Tag: business

The Idea and Reality of Self-Employment

Dollar 

I never became self-employed because of some ache to be my own boss or the next producer of a killer app.  Far from it, I had a mission and corporate America had no interest or desire to fund it.

Most people I know who are great at entrepreneur pursuits have a mission.  I mean they have this burning in them that won't go away.  Even after trying to kill it, they continue onto the unknown, scary and sometimes insane world that is the mission.

So in the end self-employment is merely a vehicle.

This past week two big things came down the pike for me.  First, Steve Jobs stepped down as CEO of Apple and Andy Frank thanked me for some unintentional advice.  Andy's thank you was the bigger of the two.  Andy is working on his "thing" and was lamenting the process of incorporating.  I told him that only a mission could make it worth the price paid.  It was like holding up a mirror to my own face.  A gut check with gusto.

I am on a mission.

For clarity, let me explain my thoughts on the difference between the idea and the reality of self-employment:

  1. Everyone's self-employed.  The gal working at the bank, the guy serving the latte and the partners waiting for their first round of funding.  If you haven't noticed we live in a self-directed world. It's scary ironic that more don't get this.
  2. What you do for money can and will vary.  The world of going to one place and doing one job are gone.  It's our freaking obsession with comfort that has us unwilling to give up that life.  Our work and life will morph and contract in different ways.  This is especially true in an ever-changing global economy.
  3. Infatuation with output is killing us.  We see the car, the press release on the millions in funding and we want it!  Funny how we choose to ignore the near-collapse experiences of most entrepreneurs.  Quite frankly, I don't think I could trust someone who hasn't lost big.  Losing big is, or should be, a refining fire.
  4. Self-employment should produce humility.  That's all that needs to be said.
  5. Our (America) economic woes would be lessened, if not cured, by putting more emphasis on helping entrepreneurs versus the bloated manipulators.  Ever notice how many of the big boys manipulate things like lay-offs, write-offs and revenue to produce a shiny result for a group of people they hate.  That's not growth, that's Vegas. 

 

Does the World Need Another Social Network?

Ok, I've taken the dive with Google +. There are many out there who are wondering if we need another social network.  I asked myself the same question this afternoon and came to the following conclusions:

  1. We do need more social networks.  That doesn't necessarily many another Facebook or Twitter.  Maybe it's in your community where you live or a cause you're passionate about.  It's right as breathing.
  2. If you're taking the bumble bee approach to social networking (online or otherwise), then you need to reexamine your motivations.  Take a hard look at who you are or who you were before you drank the kool-aid, and then order your social networks around that.  You've got to do this.
  3. Google + is rightly placed.  Google has such a huge influence around the ordering of content and flow, that for them not to be involved would be silly.  I'm not gushing over with Google fan-love when I write this.  Google is like Churchill or Edition; what they created and impacted was bigger than who they were as influencers.
  4. All of this flurry on social netowrks and the experiements, ventures and such created have produced good strategy and tactics for me.  Lord knows, you need good strategy and tactics for your brand (personal or business) these days.  I'd be overwhelmed if I didn't.  For example, I know why I interact on Brazen Careerist versus why I interact on LinkedIn.  By the way, strategy and tactics will also lead you to learning the art of saying no and turning off things that have a button.
  5. If we were living in the industrial age, then Google +, Facebook and Twitter would be nothing more than eye candy and entertainment.  Since we are no longer in the industrial age, you should start acting differently.  Differently in that you think like an entrepreneur, even if you're far from it in form.  If you don't start acting differently, you may wake up and find yourself in a ghost town of one.

Seth Godin on Risk and Failure

  

This interview with Seth Godin will encourage you to try and fail. 

Are you in a workplace where taking a risk and failing are frowned upon?  Do you frown upon it yourself?  Why not begin a small experiment today with risk and failure?  It could liberate you.

In the interview Seth gives some good examples of what a small experiment might look like.  The following are my suggestions:

  • Interact with a client in a different way.  Make a surprise visit to their office and engage with the receptionist and no one else.
  • Sign up for a cooking class, even if you see yourself as a lousy cook.
  • Try something that your kids are good at, but you're not.
  • Suggest a unique place for a work retreat.  Like this spot.
  • Introduce yourself to someone you've never met at work, at school or in your neighborhood.

 

Getting Involved In Something You Shouldn’t

There's a trap out there, actually a lot of traps, around getting involved in things you shouldn't.  It ranges from career, relationships, business ideas/plans, and much more.

The premise of why people do this is not easily figured out, but when it happens you can usually find self-deceit nearby.  The idea of telling yourself a lie in order to do something in the moment.  Just the moment and no further.  You find yourself regretting it every time.

One of the ways I've found effective in minimizing the number of times I make the mistake of mis-involvement, is to check my God-given peace meter.  For example, I sometimes get pitches to get involved with a business venture.  If I find myself debating or squirming inside, I know it's time to stop.  It doesn't mean I'll never do it.  It just means "right now" is not going to work.

The worst mistake is to move into self-deception and convince yourself that you should do something when everything in you says stop.  Your gut is worth listening to.

 

Defining A Blue Sky Experience

 March 28 2011 002

How do you define a blue sky experience? Is it some place over yonder? Is it a person? I see it as a moment. Just one moment.

