ISSUE 08 | APRIL 2015
SPRING, PASSOVER & BUSINESS CONCEPTS FOR SUCCESS Jeff Klein ROCKIN’ TRAVEL LOG
Tim Gillette
NATIONAL CHILD ABUSE PREVENTION MONTH
Raising Kids While Building Your Business
SHOULD THE WORKPLACE BE “PROBLEM FREE?” MONICA CORNETTI
Off BeatMa CONTENTS
04-05 Spring, Passover & Business Concepts
16-17 Rockin’ Travel Log April 2015
26 Dining With Mother Nature
06-07 Do I Have to do That NOW?
18 The Problem with Sales Tax
28-29 Child Abuse Prevention Month
Jeff Klein
Claire Billingsley
Tim Gillette
Christi Rains
08-10 & Continued 31 20 What No One Is Make a Difference Saying About Legal Pot Wherever You Are Eva Danino & Business Susan Hamilton 22 12-13 WordPress When Results Matter Website Tips Marian LaSalle Most John Carroll 24-25 14-15 Photos & Alzheimer’s Biz Trends on the Heels What You Need to of Fashion Week Know Veronica Olivo
Sue Thornton
Kris DeFoer
Amy Hayes
32-33 Only Happy People Need Apply Monica Cornetti
34 How I Ate An Elephant Taylor Kay Stephens
36 Susansays Susan Hamilton
agazine OFFBEAT BUSINESS
Susan Hamilton
susan@offbeatbusiness.com
SHOW & MAGAZINE
EDITOR’S NOTE April Showers Bring .... SO much to share with you in this issue! This has to be the most fun experience I have ever had in business. It’s a lot, too. Sometimes my expectations outgrow my reality, but that’s the exciting life of an entrepreneur. I hope this issue finds you stirred and ready to meet tax deadlines with confidence.
stood or talked about issues that easily come up when we’re raising a family and growing a business at the same time. Many of you are not only raising your children, but also caring for your parents. If Alzheimer’s has attacked your mom or dad, we have some ideas that will preserve memories for all of you.
We’re talking about controversial stuff this month, things that might challenge your beliefs about problem-free work environments and even marijuana legislation. We take you on a trip to remind you to count your blessings, and feed you straight from the ground.
By the way, did you do that thing you said you were going to do last week? Aren’t you thrilled it’s Procrastination Awareness Month? There’s hope! And we share some with you here. In addition, we’re adding Preferred Vendor Directory resources for you and compiling lists of podcast resources that make it super easy to learn on the go for an exceptional life in business.
This month, whether you’re a man or woman, our newest contributor and fashion editor, Veronica Olivo, shows us how to view fashion trends realistically for incredible style and versatility. Communication columnist, Jeff Klein, reveals interesting truths about Passover that relate to your business and contribute to your perspective. Business leadership coach, John Carroll, asks you to consider how you really feel about success and his synopsis will surprise you! In honor of Child Abuse Prevention Month, we even tackle little under-
Friends, we want to hear from you. Please send your feedback to our articles to Info@OffBeatBusiness. com, in favor of or opposed to the content we provide. We want to be THE go-to resource for American business, and the answer to information overload! And we can’t do that without YOU. Look forward to hearing from you, ~ Susan Hamilton
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Graphic Designer Jonathan Bodnar
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SPRING, PASSOVER & By Jeff Klein
BUSINESS CONCEPTS
When I think of Spring, before sunny days and wearing shorts again, I think of Passover. Passover (Pesach in Hebrew) is my favorite Holiday. It is the defining holiday of the Jewish people because it is a story of five Major Concepts.
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he beauty of Major Concepts is they can be applied to many things. I thought it would be enlightening to apply these to our businesses.
Memory In the Passover Seder, the dinner service, we tell the story in these specific words, “Once we were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt.” We put ourselves into the story so that it happens to us, not them.
The Major Concepts of the Passover Story contribute to the tradition of Jews living successful and productive lives. They can contribute to your life and business, too.
There are many lessons we can learn from history. When we put ourselves into the story, we can appreciate the lessons at a higher level.
They are: Memory | Optimism | Faith | Family | Responsibility
We’ve all heard: “Those who do not learn from the past are condemned to repeat it,” ~ George Santayana.
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We are going to make mistakes, in business as in life. But, we can minimize those mistakes by studying what those who have gone before us have done. This is where business coaching and outsourcing come into your business. You should only be doing what you are best at, and what drives profits to your operation. You should outsource everything else. And your business coach can help you figure out the difference. The most important thing a business coach does is to get you working ON your business instead of IN it. Optimism The hardest thing Moses had to do was not to free the slaves. It was to make them forget their slavery. The Rabbis teach that is one of the reasons it took 40 years to make such a short journey. The generation of slaves had to die out so their children could truly live as free people. Without optimism, without hope for the future, this would not have been possible. But that’s not quite enough. In your business, you can have all the hope and optimism you want, but without a plan and goals, they won’t mean a thing. Planning strategically is vital to your success. Deciding where you want to be in one year, two years, five years, even 10 years can make the difference between a business that fails and one that is still thriving way down the road. Do you have an advisory board? Or an informal group of trusted advisors? These are people who have already been there and are willing to mentor you. If you don’t have these kinds of people in your life, ask around. If you don’t see any connections for you, check out your local SCORE and/or SBDC group. Faith In Judaism, we have a very personal relationship with our Creator. That contributes to our faith in ourselves. My Rabbi taught me that, “G-d doesn’t make mistakes.” We may question our value from time to time, but remembering that we cannot be a mistake helps us to stop feeling sorry for ourselves. You can, in your business and life, change someone’s world for the better.
more someone will pay you to do it, and the more they will pay. Family Passover teaches us the way to perfect the world is to start with our own families. I’ll add the word community here, too. Because families aren’t just those people we’re related to by birth and by choice. Family is also the people you hire to work for you and with you. Treating them like family, in the good ways, will contribute to your having a company culture that fosters the best in people. Surrounding yourself with people you can learn from and people who can learn from you is key. It’s been said, “If you’re the smartest person in the room, you’re in the wrong room.” By starting in your family, your chosen community, to make things better, you can make the whole world a better place. Responsibility From the worst can come some the best. The tragedy of centuries of slavery prepared the Jewish people to speak for the weakest among us. There was purpose in that suffering. It created a people committed to righting the wrongs of the world. This is a core principal of Judaism. It’s called Tikun Olam, Healing the World. Your tragedies can become your triumphs. Many of us are fortunate we haven’t experienced any personal tragedies. And tough times are not tragic. They’re just tough. Yet, we can see what thriving looks like; what it means to be truly triumphant. We can see it every day though people in the news. If we’re fortunate, we may know people who have achieved this. Either way, we, as human beings, have a clear responsibility to help each other, friends, family, clients, employees, and vendors alike. By recognizing that in making our little corner of the world a better place, we contribute to healing the world. What will you do this week to make the world a better place?
