Posts Tagged ‘Personal’
the good, the bad, the ugly (and socks)
they say we learn more in times of discomfort and challenge than we learn when everything is sunshine and lollipops. i'm not sure who "they" are, but I wish they'd stop saying crap like that. today i find myself ache-ing and nauseous. i'm thinking food poisoning of some sort, as my wife is now following in my slow, soft-stepping footsteps. so, that's the ugly part. the bad part is that neither of us can figure out exactly what it was that caused this. the kids are fine. now we find ourselves not wanting to eat much. here we've got the bad and the ugly. where's the good? what is the lesson in all of this. oddly enough, it comes from those soft footsteps. stepping softly - because my body hurts - somehow reminded me of high school. see, in high school, i always carried this reservation with me. it wasn't that i wasn't happy; i had my fair share of happiness along w/emotional ups & downs. it was just that i found i was holding back. i don't know how to articulate it clearly. in fact, i didn't even recognize this reservation until years later, looking back. in this reflection i wondered how much more happiness i would have gotten out of life if i would have let go and trust that i could handle life and that life would handle me. so, here i am today. achey and certainly reserve in my motions. yet in my entrepreneurial life i'm doing things i absolutely love. the talk show (Up In Your Biz!) has me out meeting people who are passionate about their business. i've plenty of projects ready to start moving forward as well. yet, today i wondered: am i back to my old self? am i missing out on some of what life has to offer? as they say: if you have to ask, the answer is likely 'yes.' durn them thar 'they', anyway). so, as i sit here desiring to hurl until my socks come out my mouth, this is a great day; for as i start feeling better and better, i can also shed any reservations toward living in this grand adventure called life! . "Have A Great Dave." :) --Dave C. Image Credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/barkbud/ / CC BY 2.0 http://www.flickr.com/photos/dainec/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
Simple Keys to Energy & Confidence
I realize what I'm about to say flies in the face of recent societal trends. We can witness daily, men and women across America and around the world who seem to advocate dodging truth, hiding from responsibility. In spite of this (and perhaps even to spite this), I've found the best way to progress AND gain confidence is to MAKE & KEEP PROMISES. It's a simple start, yet I've promised to keep going on both exercising (almost) daily and cleaning one room/day around the home. This keeps me healthy, keeps my wife smiling, AND (because I'm in the act of making and keeping promises) gives me a feeling of confidence that carries over into everything else. As far as confidence in business goes, the first step is to ensure value is being created; that's essential. With that value, the same principle applies: Make and keep promises. However, even when we're creating great value for others, we can have days when we doubt ourselves or our business. This is quite common. I mean, we're out there giving it all we've got and we can find ourselves exhausted; not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. Sometimes, a rest is all I need. Some family play time, reading. I might practice the piano (just starting) or play a mindless game or watch a TV show. Rest is important. What I'm saying here is this: It takes energy to make and keep promises. It can take energy to bolster our own confidence in times of doubt. And, hey: Sometimes the confidence and energy simply do not show back up on Monday morning. When this happens, I find that simply TALKING about a current project - describing it to someone else or asking for the ideas of others - this engages me and renews my own excitement. This might be done with a friend or my wife, Renee (tho not typically on a Monday morning). If the timing isn't right to share with people I know, there are plenty of people on Twitter or Facebook to get into positive conversations with about prosperity. (Thanks, Tweeps. You know who you are). Now, with our energy boosted we can put it into making and keeping promises. With this combination of principles and habits being practiced, self-respect, the respect from others, and prosperity; it all increases. "Have A Nice Dave." :) --Dave C. Image Credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/fullmoon/ / CC BY-SA 2.0
…the end of the rainbow.
