We are closing in on the end of Season 3 of the Indie Business Podcast. Our theme, Makers On Main Street, is one of the most fun topics I have covered since I began podcasting in 2005. It’s thrillling to draw out the stories of Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs who own and manage retail stores…
One of the greatest joys of leading the Indie Business Network is the fact that I have a front row seat to watch so many women from all across North America grow in wisdom and confidence as they lead their businesses into the future. I sat down recently and contemplated the character traits and habits…
If you have seen me recently, you have probably also seen my iPhone 6+. It’s a pretty big piece of equipment considering the 5.5″ screen, but I love it. It takes super clear and crisp photos and has lots of storage for the audio and video files I need to have at my fingertips so…
Twenty two days ago, dozens of Indie Business Network members and I began a journey called the Blog Your Brand 30-Day Challenge. The prize is a complimentary year of membership in the Indie Business Network for everyone who publishes a post, according to our rules, every day from June 14 to July 13, 2015. As…
Today is Independence Day, or “Indiependence” Day for all you Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs out there. It’s a day where I personally celebrate not only the birth of my home country, but also my own personal birth as an entrepreneur. In 2009, following an article I wrote about my Indie lifestyle, I received an email…
Is you spouse or partner a “nontrepreneur?” If you’ve never heard that term before, it’s because I made it up. A nontrepreneur is a person who is not an entrepreneur. I don’t use that term to refer to people in “real life,” but I thought it was a fun sort of tongue-in-cheek way to describe…
On Wednesday evenings from 8 to 8:30pm ET, I host #MakerBizChat, an Instagram event to help Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs build a solid business foundation, increase your income, and use your business to create the life you love. Our topic tonight was THE &+$# TRUTH ABOUT ONLINE MARKETING TODAY. I chose this topic because I…
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Welcome to Season 3, Episode 9 of the Indie Business Podcast! In this ninth episode of my Makers on Main Street series, you’ll meet Deb Jasien of Fields of Ambrosia in North Conway, New Hampshire. Deb, a former theatrical set designer, has owned her business since 2001, and her store in 2007. Deb also wholesales…
Handmade entrepreneurship requires massive amounts of time and energy, but simplifying things will help you conserve some of that precious time and energy. It will also help you simplify your life … always a good thing, right? Traditional entrepreneurship has usually meant that you sell the products, but you do not physically make them. When…
Iwonder if the title of this post reveals my age. After all, it takes many years of allowing yourself to become frustrated before you just stop it. That’s where I am at this point in my life. After nearly 16 years in business, and a few gray hairs (thanks mostly to my offspring), I rarely…
No matter how many years you are in business, you will experience a crisis of confidence from time to time. Whether it’s negative feedback on social media, a snide remark at a show, or honest (but brutal) critique from a prospective wholesale buyer, things will happen that will cause you to second guess your ability…
The 30-Day Blog Your Brand Challenge was a huge success, and dozens of Indie Business Network members won a complimentary year of IBN membership after they blogged consistently for thirty straight days. At the conclusion of the Challenge, I opened the doors to the Blog Your Brand Facebook Group to the public. Click here to…
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Welcome to Season 3, Episode 8 of the Indie Business Podcast! In this eighth episode of my Makers on Main Street series, you’ll meet Roberta Perry of Scrubz Natural Skincare in Farmingdale, New York. (NOTE: This written article has been updated to reflect the relocation of the retail store to a new city. The audio…
Entrepreneurship is messy, but it would be a lot more messy for me if I did not intentionally operate my business in the midst of an entrepreneurial ecosystem that allows it (and me) to thrive. From very early in my business, I predicted that my personal life situation would not always be a bed of…
On Wednesday evenings from 8 to 8:30pm ET, I host #MakerBizChat, an Instagram event to help Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs build a solid business foundation, increase your income, and use your business to create the life you love. Our topic tonight was SIX FREE WAYS TO HOST VIRTUAL EVENTS TO BUILD YOUR BRAND. In my…
I will host Connection Day 2015: Portland, on October 11-12, 2015, with hotel check-in and Indie Yappy Hour the evening before! (I’ll be hosting Connection Day New York City in September, so I could not leave out my members over on the other side of the country now could I?) Sponsored by one of IBN’s…
While most entrepreneurs invest considerable resources to acquire the knowledge-based and functional skills needed to grow a business, not all entrepreneurs put as much effort into cultivating a personal entrepreneurial style to complement their business as it grows. As a business leader, you owe it to yourself and your business to cultivate a personal entrepreneurial…
It’s never a good idea to be someone you are not. It’s an even worse idea to be someone you are not in the age of the Internet. Authenticity has always mattered. It matters now, more than ever. Over the last several days, I have watched in stunned awe as former NAACP leader Rachel Dolezal…
Each week, I receive dozens of invitations to collaborate in new business ventures of one kind or another. I decline nearly all of them because I do not want to spread myself too thin. When I do enter into a collaborative relationship with another entrepreneur, I generally do so because the collaboration has very specific…
This article is about doing specific things to ensure that you are not losing customers on a consistent basis. Obviously, you can’t afford to continually lose customers if you want your business to be solid and sustainable over the long haul. If you are losing customers (and therefore money), it is often for one of…
On Wednesday evenings from 8 to 8:30pm ET, I host #MakerBizChat, an Instagram event to help Makers and Handmade Entrepreneurs build a solid business foundation, increase your income, and use your business to create the life you love. Our topic last night was How to Build a Membership-Based Business. While most people use the terms…