Jeff Klein teaches Business Networking inside companies, to sales teams, at meetings, and at National and International Conferences of Salespeople and Business Owners. As the Founder of Speaker Co-op, Jeff also teaches the Art of Speaking to Market Your Business. Speaker Co-op holds Lunch & Learns monthly in DFW & Houston. Jeff@SpeakerCoop.com
As a businessperson, it’s your JOB to solve problems. Do you have a clear vision of the problems you solve and for whom? Have you listed those problems and prospects? DO IT! This will lead you to a clear picture of your value propositions, or reasons people will pay you. The better you are at efficiently solving someone’s problems, the
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But you might not have heard: “Our moms and dads told us to learn from our mistakes. It’s a lot less painful to learn from someone else’s mistakes,” ~ Jeff Klein.
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Do I Have to do That NOW?
By Claire Billingsley
Fact: We all have the same 24 hours in a day. Fact: Some people seem to be able to achieve more than others during that 24 hour time frame. Procrastination is defined as, “The action of delaying or postponing something, especially something requiring immediate attention.” However, in reality, it’s “What can I do right now that is more fun than that thing that has been sitting on my desk all week (or longer) that I keep avoiding!?” We are all too aware of our procrastination. Sometimes we just feel so overwhelmed it’s hard to even know where to begin. Procrastination affects productivity, self-esteem, and quality of life! It’s really a matter of letting things run us rather than running things that make the biggest impact for the goals we have set for ourselves – both personally and professionally. So…cut yourself some slack, take a deep breath in and then breathe out slowly; it’s time for a plan. Here’s a system I have used for years (thank you DayTimer’s, Inc. for the tools and insight) with myself, the students I mentor, and the professionals I coach.
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Step One:
Determine Discretionary versus Non-Discretionary time available today. Non-discretionary is time that is already committed to by dental appointments, meetings, lunch dates, book signings, yoga classes, networking events; things that are on the calendar. You are expected to be somewhere at a specific time. Don’t forget to calculate drive time. Non-Discretionary time will be reflected on your calendar. Discretionary time is when we work on projects, write articles, pick up dry-cleaning, and watch TV etc.
Step Two:
Make a list of all of the things you need to do that day. Write down everything. Writing makes it more tangible. The average person can remember 7 things at the most! I know you have more than 7 things on your list!
Step Three:
Prioritize each of them into 4 categories: • Urgent and Important • Important • Nice to do • Total waste of time
Assign priorities. • • • •
Urgent and Important gets assigned an “A” next to the item Important gets assigned a “B” next to the item Nice to do gets assigned a “C” next to the item Total waste of time gets a “D” next to the item (I know; why even put this category in here? It’s to help you gain awareness of where you spend your time).
Step Five:
Analyze each of you’re a priorities. •
• •
Assign a number to each. A-1 is the top, urgent, must do thing on your list. If you get nothing else done today, you MUST accomplish this item. A-2 is the next most urgent and important, all the way down the list. Complete this for each of the items for your B, C and D items. This gives you your ‘marching orders’ for the day. You know you have more than 7 things to get done, but now you don’t have to waste time trying to remember everything you need to do, and in which order to complete them, because it is right in front of you!
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Step Four:
Hints:
Mark off each item once you have accomplished them. This gives you a sense of accomplishment, and releases endorphins that are like a little reward system party that goes off in your brain that says “Good Job!” Review your list during the day and readjust/reprioritize when necessary. If you have a big project due in a week, today it might be a “B’ priority. Next week on the day it’s due it will be you’re A-1 priority. If you know it’s a big project, and it will take some concentrated brain power, put it on your calendar and block out time daily (maybe an hour each day) to complete the task. Since it is on your calendar, it is Non-Discretionary, which means it is non-negotiable. Make appointments for yourself and honor them. Don’t blow yourself off. You would never do that for a client; it feels awful to get blown off, and then all those good feelings from scratching off the things you did accomplish fades away. You can even do this for date night with your spouse or family night or night out - this can help you stay balanced, too. Make your list the night before. Review what you were able to accomplish; carry over those things that you were not able to get to and re-prioritize for the next day. This way your brain can relax because you’ve already got your game plan together before you leave the office.
Don’t put this off!!!!!!! Start being proactive versus reactive today. Try it for a week, and then the next week, and the next week and see how much easier it gets every day. Your list will become more manageable, you will be more productive with your time, and your brain will be freed up to create that next great idea that will move your company even further ahead of the competition. Claire Billingsley is an author, coach, mentor, Laughter Yoga Leader and radio show host. She uses improvisational comedy to help open lines of communication up for groups and organizations. Find more at www.billingsleyconsultinggroup.com 7
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WHAT NO ONE IS SAYING
ABOUT LEGAL POT & BUSINESS By Susan Hamilton I watched the pundits argue for and against marijuana legalization in Texas a couple Sunday mornings ago on WFAA. This is such a polarizing subject to people who don’t know anything about pot, I feel like this is one of those situations where two opposing arguments are ridiculous when no one is discussing the real issue behind marijuana legalization legislation. As business owners, parents and citizens, these issues directly affect you, your family, seniors, veterans, health care and the way you do business. Medicinal use is one perspective - and it does concern health care and veterans. I’m going right where the money is, and why it matters to your business. Let’s talk about recreational pot. First of all, I want you to know I don’t talk about this ignorantly. I spent over 22 years of my life smoking pot casually, privately, and believed for many years that it was my right. I started around 15, and by 18 I became involved in a very dangerously abusive relationship that lasted for the next seven years. No one was gonna tell me I couldn’t get high; they had never been ME.
