As a small business owner I like as much “objective” structure and framework as I can create. In life, technically, we are all making it up as we go. The “My Three Words” (a la Chris Brogan) exercise is a way to frame things I’d like to see more of for the coming year. They’re…
DetailsMy back had only been out of whack for a week and I hadn’t posted a word about it anywhere. How did Facebook already know? Right in my feed was an ad for a ‘free back pain relief lunch seminar’ in my area. “Creepy,” I thought. More like science, when it comes to the sophisticated…
DetailsAccording to the U.S. Small Business Administration, about 30 percent of businesses fail in their first year. 50% fail in their first five. Yikes. Why? Uncontrollable circumstances (lack of financial stability, economic turn down, etc.) aside, two reasons rise to the top: The business didn’t stand out from other similar businesses or the owner didn’t…
DetailsHow to Find Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP, also known as Unique Selling Point) I know you’re busy. You’ve got a business to run after all! So finding your USP will only take 15 minutes. Write these three points down on a sheet of paper or word processor, leaving space underneath. (You can…
DetailsHow do you demonstrate your values in day-to-day actions at home and in business? It dawned on me that I only have a year left to force feed my values to my son before he graduates from high school. He’s already stopped listening. And he outgrew his car seat so I can’t force him…
DetailsWhen my son was a toddler I read an article that said if you wanted your child to have nostalgia for family traditions when they grew up, you needed to start them now. In other words, anyone can create a beloved family tradition. That was enough for me to claim Thanksgiving. Do something. Tell…
DetailsI once read that if you want to foster nostalgic memories for your child, you need to create and repeat annual traditions. For my son and me, it’s our epic road trips from Chicago to St. Louis to visit Grandma and Grandpa. My husband can do this drive in four hours. The longest it’s…
DetailsIt’s the last day of October, and the last of my series sharing my cancer story. I opened the month with Let’s Talk about Boobies, followed by How to be a friend to someone who has cancer and then My Cancer Story: Things I wish people would have told me about sooner*. The impetus for…
DetailsHow scary can a haunted house be in small-town Illinois, right? That’s what my son and I from the ‘big city’ thought as we waited to enter the Raven’s Curse Haunted House in Centralia, IL. The only thing “small-town” (and totally endearing) about it was that the ticket-taker was the haunted house creator’s dad and…
DetailsI was diagnosed in June, 2015 with early-stage invasive breast cancer that started in the milk-duct. From the moment of diagnosis there were so many decisions. Who do you want to have do your surgery? What’s the best radiation treatment for you? Who will do the reconstruction surgery? What do you have to do for…
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