Keep going. If you're one of many who are searching for that inner-passion so you can share it with the world, keep going. I gotta say, it's worth finding. And, if it's taking some time to find, it may be that the time it takes makes the realization that much sweeter. I'll add this: Remember to enjoy the journey of discovery, too! Open your eyes and mind like that 5-year old looking for an adventure (the looking is an adventure in itself). My passion is ideas. I love seeing ideas move from mind to market; to go from valuable to one person to valuable to many. I love the creative process ("We can do THIS, oh... and we can add this to it and that! AWESOME!"). In my own journey as I moved from idea to idea (and not really prospering, being in a state of perpetual starting), the TIME and the frustration of my apparent lack of progress finally led me to create SelfEnterpriser.com and the corresponding talk show, Up In Your Biz! So now, I'm spending my time getting to know others around my local town of Bellingham, Washington; learning about their ideas and how they've turned their passions into business. As I'm doing such, I'm absorbed into that unique essence that every city or town emits. As I get to know the people running the businesses in town, I get to know the town. Coffee shops and intersections are already (after just my first week of video shoots) transforming into landmarks that remind me of the new friendships and interactions I'm creating. So, thanks to those who encouraged me to search for my own unique abilities and passions. Thank you to the business owners of Bellingham for allowing me to get to know you. This is a real joy. More than ever before I can say about being a Self Enterpriser: It's a spectacular life. --Dave C. Image Credits: http://www.flickr.com/photos/theslowlane/ | CC BY 2.0
CORE Value
One of the identifying traits of a Self-Enterpriser is the presence of Core Value. This is from the perspective of creating a business with enjoy-ability of life as the objective, rather than How do I make a buck? Bringing in dollars is important, but to the Self-Enterpriser, How do I make happiness? is the first question. From there, How do I use the answer to that question in order to create value for others? is the next question. Followed by, How do I exchange this value with others for dollars? The Self-Enterpriser, then, has a need to identify what they value the most, at their core. In other words: Forget about an idea lasting in the marketplace, will it last with YOU? In today's world, we can each express ourselves with few restrictions. As well, there are others who will relate to our expressions. By being true to ourselves (i.e. true to our inner Paula Abdul) we can begin to form our own Tribe. Then we can learn how to create and exchange value based on who we are. This is why I say Self-Enterprisers live a spectacular life: We identify what makes us happy, then we choose to live in that world every day, as much as we want to. What are your Core Values? Comments? Questions? Compliments? Suggestions? You know you can always email me at Dave@SelfEnterpriser.com. "Have A Nice Dave." :) --Dave C.
The Business of Being Yourself.
Learn how to turn WHO YOU ARE into WHAT YOU DO. Authenticity is important and building a business that reflects your values and passions will reek of sincerity. Also, if your business is all about your favorite subject (hint: YOU) you'll never lose your commitment. You will easily celebrate the great times and press forward in the tuff times. There's only one YOU. It's time to let the world know! --Dave Charbonneau, Guy Who Does Stuff www.SelfEnterpriser.com Note: This post has been submitted to be featured at www.TheToiletPaperEntrereneur.com.
What I HATED about cold-calling:
I was looking for a friend named Clare to see if I could borrow her accent for a MICROtalk TalkShow segment, and in my search I stumbled across @ClareLynch. Now, this Clare may well have an accent, I'm not certain (she appears to hail from London, according to her Twitter account). Although, she might, given the opportunity, contend that I have an accent. That's not, however, what caught my attention. @ClareLynch claimed she wrote a blog entitled goodcopybadcopy, and it just so happens that the spot I am seeking to record is a read of an atrocious email (and by atrocious I mean, hilarious). Oh, the mystics would say that the Law of Attraction is at work here, but c'mon... that stuff is so 2006, am I right? (Wait just a minute... Rhonda Byrne has an accent! Hmm...). Anyhow, as I continue an introduction that is longer than my presentation, I began an email to Mz. Lynch, sending it thru her company website. It occurred to me that I didn't know if this was her company, or if she was an employee, or what the deal was. So, my EADD* mind traveled to a time when I was practicing outside sales (with no pre-visit marketing). So I carried on in what I hoped Clare and whomever else might find entertaining; knowing that I at the least had entertained myself (yet again, at someone else's expense). Once the email was completed and sent, I discovered one of the issues I had with cold-calling. Hated it. No, you don't understand. H-A-T-E-D I-T. Here's a copy of the email: Hi, is Clare there please? Yes, I'll hold. Okay... yes, yes, I understand. No, she wasn't expecting my email. Right, but... Can I just... I'm wondering if... Sure - I'll leave a message. Clare, I wandered across you and your blog, goodcopybadcopy.com and enjoyed what I read. I operate SelfEnterpriser.com, a blog'azine focused on entrepreneurs who create value from their passions; from who they are their core. it appears you have a great time writing about writing and may be a good match as a guest on my talk show: MICROtalk. It may bring a bit of exposure to what you're doing and Guests can re-purpose the 7 minute interview for their own marketing. Interviews are done over the phone so it's convenient (tho, if you're in the Seattle area the week of Christmas? May be a bit of a commute from London). Thanks, Clare. I hope to hear from you soon. --Dave Charbonneau, Guy who does stuff www.SelfEnterpriser.com Yes, so if you could just make sure she gets this. What do you mean she's out of town this week? Could you have told me that before I wrote the message. Alright, yeah. Thanks. You too. You know what I LOVE about being an entrepreneur in our world of social media connections? When I set out to create value with other people, I almost ALWAYS am communicating directly with the decision-maker. Well, and not to mention that if the decision-maker is an a-hole, I don't waist my time. "Have A Nice Dave". [...]