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One thing about potheads, my friends, is that they like to hang with other potheads. I’m well aware of what stupid looks like, and well aware of what responsible looks like to a pothead, and I’m convinced after what took years to clean pot out of my system, there isn’t any argument or discussion I haven’t heard or participated in. Pot is NOT All Fun and Games Let me just say for the record that the reason I don’t smoke pot anymore isn’t because I quit liking it. As a matter of fact, I don’t hang in those circles today specifically because it’s very hard for me to turn it down, and I’m not sure I will. I’ve got a super active mind, and I like the idea of ‘not thinking’ once a while. No, I stopped getting high when I realized that I had allowed my oldest son to get into trouble, and though I was private with my behavior (or so I thought) I’m convinced that I could have seen what he was going through had I not thought I had some kind of right to ‘check out’ in my bathroom before I went to sleep at night. It’s more like the mom who will always wonder if she had correctly secured the baby’s car seat before the life altering wreck. Did she double-check? Would it have made a difference
People who get high are unaware of what it takes to quit. They feel cranky when they go a couple of days without, but it takes much longer to get your brain to work the way it’s supposed to again. Had I seen a doctor, they would have put me on meds to ‘balance me out’ and I didn’t want to trade one form of withdrawal for another one day. I believed I could clean up over time with diet, exercise and a new focus - and I did, but the two years it took me to do so included extreme anxiety, inability to drive over 40 mph, mood swings, sweats, and severe depression. I’m quite certain there’s a doctor out there reading this that thinks I should have gone for the drugs! I Didn’t Have The Right To Get High After All Jesus held my hand through it all. And I’m grateful He pulled my head out of my butt before three more of my five rebellious teenagers would eventually do time for drug and alcohol related crime. If God made pot so people would get along better, which I reasoned He did, then I should be able to find some reference for it in the Bible. I read and searched and prayed all through my oldest son’s years of routine incarcerations while I tried to make sense of what had happened to our lives, and one day I came upon ‘Be alert therefore to pray.’ It changed my life. That’s the last thing you want to do high. You just want to ‘chill.’ Do nothing. I might put my baseball cap on and scurry off the grocery store, but I wasn’t about to see if a neighbor needed anything. Chances are, I wouldn’t look the check-out clerk in the eye, either, because I didn’t want anyone to know I was high and I just wanted to be left alone. But that’s not my right, you see. Things happen all around us all the time. With a clear head, life is easy to miss! I had - and still have - a responsibility to think about others, and NOT be so inward focused that all I want to do is go through the motions of life comfortably numb. I know with many of you, that struck a nerve. Good. Here’s the deal. I like my brain. I learned I could learn, and learn I have. I now run three businesses and enjoy a life in community and service I would never have known high. My friendships are REAL friendships, and I can see things I never saw during those years. The uncommonality of common sense is a RUDE awakening. So whether you get high or not, you should agree this much is true: potheads are non-violent. Potheads tend to do more thinking and talking about their dreams and visions than ever accomplishing them. Potheads
are less likely to take up civil activity and lend a hand to people they don’t know, because people who don’t know they get high make them uncomfortable. Potheads do not rob gas stations, they won’t beat anyone up, they don’t do violent, and they aren’t very dangerous at all because they have lost ‘gumption’ to do much of anything let alone make a difference - even if occasionally emphatic. They get loud in their backyard or living room with a handful of select friends and talk about what they would do differently if they were in charge, but the odds are very good they would have no opportunity, no wherewithal and no real desire to actually get anything done but have that conversation. Just Lock ‘Em Up … ? In effect, what we have done with our current legislation, is take a bunch of people who aren’t willing to do much of anything at all, and arrest them, making sure that getting a job or apartment is out of the question. Then we tell them to pay our probation departments to pee test them monthly or weekly and pay off that big fine for a couple of years and if they can do all that, they won’t go back to court. If they do get lucky and get employment, the employer has to let them do all that stuff during the government work hours or they go back to court, also on the employer’s time. Who wants that? Nobody. Odds are real good that unless they have a relationship with someone willing to take that chance on them, they won’t find a job, they won’t be able to pay their fines, and they will eventually get picked up and returned to jail because the only people who can stand this situation are other potheads. OR, their parents will see the stupidity of it all and pay the damn fine they can’t afford because they can’t get hired. This is NOT about correcting a pothead. At ALL. This is about securing revenue. We take people who are doing nothing, and tell them because they will do nothing, we will take away their ability to get employment or a home of their own. But here’s what people who understand this issue know too well, and what private prisons are counting on. A pothead won’t stop getting high because of a pee test and a fine. They’ll risk jail over and over and over again because of their ‘right’ to do something that’s not hurting anybody. It’s the most political stand they will ever take. Current data is hard to find, but in 2013, the greatest arrest rate for juveniles and adults in Texas for possession was for pot. 80%, according to Domingo Garcia during the argument I heard on WFAA. You could argue that didn’t necessarily mean incarceration, but it surely
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… You can’t answer that, you just make sure it never happens again.
does mean probation fees at the least. It’s GREAT money, and our state, county and local budgets depend on it. We incarcerate kids as young as twelve years old - I’ve volunteered with people who tell me they’ve seen 7-year olds in jail - and get them started in the system knowing full well that the younger we get ‘em in there, the more they can count on those beds being filled indefinitely. By PRIVATELY run prisons. Wouldn’t you think the younger the criminal, the easier to rehabilitate? Not true. Youth counts AGAINST those seeking parole. No, marijuana is seldom a felony for a youth, but it’s a Misdemeanor A or B, carrying quite a punch if they do it within blocks of a school. It doesn’t take much for a kid getting into this type of trouble to continue to escalate criminally when they’ve already been exposed to courtrooms. By the time they’re 17, we say they are acting as adults. I don’t know about you, but I’ve never met an adult 17-year-old. Met plenty of cocky 17-year-old punks, though. And it IS frustrating to figure out what to do with them. But it sure is worth a LOT of money the longer we can keep them locked up. We expect 80% of people who get incarcerated to go back, and of those of them who are parents, we expect 70% of their kids to consider this a normal life. My kids were always the only white kids in jail. If you work in the juvenile or adult criminal justice, and you’re white, you’re a big time minority from what I’ve seen. I volunteer in jails weekly, have worked in and will continue to work in prisons, and can tell you that our incarcerated tend to come from the same zip codes, they all know each other well; their brothers and sisters - the whole community. EVERYONE who knows anything about this situation is well aware that marijuana legislation is a part of our city, county and state budgets - and without all those potheads in jail, significant money would have to be made up. The Marijuana Debate Has Nothing To Do With Morals Most of you remember our teen years. We’d get pulled over, the officer would take our pot and tell us to go home and stay out of trouble. That was before the War on Drugs, which is actually a war on our society. Today, that’s a potentially unemployed person living off of others for years. Guess what? A pothead can work and some can do a pretty good job. Not all of them, for sure, but some can. A pothead not working is much more likely to experiment with and become addicted to more severe drugs. So we basically farm people who won’t do anything else with their lives. But if that sounds perfectly reasonable to you, then consider who pays. Small business is
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federally taxed around 40%, and property tax districts are where you’ll find line items for schools and criminal justice. WE pay for this. Our kids can’t pay. Potheads in the system can’t pay. WE are taking the least likely to do anything violent or aggressive and paying to have them treated like garbage and in our religious arguments say stupid crap like, ‘what benefit to the community is it to allow people to get high?’ Shouldn’t the question be, ‘who benefits when we lock up our lazy kids, abused people and people who work labor intensive jobs?’ Because that’s who’s using pot in America today. Gangs are into much bigger things. Is your community safer? No. Are we locking up less and less because this is an effective strategy? No. If people want to limit themselves to the routine, mundaneness of everyday life, just pacifying themselves as they move through it, I don’t see why they can’t grow their own plant and just get high. They won’t bother you. Because not doing it has released the real gateway drug that none of us saw coming. Alternative pot - the bane of every parent, probation, parole and police officer out working today. Ask them, they’ll tell you. You can’t smell it, test for it or understand why the person you’re talking to just started to slur and fall into the deepest sleep you’ve ever seen. And when they wake up, they’ll put a hole through your walls, jump cops and horrify the community. That stuff is addictive and mean as hell. Why isn’t IT getting covered on the news every night? Follow the money. Who pays for advertising during the news? That’s another article. The minute we arrest a pothead for use or possession, we incarcerate and add probation to the end of the sentence. They go straight to alternative pot to show the law ‘a thing or two’ by passing urinalysis and nobody wins, because it turns our kids, friends, neighbors, brothers and sisters into zombies with violent tendencies for years. We cannot legislate marijuana and win. I’m not saying people who won’t stop behaving criminally should just be let go. But is marijuana use criminal, or stupid - or maybe something else, like self-medicating emotional pain? And if our solution for stupid people and people in pain is just to lock them all up and tell them they deserve it, I think we’re leaning into extremely dangerous territory. It wasn’t too long ago a certain country tried to lock up the masses because they didn’t agree with their religious beliefs. People who didn’t think like them were considered stupid and useless, too. Friends, we’re teetering at locking up 25% of our population. Continued to page 31
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WHEN RESULTS MATTER MOST By John Carroll
Results are the yardstick by which we measure our performance, progress and our level of success. They are born out of Logic 101. “A thing that is caused or produced by something else; a consequence or outcome.” If I do this … then this will occur. So, now that the first quarter is behind us, what’s on the horizon for the balance of 2015, and what more needs to be done in order for you to achieve success? As George Leonard laments in his book Mastery, “The bottom-line mentality doesn’t work in the long run, and is eventually destructive to the individual and society.” We are conditioned from an early age to do one thing, so we can get something else. Get good grades so we can go to col-
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lege, go to college so we can get a good job, get a good job so we can provide for our families and so forth. This ‘hamster wheel’ mentality carries over into all areas of our lives. To clarify, however, a desire for more or better results is not the culprit here. In fact, studies have shown that as much as 85% of success can be tied to execution and results. While I’m in agreement with Mr. Leonard that it is important to strike a balance between the short- and long-term views, at the end of the day results are still the yardstick by which we measure our progress. Is success a feeling or a reality? Now, I don’t mean to go all existential (i.e. Jean-Paul Sartre) on you, but I think it is a question worthy of further
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“Our results, much like our footprints, show us where we’ve been, not necessarily where we are going.”
