Holistic Business

We all probably remember what it’s like when you are a kid and can not wait till your next birthday. You always want time to go fast and to be older than you are. When you are 9, you can’t wait for the double digits. When you are 10, 11, and 12 - 13 is what you dream about. After that - it’s whatever age you can start driving, then voting, then drinking.

Well, as we (notice I’m including all my readers in here too) age - we want things to slow down. We want our own aging, as well as that of our children and grandchildren to slow down.

So, why is it that retailers (and - shhhh - internet marketers) rush us?

I was in the grocery store before Labor Day weekend - and they were setting up the Halloween displays!

I had a momentary panic - am I forgetting the date that badly?

I went to look for a new bathing suit in the beginning of August. Down to one rack - extremely discounted which would have been great if they had tops and bottoms that even came close to being the same size. Another rant - how can there be small and medium tops and only x-large bottoms? Yikes - please tell me I’m not built all that weird!

But, anyway, my point is - we all need to slow down. I know, especially as an entrepreneur, there is always this drive and the need to be working on at least your next 3 projects and have another 6 in your brain, but are you really enjoying any of them? Are you spending enough time to cultivate the maximum from each of them? Or are you rushing along just trying to get people to “sign up” and be damned if they are really going to benefit from what you have to say and sell? That may add names to your list - but not to the one of satisfied paying clients.

I don’t like to read the pushy, in-your-face, that’s-not-all-you-get sales pages myself. You know, the ones that tell you you only have a week to sign up. And if you wait that long, all the spaces may be taken.

I don’t do things impulsively, at least not when it comes to my business and spending hard earned money. I need time to roll things around in my head, plan, forecast, and make sure my heart, head, and stomach are in agreement.

Don’t rush me - you’ll lose me for sure. Slow down - make it worth my time, money, and thought.

Namaste ~ ~ ~

OK, I should have an excuse or a reason for not blogging. Sorry, don’t have it, won’t expend the energy to make something up.

So - what’s the deal? I’m really not sure. It certainly is not a lack of something to say, I’ve always got tons to say. I guess it boils down to not following my own advice. My clients and I talk about blogging - about how they ought to be doing it. I rave about all the things it will do for them: help their potential clients get to know them in a personal way, drive up their ranking, expose themselves to a larger audience, etc. One thing I do warn them about though is that once you start - you need to keep up with it. Nothing worse than getting people to look forward to what you have to say and then having the same old post up there for weeks on end.

Hmmmmm. Seeing my picture in that frame.

I’ve been hanging my head in shame over at the Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce, where there is a blogroll post. I’ve avoided it like I’ve avoided my blog.

TODAY IS A NEW DAY!

I’m going on vacation next week and have vowed to myself that I will come back more organized in my own business and take the 20-30 minutes it takes to post here and keep with it. I have the time.

Time - what a hot topic. My belief has always been that you have the time for what is important. It’s just a matter of knowing that and accepting that whatever you find you don’t have the time for is something you really don’t like doing. Maybe you just plain old don’t like it, maybe you don’t feel as though you excel at it. But we all need to “own” those feelings and deal with them.

So - do I not like blogging? No, I really do. Do I not excel at it? No, I generally like what I’ve written, it comes from my gut and is shot right off the top of my head. That’s my personality and I’m cool with it. I’m not blogging for a six-figure income, more for fun and conversation.

So - why have I been such a bad blogger?

Habit. I think that’s what it boils down to. I need to get into a routine where I do this every day. Or almost everyday. AND STICK WITH IT.

OK, feeling better now. I can go over to the VACOC and put my blog link up on the blogroll and pick my head up a little higher - LOL!

Namaste ~ ~ ~

I tried my best to stay away from the news and keep myself from searching out the story on Michael Vick of the NFL and the allegations of running a dog fighting operation.

This morning, I received this link from a client that was passed on to her that gives the phone number to call and leave your thoughts with the NFL as to what should happen. Suspension is what is being pushed, I won’t get into what I think should happen to him outside of the NFL.

This is Maggie.

Look at that face. How can it not sicken each and every person reading this?

She is part pit bull. She found us close to 10 years ago on the streets of Trenton, NJ. She had open wounds indicative of dog fighting. There was evidence that she had recently given birth to a litter of pups. She had heartworm and was near starvation. The first vet we took her to recommended we just put her down. Fortunately, we found someone that saw what we did in her eyes and her heart.

I’ll be giving her some extra-extra love today.

I can’t really write any more because I’m just so disgusted about this whole thing.

