Thursday, June 16, 2011

Starting a group for self-employed Professionals

I find it very rewarding when I have a discussion with a business colleague about the ups and downs of building a business.  We hash through the challenges and obstacles and identify areas where I can get a hold of what I'm doing and consider doing it a different way...or I discover other areas I can expand and improve upon.  All and all it is always beneficial and helpful, even when I realize mistakes or mis-steps.  Remember, building a business in the self-employment world is something many of us have been pushed into because of age, the economy and other factors.  Some of the 'natural instincts' of selling aren't in us so we have to learn and I mean learn quickly!

So my thought is to create a support network to be able to help others "talk out loud" about their ideas.  I encourage anyone interested to check www.fogster.com for time and location.  It will start out locally but will build into a webinar that all of you can participate in.  It's important to get the perspective from people all over the country to are faced with different economic challenges.  The Bay Area is such a bubble and sometimes I think the people here forget that the rest of the country may not be enjoying the financial improvements or stability that they are.

Send me your feedback on any other ideas that may be helpful for all of you!

Wednesday, June 8, 2011

Back to it!

I took some time off from blogging because my business picked up and a person can only do so many things but my marketing guru, Judy Horst, told me that I must keep up my work on speaking about my business and sharing my business ideas with others.

It feels to me like things are about the same for many businesses.  They are cautious but slowly stepping out to try to invest in getting more business.  Those of us who remain self-employed are also thinking times are looking better for us as our possible business clients are looking to engage help via contract work so they do not have to take on the burden of costs to hire an employee.

Want to also share that last year when I started on the path of self-employment my goal was to make it one year and as of June 1 - I succeeded!  Hooray - first milestone reached.  Now I'm looking to make it to 5 years with the idea of meeting a financial goal instead of just surviving.

So I welcome your updates on how any of you are doing on the self-employment path...remember, we have to support each other as the work is work but being everything in your own business is where the challenges are and the learning exists.

Until next time...have a great day!

LaVergne