The one common thread that connects each of us, is a desire for MORE. We all desire more of something – money, free-time, sleep, etc., which translates to a requirement for more results. Unfortunately, our need for instant gratification and an endless pursuit of unfilled needs, wants and desires has moved us away from a longer-term focus and strategies beneficial to achieving personal/professional growth and success.
consideration. Every business faces its own unique challenges when it comes to improving performance and results. Next time you’re relaxing on your favorite lawn chair looking up at the stars, ask yourself the question, “Is success a feeling or a reality?” If you’re serious about making success a reality, then be willing to invest the time, energy and resources necessary to achieve the results to get there. It is really that simple, and your desire for success, your actions and the corresponding results are the keys. Enjoy the journey! COPYRIGHT © 2015 John Carroll
John Carroll is a business and leadership strategist who works with business leaders to help them ‘achieve the results to move beyond their vision.’ He is a bestselling author, educator, blogger and speaker. Email John at John@TresCoach.com or learn more at http://www.trescoach.com/.
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BIZ TRENDS ON THE
HEELS OF FASHION WEEK By Veronica Olivo On the heels of fashion week, we were given a runway of Haute Couture that left me feeling as if I were not near young enough to pull off ‘the look.’ While in theory, it looked great on the runway model, I personally could not see myself - or my husband - pulling off that same outfit during a lunch & learn, one on one, or meeting a potential client, and still be taken seriously.
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In the real world of running a small business, caring for a family, and trying to stay fashion forward, let’s not lose our sense of style. We can definitely wear the latest trends of the season, and look professional at the same time. Spring 2015 introduced the gingham print, yellow fabrics, color blocking, and flatforms for women. Before you
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ask what a flatform is, know it is comfortable. For men this season, it is all about crisp athletic shoes, shirt jackets, bold stripes, and the color indigo. There are a variety of ways to incorporate these trends into our ensemble by simply using accessories or versatile items. For men it is simple to choose a shirt with this gingham pattern, however not every woman can wear this print, and not think of a picnic table cloth. With that in mind, ladies can choose a handbag, fedora/sun hat, or a pair of shoes with the gingham print incorporated. By color blocking a solid color top with a gingham print pant or pencil skirt and coordinating accessories, ladies can easily pull of this trend. Some men would consider it faux pas to wear ‘tennis shoes’ in the workplace, however when the right style is worn, there should not be an issue unless there is a strict dress code policy. When selecting an athletic shoe for your spring wardrobe, consider a slip on shoe, leather, and no show socks. Canvas and laced shoes could be worn for more casual offices, meetings, and outside of the office meetings and events.
All of these looks would work in an office, during client meetings, and for early evening client appointments outside of regular office hours. By keeping the look polished and simple, you can wear the season’s featured prints, colors, and designs and still look fashionable and professional, all while making the most of unpredictable spring weather! Fashion is fluid, and you want to wear what makes you feel your best, and allow others to take notice for all the right reasons. I’m Veronica Olivo, owner of Styled by V.O, and fashion editor for The OffBeat Business Magazine. I am a mom, wife, daughter, sister, friend, and wild child at heart. After growing up and working in a corporate environment for almost 15 years, I feel a freedom working for myself like I have never felt. I am doing what I love and being my true self. Beauty comes from within, and I would be honored to help you show the world your very best YOU.
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Rockin’Travel Log April 2015 By Tim Gillette
Spring is finally here. It seemed like the winter was never going to end. My business has me on the road more than half the year, and the toughest part each year seems to be the winter. I have many different ways to get around and, with spring here, they all become easier. Those years we have a tough winter, my travel takes me back to the state where I grew up - Pennsylvania. And all too often it is not for my business; it’s for family business. In 2011 I had to spend the first month of the year up in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania after the loss of my father. I had to go home to help my mom clean things up. That was a cold month for me, but I was able to get used to it. And this year again I faced more family needs. At the end of February, I received a troubling call from my brother, Ken, in California. Earlier that day he had found out our other brother, Jim, had been in an accident. He had been found unconscious in his truck, wrecked against a tree. He had been in the hospital several days already and it was only after he awoke that they were able to get information from him so they could let us know what happened. Well, this led me to another unplanned trip to the Poconos. Someone had to get up there to find out what shape Jim was in, what had happened, what was going to happen now and how was Jim going to take care of himself? With only three or four hours’ sleep, I had to deal with temperatures in single digits - and even below zero - and snow and
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ice on the roads. I also had to deal with things that are part of everyday life there, but were also the reasons I had moved to Texas to get away from. So what does this have to do with business? Having to deal with things this winter reminded me of the many clients I have helped over the years. Accidents happen; life gives setbacks that affect our businesses, that may even make us question what’s the real reason we’re doing this? I thought of three great tips from the road to give you this month to help build your business when the unexpected happens: No matter where you are, you must first count your blessings. The last thing Jim remembered was stopping for a drink at a bar. Our initial fear was that maybe he had drank too much. Was he drinking and driving? Was anyone else involved? Was anyone hurt? The blessings are Jim had a solo accident. No one else was involved; no one else was harmed in this. Jim was alive and would get better – and, no, we learned he was not under the influence. When tough times happen, learn to start with the good things and build from them. Life will be filled with the junk that goes with whatever you are facing. Find those blessings and learn to build from them. Make sure you have an emergency plan. What would happen to your business if one day you didn’t show up? Too often, when we’re building a business, we don’t have any idea how to plan for those things that are out of their con-
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In the motorcycle world we have a system we use. In our phones we have the word ‘ICE.’ It stands for ‘In Case of Emergency.’ You have that as a contact on your phone so if you’re found like my brother was, the medical staff knows who to contact. Let’s also apply this to business. Do you have a plan for your staff to complete their work if you are not there? What about your company bills? Will they be paid if you are not there to do it? Who will contact your clients to reschedule things if needed? Make sure you have a basic outline of who handles what in an emergency situation.
trol. When Jim was in the accident, they couldn’t find contact information because he was unconscious for several days. He wasn’t expecting this to happen, just like the many things we never expect to happen in our businesses. As entrepreneurs we often experience accidents, setbacks, tough times.
ful that he was found and is alive. He was looking for a way to transition his life to a new line of work; this just gave him the boost he needed to get started on his path of writing.
