More Than WE Know

Fall weather puts me in the mood for ambitious goal-planning.  The lazy days of summer are ending and the crisp mornings call for fresh notebooks, sharpened pencils, knee socks, and ambitious undertakings.

I know technically Fall won’t start until Friday, but I woke up this morning to a quintessential New England Autumn.  There was a swirl of fog obscuring the changing colors of the oak and maple trees. The Canadian Geese were making practice flights around the lake, preparing for their impending migration and complaining loudly the entire time.  The yellow, orange and rust colored mums I had planted last week are blooming,  and there is just the tiniest hint of frost. 

It’s the kind of morning that makes you believe that if you put your mind to it, you can accomplish anything, whether it’s learning algebra, getting the cute boy in French class to notice you, or a grown-up dream - succeeding in your own business.

So, whether you live where there is an invigorating breeze at your door or you have to imagine one, I invite you to join me in some goal setting this morning.

One of the reasons we accomplish so much when we are in school is because someone is holding us accountable. There is a deadline and someone who knows whether or not we have accomplished it.  So today, I am going to reach out to all of you and ask you to hold me accountable for my goals for the week. 

By this time next week, my goals are to have:

• completed the move of this blog to its permanent home   
• written and published ten ezine articles
• written interview questions for all the interviews I’ve scheduled
• organized my network contacts into a database
• and of course, written daily blog posts and met with my clients

Too much? Too little? Considering I’m working full-time in the corporate world while also running my business, it doesn’t seem too little.  And since I will be in a hotel in NY all week, I should have my evenings free. I’m also making use of my train commute (right now) and will again on the return trip on Friday.

Are these short-term goals aligned with my long-term goals? I think so, as they all move me closer to my longer term goal of having 2000 subscribers to my blog.

What about you? What are your goals for the week? Can you clearly articulate them? Are they reasonable given the amount of time you have on your schedule - could you do more? should you do less?  And most importantly, are they aligned with your longer-term goals?

One of the best ways to ensure you reach your goals is to write them down. Feel free to put your goals in the comments area of this blog.  We can be accountability buddies.  I will let you know next Monday how well I did.

Here’s hoping WE all have a productive week!!

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Every day, I’m becoming a bigger believer in the opportunities inherent in online networking.

In the past few weeks, I have met some really interesting people through blogging, reading comments on my blog and writing comments on other people’s blogs. I have also joined several online networking groups which have expanded my social circle and given me lots of new ideas and inspiration.

I’ve already posted about some of these people, and will continue to post in more depth about the rest of them. When you have a chance, I suggest you check out some of these great sites:

Cafe30 - I love the energy of this site.  Towanda’s views are fresh and fun. She talks about marketing, trends, and current events.   One of my  favorite posts is her latest collection of unusual products for sale which includes an infant carrier designed to be hung on the stall wall while you use the public restroom!  As Socrates said - “How many are the things I can live without!”.

FunnyBusiness - Just about any business related topic is fair game on this site, which is about business culture but “delights in telling tales out of school”. Topics range from the story of “two teenaged boys fired from and sued by A&P for making a lewd rapper video involving the store’s produce” to “the differences in how men and women feel about using the office bathroom”. In her recent, more serious post on Anita Roddick’s death, she quoted several blogs, including MoreThanWeKnow.

Management Informatika - This is an energetic site that has been created by a group of MBA students in India. There are a variety of students and professionals writing on various topics related to business, economics, management and technology.  I love their slogan “Knowledge is Limitless” and applaud their enthusiasm for desiring to make their mark in the world.  I recently wrote a guest article for them and will write more periodically in the future.

Another interesting site is A Green Footprint.  This woman owned company helps businesses go green by reducing consumption, increasing efficiency, making eco-friendly choices, and implementing effective environmental communications. I will be writing more about this site next month around BlogActionDay.

Two other dynamic women entrepeneurs I have met recently are Crystal Berney,  independent broker for Ameriplan and author of Work at Home Facts, a blog on the challenges for moms working at home and Clarissa Mack, Promotional Consultant for BIP (Business is Personal) Promos. Both Crystal and Clarissa have agreed to be interviewed for MoreThanWeKnow - look for them in the coming weeks.