Even in a business like mine where you work hard to get people engaged, I always take a step back and consider those who claim they have no time, shrink back in fear or laugh off the thought of what a blue sky experience might mean.  I guess you can't escape all of the things that get in the way of blue skies.

Since we began our partnership with Take Time for Your Life, it has become very clear about what's at stake.  Think of the premise of the words "take time for your life."  The urgency is great here, we actually are in the business of helping people put their life first.  Not their career, not a degree, but their life.  A life that includes career, education and more.

So the blue sky experience requires you to put your life first.  It requires you to understand that you only have so many times to see it feel it, embrace it.  It requires you to understand that the blue sky experience was given to you as a gift of sorts.  A wonderful gift.

I am an experiential writer and guide, so you need to know that I'm not just poking around here.  The picture in this post was taken in a moment today.  A moment I almost passed up because I thought I had so much work to finish, and I did.  But I turned around.  About an hour after I took the shot, I had to remind my mom that theattorney needed my dad's death certificate to finish her estate plans.  Admittedly, my blues increased substantially.

Enjoy your blue skies when you see them.  

Do You Know What Your Work Is?

Worker bees 
Do you know what your work is?  Most people could rattle off a list of things related to their career.  For example, a title, an employer's name, annual sales, deferred compensation, etc.  But those things are abstract compared to what your work is.  If you want a starting point in finding an answer, then the following question must be asked:

If you lost everything related to your career and I asked you to help my mission/movement, what could you offer?

Now notice, I didn't ask about your credentials, your experience, your references or what companies you worked for before.  I focused my question on you.  You!  That's where the answers begin to come into focus.  I know that may make you uncomfortable for a host of reasons.

Some people got their work from their parents, from their religion, from peer pressure, and it's all wrong.  Some people followed a path they couldn't fully see unfolding and stayed on it, and it's all right.  Regardless of which one represents you, the game is not over.  Unless you've fully surrendered and choose to look the other way.  What matters most is where you're going, not where you've been.  There's no greater a story than the person who says and lives out. "I need to make a change."

The following outlines some ways to get to that place of a fully-defined work:

  • Compile a list of what makes you come alive, makes you satisfied even when it exhausts you, makes you want to talk about it.  There could be other examples, but just start compiling.
  • Stop the negative self-talk.  You've made some mistakes, I've made some mistakes, everybody has.
  • Be vulnerable.  This opens the door to courage.  It will help you when you have to tell the world you need to make a change.
  • Before you rush into making a change ask yourself if your current setting is suited for your work.  Your current business, employer, etc., may be a great fit.  The main thing is to define what your work is.
  • If a change in career, for example, is necessary, then start small and build to the big.  Most people run out of gas because they go to fast and too far at once.  Patience is a virtue.

Managing Your Life Can Lead To Unexpected Breakthroughs

March 2011 007 

In our lives it can be easy to have unrealistic expectations for results.  Especially, if we're coming out of something we hated or something that was a bad habit.  I know this from my own experiences.

Think of the negotiations you have with yourself.  For example, "I need to get to work, so the workout will have to wait today.  Besides, I'm under a lot of pressure to hit my numbers this quarter."  If you repeat this scenrio often enough you can convince yourself that tomorrow never comes.  I did.  It has taken me a long time to respect my life as the most important thing.  When you do this you realize that all facets of your life warrant your attention and care.

The point of my post today is what happened to me on an impromptu day-trip with my wife.  We decided to have lunch at a great inn and go hiking afterwards.  The weather was great, as evidenced by the picture in my post, and we were expecting a wonderful time together.

The owner of the inn, Ellen, who we've know for some time, visited with us.  I had a chance to tell her about our new experience, Take Time for Your Life.  We connected immediately, my wife said some wonderful things about me and I'm confident we'll be able to help Ellen and her followers in a meaningful way.

My wife and I proceeded to take our hike after lunch and talked.  Some about the beauty of the surroundings, some about the business opportunity with Ellen and some laughter.  The hike got our heart rates up and we enjoyed each other's company.

So what does this have to do with managing your life?

The wheel of life below illustrates 8 areas of life.  Which of them did I manage today?

Wheel of Life 

 

What A Florist Taught Me About Life and Work

Spring_Crocus 

I've taught people about the idea of "doing" what makes you come alive many times in my work.  You've either witnessed it in other people or discovered it within yourself.  Regardless, it's priceless and leaves a mark on you.

A couple of weeks ago I went to a florist in my city to buy my wife flowers.  I went to this small business because a couple of friends had just purchased it and I wanted to give them my business.

When I walked in I greeted Amy and congratulated her on the purchase and asked her how things were going.  She talked about the various marketing ideas she had, the changes to the look and feel of the store that were to come and how crazy things were going into the Valentines Day holiday.  But there was one thing she said that left a big mark on me.  The following are her words:

    "When I'm in the back working on arrangements, that's my place, that's my time to be."

Here's what I learned, and am still learning, from her words:

  1. Knowing who you are versus who you are not makes a big difference.
  2. Epic Living is defined by the individual and looks different for each person.
  3. Our Life is screaming out to us to pay attention.
  4. You have to have the vision, the willingness to act and the patience to experience your dreams.
  5. Entrepreneurism is a road filled with opportunity and risk.
  6. Doing a work that requires you to show up is essential.
  7. It's very important to listen to the stories of others.

I'm sure there's more I could add to the list, but we all can utter the words Amy did if we truly are willing to go on the journey.  It's my life's work to help you.