Learn from anything that happens. Nothing is a failure in life or business if you can learn from it. I’ve traveled many miles and done many things wrong. But I was able to learn from those mistakes and turn that lesson into a success. The only difference between a failure and a success is that the successful person got up one more time than he or she was knocked down. Lessons need to be learned from every setback. Yes, we all wish we could learn from the mistakes of others. But for those entrepreneurs who are like me, we have to learn from our own mistakes and setbacks.
Soon I will be hitting the road again. Spring is here and I have many conferences to attend. I’m getting ready to take the bike and head out in a few weeks on another Rockin’ Road Trip Mastermind with some entrepreneurs.
So, as I finished the writing of this article, my brother is back at home. We found out more about what happened. Jim had just been driving on a back road at night, he hit a patch of black ice and hit a tree. When he was finally found, they guessed he had been there for more than an hour or two. Jim is up moving around and will be able to continue with his life. He is thank-
Tim Gillette is the creator of Rock ‘n’ Roll Keys to Business Success – Using Music, Motorcycles and Mentorship to Teach Entrepreneurs to Become Leaders in Their Industry. Listen to Tim’s Rock N Roll radio show, and you can learn so much more at his Dallas event, Rock N Roll Entrepreneur Bootcamp from April 18-19 in Irving, TX. Find his ad in this month’s issue of The OffBeat Business Magazine!
I made it back home from this trip to get back to business.
As spring approaches, take some time to set yourself up for success in 2015. Be prepared the best you can for the setbacks. Focus on the positive and appreciate your blessings when bad things happen. But, most of all, learn from everything. See you next month from the road.
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THE PROBLEM WITH
SALES TAX By Christi Rains
The average consumer thinks very little about paying sales tax, it’s the price of being a citizen. The average business owner doesn’t think about PAYING sales tax on their purchases, it’s simply the price of doing business. Sadly though, when it comes to CHARGING sales tax, many business owners still don’t think about it, or at least don’t think about it properly. Let’s start with the basics for the State of Texas, because that is where we are located (laws vary by state, but the basics stay the same). What exactly is a sales tax? “Texas imposes a sales tax on all retail sales, leases and rentals of most goods, as well as taxable services.” Sounds simple, unfortunately the implementation of it isn’t. Start with the most obvious question; what is a ‘taxable service?’ Well, the term covers 16 broad categories on the Texas Comptrollers home page: Cable services, Data Processing Services, Information Services, or my favorite; Nonresidential Real Property Repair, Restoration, or Remodeling Services; it’s enough to make you want to forget about it. What are some examples of how this craziness plays out? I’m glad you asked. Did you know: a lawn service charges
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sales tax based on the location of his home office, but contractors have to charge based on the location of the job site? A bakery that caters your next event does not have to charge sales tax if you pick up the cake, but if they hand you the utensils to eat that cake … you guessed it … they have to charge sales tax. These types of landmines crop up throughout the tax code. As I said earlier, it’s enough to make you want to forget about it, but you better not do that. Do you know if you should be charging sales tax? If so, do you know if you should be charging sales tax for multiple jurisdictions? Failure to properly report your sales tax can result in fines and penalties that could quickly grow large enough to put you out of business. The good news is that there is an easy solution. Find a professional you trust to help you. Start today looking for that accountant that can help guide you through these very dangerous waters. Christi Rains, President Alpha Omega Consulting & Bookkeeping, LLC - sensiblebusinessowner.com. Contact Christi@AOBookKeeping.com for more information.
The OffBeat Business Show interviews experts in all areas of business, dishing up practical commentary and encouraging, actionable advice!
Supporting YOUR small business AND your entrepreneurial lifestyle. How are you doing things in an ‘offbeat’ way? We want to know about it! Community - Business – Family – Health - Success Listen on PegasusNetWaves.com – We’re on TuneIn Radio! To listen to past shows, go to our website, click on ‘replays.’ Please contact us if you would like to be a guest on The OffBeat Business Show. Don’t miss a show, 20 minutes could change your life! Sound advice, NEVER boring! April 7th - John DiLucci with Masters of Taxation. Listen in to get a better understanding of what it looks like to deal with the IRS firsthand, so you know what to do. April 14th - Tim Gillette and his Rock N Roll Keys to Business Success. Don’t miss this great chat about business growth and educational events. April 21st - Jerry Silhan and Chris Quadri of Youth With Faces. When kids get into trouble with the law, it can often set them back for life. Check out what Youth With Faces is doing with the local community to give incarcerated youth opportunities to advance and improve their futures. April 28th - Tim Marvel learned that 10 seconds a day is all it takes to make progressive, vital change happen in your health, business, and relationships. I’m thrilled to introduce his new program, 10 Seconds Daily, to our offbeat audience! For upcoming shows, replays and your own subscription to The OffBeat Business Magazine, go to OffBeatBusiness.com. Connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Google + and YouTube. If it matters to you, we talk about it on The OffBeat Business Show. Enjoy 20 minutes of lunch with us, and you’ll be ready to take your company to new levels the rest of the week!