Please, do whatever you can. This recent story is getting headlines because of who he is. He’s certainly not the only one - this abuse happens every day.

Technorati Tags: Michael Vick, dog fighting, pit bull

Frankly, I don’t care. Come look at mine - you’ll see what I mean.

I was walking to the post office the other day and was, once again, angered by the pesticide warning flag on my next door neighbor’s lawn.

Hey, buddy - see the big grate in the street in front of my house? It’s called a storm drain. Water runs off your yard, flows into it, then goes into local streams, creeks, the river, and eventually the Atlantic Ocean.

Oh, you fish? DO YOU EAT THE FISH? How does it feel to know you are eating pesticides?

What’s the problem with clover and dandelions? Why this obsession with having the greenlest lawn?

I admit, most of our neighbors probably talk about us (What is with those people? Their yard looks like one big field of weeds!) Weeds to one person are wildflowers to another.

It’s not even the matter of how it looks - let’s put that aside.

Just think about it. How many homeowners are there in the US? What percentage of them get their lawn sprayed to protect against bugs and weeds? Just imagine how much poison ends up in our streams and rivers. It’s disgusting. For a real eye-opener, read this. Scroll down to the case studies (if you can stomach it).

If what they are putting on your lawn is so bad they have to put warning flags on it - do you really think all trace of that goes away? Do you let your children, grandchildren, pets, and other loved ones walk, sit, eat (in the case of little ones and pets) the grass?

OK, enough ranting, now for a little help.

We have throughout our town, brick walks in front of the houses. If you’ve ever lived with a brick walk, you know how weeds can find the tiniest spot to set root and just *don’t* want to be pulled out. Sometimes (again, I’m sure people talk) I end up having to mow our walk.

But, here is a great earth friendly weed killer recipe:

• one gallon white vinegar (smaller mixture, use 4 cups)

• 1 cup regular table salt (smaller mixture use 1/4 cup)

• couple squirts of liquid soap (dish or hand soap) - this is just to help the mixture cling to the weeds

You’ll want to heat up some of the vinegar to totally disolve the salt or your sprayer will get clogged. Also - don’t pour hot liquid into your sprayer, let it cool down. I just use one of those sprayers you can pick up at the garden center or grocery store.

In the morning, on a sunny day when there is little chance of rain - spray this mixture on the weeds. It works like a charm and does not injure any widlife (human or otherwise).

Try it and let me know what you think. I’ve got to do this myself this weekend.

I hope you’ll feel better about yourself and your contribution to a greener earth by using an environmentally friendly weed killer.

Namaste ~ ~ ~

Technorati Tags: pesticide warning flag, earth friendly, weed killer, environmentally friendly weed killer

I’ve gotten to the point that I get soooooo many newsletters, tips, etc. that I’ve told myself I need to cut some out.

There is a publicity “expert” that I have been getting information and tips from for quite some time. Some of it has been useful, some of it I already knew but was probably useful for others.

OK - this publicity “expert” has made it easy for me to unsubscribe from one list - HERS!

She is now selling a training seminar geared towards Virtual Assistants (OK, we’re used to being sold to), and interns. But she’s not really selling it to us - she’s selling it to . . . I guess she thinks - our employers????

When did a VA get into the same boat as an intern? And why is she not really selling it to us, but to our clients (who she is obviously thinking of as our employers)? “Send me your Virtual Assistant . . . ”

EXCUSE ME!!!! . . . but my clients don’t “send me” to someone for training. They may ask me if I can do something and if I answer no, they may ask if it’s something I’m interested in doing. If my answer is yes, and they offer to pay for training, well, that’s one thing. But, really, I will be the one to determine what services to offer my clients. I have absolutely NO PROBLEM in paying for and getting the training *I* need for the services I decide to offer.

This is just so icky. And to add to the ick, the professional Virtual Assistance association I belong to, the VACOC (Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce) - had this woman as a guest expert and she spoke to and probably garnered some sales from the seminar. Did she come back and speak to our founder or any other members? Nope, just went on her merry way and really pissed a LOT of us off with this demeaning and not well thought out sales copy.

Of course, there are some VA organizations that are behind her.The old affiliate links and “we’ll promote your crap if you promote ours” sort of thing.

Ick - ick - ick (this is me with the eebie jeebies)

tfu-tfu-tfu (this is me spitting 3 times)

ahhhhhhh (this is me cleansing to rid myself of all these negative thoughts and demons)

Technorati Tags: publicity, Virtual Assistant, Virtual Assistance, VACOC, Virtual Assistance Chamber of Commerce