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General

The 4th Quarter Can Be Tough Both In Business And Personal Life

Holiday gifts

The 4th quarter can be tough. Both for business and personal life.

It’s the end of the year, most people aren’t starting projects during a holiday month. People are spending lots of money on the holidays and seem to forgetful of ongoing bills. (I’ve noticed this with my clients.)

It’s the season. People think it’s time to jolly. It’s more of a season to survive and get through. LOL

But will all the stress that comes with this season, we MUST remember we have each other. Hopefully we have our health, and honestly every day we’re above ground is a good day.

We all need to be reminded to think of each day as a glass half full, not half empty.

If we do this, we’ll be set to succeeding and surviving this month and the entire 4th quarter of the year.

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Podcast

Digital Marketing Dive Podcast Special (Episode 22 1/2) – Amy Landino

Amy Landino

Yesterday Shawn and I interviewed the YouTube productivity and lifestyle sensation, Amy Landino.

Amy’s new book Good Morning Good Life is all about going after the life you want.

Her popular channel AmyTV on YouTube is fantastic as well.

Have a listen to the podcast and let me know what you think. Amy’s great!

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General

Remembering To Breathe

Mediation person with word cloud on sunset

This morning was crazy. We all woke up late and it all spiraled from there.

Finally we all got out of the house. I got to work, sat down and got a call. The call was from my wife, that we forgot to send my 7 year-old in the dead of winter with a coat.

So out of the chair I went. Rushed back home then to his school to make sure he’d be warm outside.

Finally back at work, heart beating extremely fast, I took a breath. Man that breath felt good. I just sat at my desk for a few moments and breathed.

Taking a second in our every busy day is hard. There is always something to be done. But taking a breath and getting your wits about you is important to making sure those things get done correctly.

Just remembering to breathe is such an important thing and it’s so underrated. What do you think?

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General

Staying Mindful During This Holiday Season

balancing meditation stones

I’m not the most mindful person. Anyone who knows me, knows that I go a mile a minute, both in personal and professional life. But I’m finding that taking a step back and breathing helps.

I try and meditate at least once a day, if possible. I use an app called Calm and another called Insight Timer. Both apps are great for guided meditation and just calm music (pun not intended).

Mindfulness is needed not during the stresses of the holiday season but also year round.

When you’re a entrepreneur and you’re responsible for, at minimum, your own salary, stress can take over. Taking a step back and going for a walk or meditating can help you put everything in perspective. I know it helps me a lot.

What do you do during the holiday season and year round to deal with stress? Post your thoughts below.

Image Credit: Pixabay

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General

Snow Days And Stress

Snowy Field with trees in winter

It’s the end of the year. There are lots of distractions, but one is bigger than most if you’re a parent. Snow Days!

Yesterday, my 7 year old had one and he was an excellent little guy. He actually let me get my work done with minimal interruption. But that’s not always the case with any kid, as many parents can attest to.

During the winter season getting your work done, especially as an entrepreneur is tough. This can lead to stress.

How to deal with stress is an personal thing for everyone, but here are some ways I deal with stress.

  1. I take a breather. I go for a walk. Set a timer for 10 minutes and do something else.
  2. I sit quietly, turn on some mediation music and meditate for 10 minutes. This helps me clear my head and calm my over active brain.
  3. I have a snack and watch something for a few minutes while I eat.

There are many other things I do on a regular basis to try and keep my stress down. It’s not always easy.

What do you do to keep stress down? Especially if you’re on this entrepreneur journey? Post your thoughts below.

Image Credit: Pixabay

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General

When Snow Happens

Well it happened. It finally snowed and with it came a snow day.

Loved by kids, dreaded by parents, snow days pose a quandary to entrepreneurs, especially solopreneurs.

The question? What the heck do I do with the kid(s) while I attempt to get some work done?

Staying motivated and on task is key. Here are some tips that I came up this morning for myself.

  • Go somewhere in the house quiet.
  • Be available for the kid when the need arises.
  • Set expectations of your time.
  • When you sit down to work… focus, focus, focus.
  • Don’t get angry when the kiddo(s) want attention, they are home from school and need to be kept occupied.
  • Realize that you’re not going to get a full day of work in.

How do you deal with snow days? Leave your comments below.

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General

Small Business Saturday. Shouldn’t Every Day Be About The Small Business?

open neon sign

A colleague of mine on LinkedIn, just posted his thoughts on Small Business Saturday and how it’s a bit disingenuous. Jason’s take is that what is one day to celebrate small business, when we should be patronizing the small businesses year round.

To a point I agree, but as the conversation got bigger in the thread, I started to come around to the fact that Small Business Saturday is like a birthday for someone. Both happen, one a year. And both are a celebration.

Small Business Saturday can bring people out to businesses that they wouldn’t have otherwise known about, which can lead to continued patronage throughout the year.

What do you think? Is Small Business Saturday a gimmick? Do you shop small whenever you can?

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General

A Time For Giving. A Time For Shopping. A Time To Avoid Blowing Your Budget.

Wallet with cash all around with magnifying glass over it

‘Tis the season to give to your community and causes your believe in. It’s also a time to be with family and catch up after a long year of work and life. It’s also a time for shopping and trying to avoid blowing your budget.

It’s called Black Friday for a reason. This is the day, traditionally, where retail businesses finally got out of the red (negative profits) on their balance sheets and into the black (positive profits).

There are deals galore. And many incitements that lure you, the consumer, into buy things that you’d normally wait for and budget.

Now that Black Friday is more like Black November. It’s even harder to keep on budget.

I try my hardest to not even look at the ads and avoid walking into stores if I can help it.

This doesn’t always work, but it’s a positive effort all the same.

What do you do this season? How do you stay on budget? Do you give to your favorite charity? I’d love to hear what you do during this holiday and shopping season.

Image Credit: Pixabay

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General

Being Part Of Something Bigger

Be part of something bigger

As I’ve said in many of my posts, I’ve been on this entrepreneur journey for 10+ years. It’s had its ups and downs, but it has been, for the most part, a very rewarding experience.

During this time, I’ve tried different ventures along side Goldstein Media. Some, like podcasting, have taken off and had good runs, others haven’t.

Through all of this, I’ve seen opportunities to make the community better in some ways.

The latest thing that I’m happy to be a part of is Startup Bucks. It’s a non-profit based in Doylestown, Bucks County, Pennsylvania. The goal is to help foster the startup and entrepreneur ecosystem in Bucks County and the surrounding area.

It’s nice to be part of something bigger than your own little endeavor.

What do you do to be part of something bigger? Do you belong to a non-profit? Do you help an organization? Do you do some pro bono work?

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General

A Time To Be Thankful

thankful wooden words on white deck in autumn woods

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. I can’t believe it’s here already. Especially with this holiday, I tend to reflect on what I’m thankful for.

I’m thankful for the obvious things, my family and my health. But I’m also thankful for all my clients that let me continue to do what I love everyday.

In this busy life we’re all in it’s important to take a step back and reflect on life. On what we’re thankful for and what we can do better.

Honestly this should happen regularly throughout the year, but it’s often forgotten until the holiday season.

What are you thankful for this year?