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Make a DIFFERENCE
Wherever You Are
By Eva Danino
As you drive through Houston I’m sure you all have seen the homeless standing on the corner asking for some spare change. Some of us happily give a dollar out the window, some of us try to keep our heads down and act like we don’t see these people. We tend to forget they are someone’s son, someone’s daughter, someone’s friend. We all go through tough times, some of us fall harder than others, and sometimes it falls on us to help them back up. Volunteering can not only change the lives of the people you help, but it can help you feel more positive, accomplished, and full of purpose. You don’t have to give a ton of time; give what you can. The other day as I was passing out food and water to the homeless I had the pleasure of meeting James Wilson. He is one of the homeless, and you can usually see him standing at the corner of I-290 and 1960 in Houston. What you don’t know about him is, despite the fact that he is homeless and has a lot of his own personal struggles, he finds it very important to give back. James volunteers for Cy-fair Helping Hands twice a week and helps other homeless people get food, water and tents. When I asked why volunteers, he laughed and said “Because it feels good!” He also said he “wanted everyone to know it
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is not all about money! One of the biggest things we need, especially with the heat is water! So please give water out of your cars, and give food out of your cars if you can! Any little things helps, and its the little things that make a difference.” Another person who is truly inspiring and making a difference is my friend Lucio. Lucio comes from a tough background and hasn’t always had the best life, but now he is lucky enough to have his own company and his own house; he is very blessed! Every Sunday Lucio feels the need to give back. To help make a difference, he holds a church ceremony for the homeless and anyone that wants to attend. He not only speaks to these people and gives them hope, he also barbecues for them, makes sure they are provided with water, and helps them find many other things they need. Lucio’s sermons are heartfelt and powerful, and anyone who wants is welcome to attend his church. If you want to volunteer At Cy-fair Helping Hands you can visit them at their website http://www.cyfairhelpinghands. org/ or call them at (281) 858-1222. Eva Danino is our neighborhood contributor, bringing real life from the street to our real lives in business and community. We applaud her fresh eyes! Discover more about Eva at IWantNinja.com
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By Marian LaSalle Do you have a WordPress website? If yes, I have a real treat for you. If not, you’ll want to keep this list to give to your new webmaster as soon as you do. Plugins are additional functionality that enable your WordPress website to perform optimally. I am listing some of the favorite plugins I use on my own websites and for some of my top clients as well. Even if you pay for these features, it’s a small price to pay for the value they give you and your readers. Some of the free plugins also have paid upgraded versions. (Talk to your webmaster about these!) Akismet: Akismet automatically checks all your comments to see if they look like spam. When the filters catch the junk, you can review it before they are permanently deleted. This is a 5 Star plug-in we all love. ALL of us need this one. Broken Link Checker: Google is looking for sites that have great content that’s updated and current. You will get penalized if you have too many broken links so, with this plugin you can take care of them quickly. Broken Link Checker reviews your site and finds those bad links. Links can go bad over time and you have no way of knowing without a plug-in like this. CommentLuv: CommentLuv picks up a commenter’s last post on their blog by reading that person’s URL. It gives a link back to the commenter, thereby encouraging marketers to comment. Experienced marketers LOVE this plugin. Google Analytics: Use this or one of the many other free plugins to connect your WordPress site with your Google Analytics account. I use the version for my dashboard so I can see my stats every time I log in.
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Pixabay: Right above your editor for posts and pages, Pixabay allows you to get free, quality, public domain images and upload them with just one click. Speak Pipe: SpeakPipe allows your customers, podcast listeners, blog readers and fans to send you voice messages (voicemail) right from a website. One of my ALL TIME FAVORITES, 5 Stars! WordPress SEO (by Yoast): Search Engine Optimization helps people find your website when they are searching for information they need using search keywords. WordPress out of the box is already technically a fantastic platform for SEO. This plugin will improve your site’s SEO even more with it’s built-in technical optimization and it helps you write better content. WordPress SEO directs you to choose a focus keyword when you’re writing your posts and pages and then, makes sure you use that focus keyword in your content. 5 Stars! Stay tuned for Part 2, I have so much more for you in our May Issue. If you need any help with this or any other WordPress questions, feel free to contact me and my team so we can help you get more traffic and keep your readers coming back! Marian LaSalle aka ‘By Your Side Guide’ is an author, speaker, trainer and show host. She is co-owner of Painted Path Designs, a web design and internet marketing Company and Tools Tips and Technology. Marian is the author of Affiliate Marketing for Fun and Profit and a Director for the Public Speakers Association. Contact Marian at 713-826-4942 for more information.
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What You Need to Know By Sue Thornton
With diseases such as Alzheimer’s, we lose our loved ones a little every day. This often seems like a long, slow good-bye, so we need to capture all their wonderful memories early on while they are energetic and fresh. This really horrible disease takes our loved ones away from us never to be the same again.
Use old papers and mementos: It is suggested that you also include papers and other items that are special to your loved one. I suggest you come up with a list of topics to start helping them remember. Examples would be marriage, childhood, favorite holidays, travel, children, grandchildren, etc.
Once at an Alzheimer treatment center, it’s difficult to remind them of those really important family memories they tend to forget. We need to be proactive to help them remember each and every time we visit them. If you have a loved one that is currently in a Memory Care Unit in your city, you’re painfully aware of how difficult it is to go visit and that parent/grandparent who doesn’t know who you are. There is no memory in their eyes as they look at you.
Have them tell the stories and record them before they are lost to us: Don’t be rigid in your questioning with these loved ones, because they will get tired, or maybe not remember right away. This part might be more difficult than you think because their attention span is short, so be prepared to do this over several visits.
Here are several ways to help: Use digital therapy: One way we can help our loved ones that are diagnosed with early stages of Alzheimer’s is to start going through those boxes of family photos and enjoying all the stories that go along with them. You are getting ready to assemble these photos into a memory book. Use old photos: After going through all the family photos, now it is time to decide which ones you feel will help your loved one to remember their family. You would take photos from their marriage, children, grandchildren and any other ones that would help them remember.
As a certified photo organizer, I can help you with putting everything together once you have the items you want to use in a memory book. That includes, scanning the photos, documents, other mementos and stories to put into the memory book. Once you are ready to have the book organized then we can put everything in chronological order. This is also an excellent way to tell your family story to your grandchildren and great-grandchildren for years to come. Check me out at www.PhotoOrganizingSolutions. net for more information about how I can help you in this journey.
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&
PHOTOS ALZHEIMER’S
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DINING With
MOTHER NATURE
By Kris DeFoer
In his book Food Rules, author Michael Pollan says: “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants.” It’s one of my favorite maxims – it’s even on the wall in my kitchen!
loupes, and sulfur-rich vegetables like broccoli and cauliflower aren’t as likely to need pesticides, so you can buy the conventionally grown varieties.
In short, he’s recommending that we eat real food – not something created in a factory. Not something full of chemicals we can’t pronounce. And not something that will go bad if you don’t eat it soon. He goes on to suggest that you eat until you’re full and then stop. Fill your plate with primarily fruits, vegetables and whole grains, just like grandma did.
When buying meat, look for grass-fed beef and pasture-raised chickens and eggs, raised without the use of hormones or antibiotics, and fed their natural diet. When you eat ‘mostly plants,’ you’ll be satiated by them, so meat can be a tasty addition without being the star of the meal.
I love the simplicity of this. And to narrow it down even more, some plants are healthier for us than others. Some studies suggest that organic foods not only limit the toxins we consume, but have higher levels of nutrients. But it can get costly to eat only organic foods, and sometimes they can be hard to find. So, how can you eat as well as possible on a normal grocery budget? The Environmental Working Group publishes a list of the ‘Dirty Dozen,’ foods that are most pesticide-laden, and the ‘Clean Fifteen,’ foods that are typically grown using few or no chemicals. The list is available online, or better yet, download the app to your phone to reference while you’re shopping! One easy rule of thumb is that if you eat the skin, it’s likely that organic is a better choice. Think apples, berries and green leafy vegetables. Conversely, thicker skinned fruits like avocados and canta-
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There’s a ton of information about healthy eating on the internet, but truly, it mostly boils down to filling up on the foods that nature provides. Bon Appétit! Kris DeFoer is a certified Holistic Health Coach who works with women individually and in groups, to help them re-discover their natural health and vitality. She believes that healthy living should be fun, that healthy food should taste good and that good health is about much, much more than eating well and exercising – that how we live has an enormous impact on how we feel.
