Work Better, Not Harder

Many small business owners didn't start their careers as small business owners. And the road each of us took to get here is quite different. But one thing is fairly common - we're finding ways to earn a living doing work we love. Often that means evolving and growing and changing. My 'one word' for 2019 is EMBRACE. Admittedly, it hasn't been in my awareness much but two recent events brought it to the forefront. First, a Twitter friend asked if I'm succeeding. It gave me pause and moment to pat myself on the back - because I've been living it, even if subconsciously. A couple of days later I met with colleagues for some business development advice. Driving home afterward, I realized going through that process is also about embracing. Oh, do I have lists! Creating them has been about embracing all the pieces of my business. Here are some of the lists that have helped me work through this business development process. You may find this list of lis...

A few months ago I found a new best friend when I started working with a client who uses Trello. While the client is indeed a friend, the free Trello app is what I'm talking about here. Trello is visual like a bulletin board and, the more things I use it for, the more organized and productive I'm becoming. I have no shortage of content ideas and I'm pretty good about catching them but, well, not necessarily all in one place. I have a notebook, Word docs in a folder in Dropbox, and as of right now, 22 draft posts on this blog. Recently I discovered a recorded message I'd made for myself last year on my phone. Catching ideas and organizing them into a content calendar are two different things - and both can be handled easily with Trello. Here is a link to a public board I created and which you can copy and make your own. If you've used Trello before, you might find this overly simplistic but, well, I'm all about simple. If you haven't used Trell...