Recently we watched an exciting video “Bear and the Potty.” I think that was the title. Anyway, it was about a big brown bear teaching all these little animals, who were outgrowing their diapers, to use the potty.
Of course, we were watching it as we were babysitting a four year-old for some friends. There was [...]

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For a truly micro-business, or being self-employed, a business plan is a recipe for disaster.
A formal business plan can be over 100 pages, full of all kinds of strange things like ‘competitive market analysis’ and ‘financial forecasting.’ Ugh.
You know who reads business plans? Banks and funders. You know who writes business plans? Businesses who are [...]

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You can tell as soon as you pick up the phone before the other person has even said anything. That little silence, the clattering in the background, tells you it’s a telemarketer on the other end of the line, and there is nothing they have to say that is worth your precious time.
The business that [...]

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Question: What would you think of someone who said this to a five year old?
“It’s about time you start earning your keep! I want you to get out there and get a job so you can pay your share of the mortgage. And, while you’re at it, here’s the keys to the car. Drive down [...]

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A few years ago I hired a bookkeeper because, frankly, I hated bookkeeping so much that I wasn’t doing it. I hated it, felt overwhelmed and intimidated by it. And our taxes were a mess. So I happily handed off the bookkeeping task to someone who had been referred to me.
A YEAR later I started [...]

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== Flash back two years ==
As I sit down to write an article, I feel stumped. I’ve got an hour to “get it done,” and meanwhile I’m just staring at the screen… 55 minutes later, with a few sentences written, I have to stop, and I’m off to the next thing- two back-to-back conference calls.
== [...]

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That book you wanted to write, that retreat you wanted to lead, the website you wanted to create? It seemed like such a good idea at the time.
Now, weeks or months into it, you’re facing the seven-headed hydra of ancient Greek mythology. Every time you finish a task, two more sprout in its place. It [...]

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