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CHILD ABUSE
PREVENTION
When I think of child abuse, I think of a research paper I wrote in high school on the subject. Back then, abuse was considered extreme situations where parents did unspeakable things to their children. Although any incident of this nature is too many, the reported cases were few and far between, yet traumatic.
In recent years, domestic violence awareness has increased to include non-physical abuse. As the victim of an abusive relationship, I began a journey with a destination that surprised me. I discovered that I grew up in an abusive environment. That statement may take you by surprise and you might be wondering how someone would not know this. The answer to that is the topic of this article. To a child, normal is their everyday life, regardless of what that is. If a child grows up with abuse, they think that is normal. Children have no point of reference for what normal should be. This may explain why children in abusive homes prefer to stay with their parents, rather than be ‘rescued.’ The obvious kind of abuse is physical, the kind where you can see the effect of the abuse. But verbal, emotional and psychology abuse are just as devastating if not more so.
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Why, you ask? The scarring that devastates a victim of abuse is not the physical wounds that can be mended, but the emotional scarring that can last a lifetime. In many ways non-physical abuse is more difficult to deal with as the victim has nothing to ‘show for it’ and often is confused about what has been happening in their relationship. That was the situation I found myself in that led to my discovering my abusive childhood. Why did it take me 45 years and 3 failed marriages to discover the abuse of my past? As a child I was taunted and teased incessantly by my older brothers. My parents, who often witnessed this, never did anything to stop it. Many people have told me, “That’s what older brothers do.” Really? I was called names that were supposed to be funny, but they weren’t anything but devastating to me. I was ridiculed and teased to the point that this became my normal. After all, my parents seemed to take it in stride. As a result, all of my personal boundaries were destroyed. This left me open to abusers, and they always find the perfect victim. What was seen as child’s play was the perfect setup for abuse.
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MONTH Which brings me to the point of this article: equipping parents to abuse-proof their kids. We’ve heard about stranger danger for many years in regards to sexual abuse. But how do we equip our kids to avoid non-physical abuse? The answer is boundaries. Helping our kids develop strong personal boundaries will protect them from the insidious ploys of manipulators and controllers.
Boundaries are those internal alerts that tell us we are being violated in some way. They are the red flags that go up when something doesn’t feel right. We naturally defend ourselves unless we’ve been conditioned otherwise. Here are some suggestions for helping your children develop and keep their boundaries strong: • • • • •
Respect their boundaries. Resist the urge to ‘pull rank’ and invade their personal space or treat them disrespectfully. Watch your tone of voice. Speak to them as you would your best friend or boss. Never tease or use sarcasm. Be straightforward and honest with them. Apologize for letting them down when appropriate. Accept their feelings, good and bad. Help them work
•
•
By Amy Hayes
through negative emotions, but never tell them they shouldn’t feel that way. Defend them! It’s amazing how many parents will tell their children, “It’s ok, he didn’t mean it.” If your child has been hurt physically or emotionally, acknowledge the hurt and hold the offender accountable if possible. Never downplay a hurt. Don’t belittle or discount their concerns regardless of how ‘childish’ they may seem to you. If your 2 year old cries because his block tower falls down, that’s normal. Let him know you understand that he is frustrated and offer to help him build another. Never tell him not to be upset. Allow your child freedom to express his emotions, good and bad.
Dealing with negative emotions can be challenging. Tune in next month as we explore this topic further. Until then, practice abuse-proofing your child by exercising healthy boundaries. Amy Hayes is the Parenting in Business contributor for The OffBeat Business Magazine. Amy is the mother of 8 children, from grown to adolescent, and coaches business owners, church groups and others to improve effective communication for parenting success. You can reach her at profparent@gmail.com.
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10 Essential Habits of Sales Superstars: Plugging Into The Power of Ten By Butch Bellah “Butch Bellah makes selling fun again!” The Best $12.99 You’ll Spend All Year! If you’re as good as you’re going to be, life is as good as it’s going to get. Don’t limit yourself. EVERYBODY is in sales, like it or not. Sales is something we do for people, not something we do to people. Wrap your head around successful mindsets and start taking simple steps forward every day to dramatically increase your income NOW.
“The power of this book is how it gives the reader simple techniques that dramatically improve results. Butch's combination of creativity and common sense makes this a fun book to read. The strategy for getting past gate keepers makes the book worth the time and money ant that is just the tip of the ice berg!” Noble L. Feldman, Amazon review
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ONLY HAPPY
PEOPLE NEED APPLY By Monica Cornetti
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Of course, they only mean those emotions that are perceived as negative, such as frustration, anger, shame, fear, or despair. Positive emotions, such as joy, happiness, gratitude, hope, and optimism, are always welcome. But is it possible to have the positive without the negative? Recently I read about Robert Biswas-Diener, Kashdan, co-author of the book, The Upside of Your Dark Side in which he offers that our pursuit of happiness and strong tendency to avoid discomfort of any kind is making us psychologically weak. And according to a recent Harris Poll Happiness Index, Americans are less happy now than we were a few years ago. Now, this seems like a counterproductive article for someone who makes her living helping organizations
to make their workplace more fun and engaging. But I have worked for organizations where we weren’t allowed to use the word ‘problem.’ For example, we were taught to say, “We have a challenge with the software updates.” Of course there were times that the frustration level from lost data was so high, it was all I could do not to scream, “We have a freakin’ problem here, and it’s time for us to figure out how to solve it!” No one wants to work with an emotionally
unhealthy, depressed, angry, selfish person. That is not what I am promoting. What I am saying is that we cannot feel the pure happiness of accomplishment if it cost us nothing to reach that goal. So how can we, in a civilized workplace, realistically embrace the difficult or uncomfortable emotions? The first thing to do is to recognize that we can harness the power of those negative emotions: • Self-doubt can spur collaboration with other people, motivate self-improvement, and help us to be more open to change. • Guilt motivates us to become more sensitive, caring, and giving than we’d be otherwise. • Frustration can cause us to stop and ask ourselves what is working and what is not, and if we look closely, we will probably find at least one thing that is going right that we can focus on. In our desire to only have ‘happy’ people working with us, it’s easy to forget that negative or bad feelings are a healthy and an essential part of our growth and development. My grandson, after numerous face plants, recently sat up on his own for the first time and the picture below captures his reaction in that moment. The term often used by game designers to describe that feeling of emotional elation that you see in this picture is called fiero, the Italian word for ‘Pride.’ The coolest thing about fiero is that we all express this feeling of triumph over adversity in the exact same way. If we want more fist pumping and fiero at work, we need leaders who recognize the energy of creating an environment where it’s ok to not know all the answers, to make mistakes we learn from, and to feel anger or frustration at a process gone wrong. These leaders will be able to lead their team to understand the source of negative emotions, and help them channel those feelings into ones of productivity, solutions, and positive results. Now that’s FUN! A gamification speaker and designer, Monica Cornetti is rated as the #1 Gamification Guru in the World by UK-Based Leaderboarded. She is the author of the book Totally Awesome Training Activity Guide: Put Gamification to Work for You, writes The Gamification Report blog, and hosts the weekly Gamification Talk Radio program. She is a professional consultant and known for being one of the leading players in thinking differently to create different results. In fact, as an early adopter, she has been designing and delivering gamification programs for her clients since 2008.