Other exciting sites I’ve written about previously but that are worth mentioning again are MyWomanOwnedBusiness (see post), LoveThemUP (see post) ,  Virtual Woman’sDay   (see post) and FinancialFashionHouse (see post). 

If you too want to expand your network from the comfort of your own home try these tips:

• Join social networks that cater to people with similar interests as your own; Linked.in and Facebook are popular but their size can also be intimidating; the smaller groups are more intimate and can be just as good a source of contacts.
• When you come across blogs that you relate  to, take the time to leave a comment and spark a conversation; your own site will be viewable in the entry so others who read your comment can also reach out to connect with you.
• Participate in forum discussions on topics that are of interest to you; do a search on your favorite subject and the word “forum” and it’s more than likely one or more will pop up.

And don’t forget to network here!  - write a comment about your experiences networking on or send me a personal response on my about page.  I’d love to hear from you! 

Thanks to Heidi Richards at Virtual Woman’s Day for adding MoreThanWeKnow to her list of  ”great woman bloggers”. 

Heidi is the Founder & CEO of The WECAI Network™   – an Internet network of organizations that “Helps Women Do Business on and off the WEB.”

She created Virtual Woman’s Day™ to bring together women from around the globe to network together, learn together and grow together. She intends women to do this by encouraging one another to share resources, promote products and services, increase our circle of influence and have some fun in the process.

Heidi arranges a monthly event called 1st Fridayz in which women network over the internet, sharing their products and ideas and listening to great speakers.  September’s topic was on Blogging for Business. It was such a success that they are going to continue the topic and do “Blogging for Business Part Two” on October 5th.

This is a great low-risk networking opportunity.  You don’t have to leave your home, you can participate as little or as much as you want, and you can easily follow up with people via email after the event. If you would like to participate, register for the WECAI network, and more details will be sent to you.    Don’t miss the fun!

 One of the fortunes of being a Woman Entrepreneur in the 21st century is that we get to have role models to inspire us.  A generation before us, women were making things up as they went along with no indication whether or not what they were doing made sense.   As intimidating as that may sound, it had a certain appeal to singular, free-spirited, strong-minded individuals.  And it is to those bold, courageous women that many of us owe our inspiration as entrepreneurs.

One such inspiration for me has always been Anita Roddick, the founder of the Body Shop. Anita was one of the orignators of the idea of doing business to do good.  Ecological principles were a foundation of her business with its philosophy of re-use, re-fill and re-cycle. Later, she expanded her social activisim to include human rights, animal rights and sustainable environmental practices. 

Anita traveled the world to gain inspiration and to give assistance.  She was an author, a speaker, a teacher, and an activist.   She was an example for Women Entrepreneurs everywhere who want to achieve success and help the world to be a better place.

Anita passed away Monday from a brain hemorrhage, at the age of 64.  She lived every day of her life as if each moment counted - daring to do all the things that most of us only dream of.

In recent years, Anita maintained a blog that espoused her personal beliefs and strong opinions as well as represented her sense of fun and enthusiasm. 

Anita was a role model for those of us who continue in her spirit. In her words:

“Join me: I want to connect with people who share my outrage over the menace of global business practices, and who, like me, are seeking solutions. But I also want to tell - and hear, from you - stories that lift our spirits, that celebrate how glorious our planet is. Outrage and celebration - let’s run this gamut together.”

In the spirit of outrage and celebration, I invite you to journey with me as we build our businesses, create success for our families, and work together to make the world a better place.

October 15th is Blog Action Day.  On that day more than 5000 blogs will post on one topic - the environment.   Each blogger will add his or her own unique perspective - political bloggers will post on politics and the environment,  parenting bloggers will post on children and the environment, and small business bloggers will post on (you guessed it) small business and the environment.

On that day, I would like to talk about general ways entrepreneurs can help the environment by running their busineses more efficiently and consciously.  But I would also like to talk about specific women entrepreneurs who are contributing in a positive way by: reducing waste, promoting recycling, cleaning up the environment, educating others, etc.

If you are a woman entrepreneur whose business is environmentally conscious and would like to be profiled on my blog, please comment below or contact me directly by using the reply section on my “about” page.

I look forward to hearing about your efforts to go green!!