting is to review internal progress, answer any questions and strategize for any problems that have arisen.  The client meeting is to review accomplishments and discuss work-in-progress.  The client can answer any questions and set priorities for continuation. 

When a project is created, we know the scope of work is determined, a team is assigned, and a timeframe is provided.  If not, then we have a lot more to discuss, but this focus will be what and how baby steps and teamwork get you where you need to go.

The Only 3 Things You Need to Do in a Status Meeting:

1. Review the current and active week’s activities and goals.
2. Ask each team member’s progress on their tasks,
3. Ask if they need support and/or extra time.  

This information isn’t about micro-managing a team member or prying too much, it’s about knowing if we will get what we need done this week or not, if that person needs assistance, or if further changes are made.

• Once we have an understanding of how each team member’s workload is, I then either try to find assistance from within the team to help any overloaded members, or I make requests to the client based on feedback from the team.

Yikes! I know that last statement probably raises fear in a lot of people.  You mean talk with the client about the work, timelines, and productivity?? This leads me to discuss my status meeting with the client.

At least weekly I meet with the client to discuss Accomplishments and Work in Progress. 

Note: that my words are specific here.  I want to present Accomplishments as a regular thing to my client and to keep our accomplishments on their mind.  I want my clients to know all that we have achieved and not surpass it.  As they say, we want to acknowledge and celebrate wins.

• As I talk about our "accomplishments", note just about everything is an accomplishment.  I don’t hogwash things nor am I overly annoying, but I do communicate all of the project activity that is taking place. Me personally, I am a glass is half-full person.  I find that clients appreciate knowing, on a regular basis, the work that was involved in accommodating their requests. 
  • For example, you could communicate: “In order to put together this presentation, it took pulling information from 3 different locations, 9 different sources, organizing it, and formatting it so it will have the information we want to deliver.   It took a while but we got it done!”
• Also I discuss "works in progress". A client makes a request and you must deliver.  What happens when you finally get into your work and find that it will take twice as long as expected?  There are 2 reasons this could happen, you came across something unexpected, which causes the extra delay, or you are working on extra tasks.  It is completely fair to communicate to the customer what either has or is occurring.  
  • From there you can request them to confirm their priorities.  Do they really really want X if it takes (and costs) this much longer?  Or are there other priorities that can be shifted?  In my experience – no one has ever gotten mad because things aren’t what they seemed.  (One other rule here is: don’t start this communication when the deadline is there.  I address all this in another post.  Then the customer will rightly get mad.)

In the end, open and active communication with the team and client not only creates a deeper relationship but also actively helps you accomplish your goals.

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FINAL FINAL NOTE: 

If you are working primarily on your own these status meetings (or regular check-ins) are still quite effective.  What is the goal for the week?  What needs to be re-prioritized to get it done??

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Let's face it. There is a lot to do and sometimes you don't know how or where to start. And yet, you still need to get things done! You need to feel confident in yourself and your business in order to be successful. You got this!

A is for Accommodation.  Stop accommodating everyone else now!

B is for Begin.  Begin now.  Whatever it is, you must start!

C is for Charge.  Take charge of the situation.  So many of us live passive lives – those who don’t get what they want.

D is for Do It Now.  What are you waiting for?  If you continue to wait, someone else will get it.

E is for Excuses.  There will always be excuses and 

F is for “Frankly my dear I don’t give a damn.” 

G is for Good for you.  Celebrate the good, move on from the rest.

H is “Heck I don’t know – but it’s still not going to stop me!”

I is Imagine the finish line.  You need it to get there.  

J is for “Just.”  It can never “just” happen.  Hard work is involved! 

K is for Killer.  That killer instinct that you have – is in there.  Listen to it!

L is for Labor.  You will have to labor to get it done.  Work is required, yes.

M is for Manage. Manage your activities against your priorities.

N is for “No.”  You are going to hear it.  Get used to it and get over it!

O is for Opportunity.  There is an opportunity in everything.  Everything. 

P is for Priority.  Set them.  Without it you will get lost. 

Q is for quick.  Nothing is quick.  Get over it.

R is for Resources.  Maximize your resources.  You have the help! Use it!

S is Strategize.  Strategize how you will get it done and work that strategy! 

T is Trust.  Trust in yourself.  You are good enough and you can do it. Period.

U is for Ugly.  Determination and competition can get ugly but you don’t have to. 

V is for Victory.  Celebrate them all!  Small victories win wars.  Celebrate each!

W is for Win.  You’re going to win, persevere and you will win!

X is for X-Ray.  (Not that creative, I know.)  BUT you can take an x-ray to your activities and look at the internal workings.  What do you see?

Y is for WHY.  Why are you doing this?

Z is for Zillion.  There are a zillion different ways you can go. Start with one.

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