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Like it or not, feelings and emotions play a huge role in every area of our personal and professional lives. However, many of the people we work with believe there is no room for emotions in the workplace. They’d be happy to create a sign to post at the door that states, “Please check your emotions at the door, we’re working here!”
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HOW I ATE AN ELEPHANT By Taylor Kay Stephens
In 2005 as I stood there in my messy office, looking at eight drawers crammed full of receipts, bills and piles of paperwork, it was completely overwhelming - I was five years’ behind to the IRS and it was like being in prison! It felt like there was a huge elephant sitting on me and I could hardly breathe. How would I ever be able to get out from underneath this elephant? All of a sudden I had a brilliant idea, “I can do anything for 15 minutes.” So I got my little white timer, and turned the dial to 15 minutes. I started with the first drawer and pulled out one receipt. When I wanted to quit, I heard the tick, tick, tick of that little white timer and knew I could keep going a few more minutes, so I worked until I heard the “ding” of that timer. Each day I set that little timer for 15 minutes, took a break, then came back and worked another 15 minutes. Before long 15 minutes turned into 20 minutes, then 30 minutes and soon I was on a role! I kept closing my eyes and feeling what it was going to be like, having my taxes completely finished. The only way this feeling would ever be a reality was to completely focus and take action every day, doing the thing I had put off for so long. I also had to give this dreaded project that I hated the most, a new meaning.
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This was my ticket to freedom! I remember the day I saw the first drawer completely empty - this once, seemingly impossible to overcome obstacle, would now be possible. I couldn’t believe that I actually looked forward to working on my taxes and couldn’t wait to do them. A short time later, my prison sentence had come to an end as I laid 5 years’ worth of back taxes on my CPA’s desk. How I loved that little white timer - 15 minutes changed my life forever. I had learned to eat an elephant! Taylor Kay Stephens, speaker, author and transformational life coach, is no stranger to tragedy, adversity and obstacles. She teaches people how to get out of overwhelm, change their bad habits and stop self-defeating behaviors. She has developed her own easy and practical techniques and systems so simple a child can do them. Discover more at TaylorKayStephens.com
Continued from page 10
Are There Better Ways For Our Society to Stop Drug Use? Most parents agree, a proactive approach trumps a reactive one. One solution is to get kids excited about thinking again. But that might take a teacher with some age and experience behind her, so let’s not force her to retire. It will take creative teachers with more flexibility to encourage a desire to learn. Cell phones severely inhibit the attention a teacher receives. The competition for the students’ attention is very destructive for learning. I don’t know what to do about that, parents want the kids to have phones. The solution for adults? I’m not sure. And I don’t see why it has to be my problem, though I’ll do my best to share my personal story in an attempt to help heal another. As an employer, I know full well and bet you do too - how to tell if someone’s a pothead during the interview. I don’t have to hire them if I don’t want. I don’t have to have a criminal history check box on the application. That check box tells me nothing of someones’ integrity or ability to do things well. That
checkbox assumes far too much about people who check it - AND the people who don’t. Just because they didn’t get caught doesn’t mean it wasn’t done. I don’t have the answers. I just can’t hold my mouth shut when we’re arguing about legislating marijuana use and hit NONE of the issues that should be TOP of the list in that debate. Common sense is truly uncommon. Please take this discussion beyond the kitchen table. Susan Hamilton is the host and editor of The OffBeat Business Magazine, bringing topics of interest to business owners and entrepreneurs across America. We appreciate your comments and feedback sent to Info@OffBeatBusiness.com
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SUSANSAYS It’s a risky world out there. Not many people are expressing themselves very effectively, and the result is often simply AWFUL finger-pointing, name calling and party bashing alienating people with voices that should be heard. But to chime in? Well, some mean spirited big mouth might decide to get involved in the conversation with more opinion than insight, and we risk our dignity to even respond or be caught discussing ‘that.’ So we say nothing. We dig into our own very important daily dramas and try to stay out of the chaos that is this world. The only people ever heard are the merciless or the socialists. Where is the rest of America? It’s like we’re getting bullied out of our compassion and out of our rights, yet we feel helpless - when there are more people who feel like we do than the people who are the loudest. Sometimes I just want to take your pulse, you know? My hope is that we learn to communicate more effectively. My hope is that we really think about the scope of the reality we’re creating for ourselves - in business, in life, and in community. People will never be all we want them to be. Has that become our only goal?
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Take Risks or Nothing Changes Here are four areas I’d like to see you be bolder this quarter: •
•
•
•
Decide to love (verb) someone(s) who everyone else has discarded. Determine to not let fear or indignation be a factor in decisionmaking. When you see a bandwagon of finger-pointers developing and beginning to circle, refuse to join. Think long and hard about solutions, because YOU have some you need to share.
If your gut reaction to economy, legislation, health care or anything else is to sit quietly, that’s okay. Not everyone in the body is a mouth. Some are hands, getting things done. Some are lungs, breathing a financial pulse into what’s necessary for life. Some are feet, going into places no one else is equipped for. Some are hair, catching the wind; covering up our scars. Some are muscle, empowering tongues, hearts, hands and feet to do their jobs. And some are butt hairs. We all have a purpose. I’ll leave you with that. ~ Susan
Susan Hamilton is your host and editor of The OffBeat Business Show & Magazine, showcasing businesses through video, audio and magazine content for maximum exposure. Susan believes that by sharing great business and entrepreneurial lifestyle tips and advice in an easily digestible format, businesses can grow to become a significant influence within their communities, causing progressive improvement on legislative and community levels for our children, seniors, veterans and businesses.
Why Do Successful Businesses Advertise in The OffBeat Business Magazine? Become a recognizable solution through our mulit-production network of supportive, aggressive professionals who want to showcase YOU. Cutting edge promotion on Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Get seen on issuu, Flipboard, Google News. Support the vision and mission to ‘Elevate Communities Through Socially Aware Businesses.’
Sponsors are awarded a digital badge that can be proudly displayed on websites and brochures, helping to familiarize our communities with the businesses supporting them. 214-714-0495 Info@OffBeatBusiness.com Our network is growing FAST, and our ONE objective is to let our communities know that you are a business ‘in their corner.’ Contact Susan Hamilton TODAY to learn how you will benefit from exposure in The OffBeat Business Magazine, too!
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