#but i looked up the salaries and realized that my mix of talent and motivation would never get me to a salary i needed for my real passion

[woodworkingpastor]

Sunday, September 20, 2020--Barnabas and Saul are called--  Acts 13:1-3

One of the more challenging aspects of trying to be the church in the midst of a pandemic is the loss of the structures of congregational life, those patterns and rhythms that help us stay in proper relationship to God, one another, and the world around us. In the years I’ve been your pastor, there have typically been two of these structural things that happen in the fall that occupy a good bit of my summer in preparation: the Discipleship 101 class for new members, and the fall Stewardship emphasis.

If this were a normal year, I suspect today would have been week two of the Discipleship 101 class. That isn’t happening at the moment, because it’s a Sunday School event and we’re not able to all be together. But the Fall Stewardship emphasis is beginning this morning. Our Executive Committee is working on the 2021 budget and slate of officers, and in a few weeks you’ll be given a pledge card. The structures of our congregational life are radically altered these days, but they are not invisible.

Our focus this fall is on the theme Come build a church. It is centered around a love offering that the Apostle Paul was collecting for Christians in Jerusalem. Paul mentions this offering four times in three different New Testament letters. It seems that there was a famine in Jerusalem and the Christians there were struggling. We can understand why Paul would be motivated to receive this offering—Paul knew Jerusalem, he had a lot of connections there.

But there is something more than that at work here. Honestly, it’s related to what we’ve been talking about in Romans for the last several weeks—Paul is trying to build a global church united under the Lordship of Jesus, where the joys and sufferings of Christians in one place are recognized and addressed by Christians in another place. It’s not easy, and there are many reasons why it might not work. This love offering is one way Paul is building a church.

As I studied these texts over the summer, I came to a significant realization:

The love offering is bigger than the money. It is about our life together.

So that means we have a few things to talk about before we get to the offering, which brings us to today’s text on Barnabas’ and Saul’s call to ministry, Acts 13:1-3.

Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a member of the court of Herod the ruler, and Saul. While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." Then after fasting and praying they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

Congregations need to have a method for calling persons to ministry. One of the more interesting ways of doing this comes from Mennonite churches that practice what we in the Church of the Brethren call the plural, non-salaried ministry. The leaders of the congregation would recognize the need for a new minister—possibly because a current minister was no longer able to continue in that role. They would identify potential candidates from within the congregation. After a time of prayer a number of hymnals would be placed on the table in front of the church; one of them would have a slip of paper inside. All the potential candidates would pick up a hymnal and open the cover; whoever had the one with the paper was set apart for the ministry, called by God. It’s a story with Biblical precedent—in Acts 1 the apostles replaced Judas by “casting lots.”

Imagine what that would be like—coming to church as a member and leaving as a pastor! You begin to realize that the Gospel we preach makes some very deep and personal claims on our identity. Who we are and how we see ourselves—including the role we play within the congregation—is not simply up to us. God has a claim on our lives!

The assumption behind a church that takes “calling” seriously is what we Brethren call “the priesthood of all believers.” What it means is that we understand our life in Christ to involve more than just our response to God’s invitation to “Come, follow me.” Having accepted the marvelous gift of God’s redemption, we become agents of redemption. (Wouldn’t that make an interesting Christian adventure movie!) Our whole lives—time, talent, treasure, and testimony—are available to God.

This is such an important concept that the Church of the Brethren polity document on Ministerial Leadership—the document that defines how we call, train, and support pastors—doesn’t begin by talking about pastors, it begins by talking about all of us:

Our life together as Brethren has long reflected a strong agreement with the concept of the priesthood of all believers: every sister or brother baptized into faith enters into the ministry of the Church. Ministerial leadership, then, begins with every member and grows out of strong congregational leadership. Deacons, trustees, Sunday school teachers and countless others offer their time, talents, and selves to keep congregations healthy and vital.

That committee or commission assignment; that invitation to teach in a Sunday School class; the call to serve as a Deacon or a greeter or a worship leader or a musician; each of these are so much more than a slot to fill on a slate or “one more thing that needs to be done.” When we are at our best, we recognize that we are participating in the realization of God’s kingdom. We live in contested territory, and there is a battle at work for truth and justice and righteousness. Lives are at stake and we are called to be agents of redemption, putting the world to rights in the manner of Jesus.

The work begins in prayer

It is significant that this text describes a prayer meeting. Prayer and worship is where the work of the church begins and is sustained. This is where we gather both to tell ourselves the truth and to “detox” from all the mental and spiritual junk we accumulate in the world.  But do we believe that something like this might happen in our lives?

Writer Annie Dillard is skeptical. She writes:

On the whole, I do not find Christians…sufficiently sensible of conditions. Does anyone have the foggiest idea what sort of power we so blithely invoke? Or, as I suspect, does no one believe a word of it? The churches are children playing on the floor with their chemistry sets, mixing up a batch of TNT to kill a Sunday morning. It is madness to wear ladies’ straw hats and velvet hats to church; we should all be wearing crash helmets. Ushers should issue life preservers and signal flares; they should lash us to our pews. For the sleeping god may wake someday and take offense, or the waking god may draw us out to where we can never return.

It’s interesting to me how “unremarkable” the Scripture text really feels. There are so many questions we’d like to know the answers to: what did it look like for the Holy Spirit to call? How did they know it was the Holy Spirit? How did they come to agree on the Spirit’s message? But none of these questions are answered.

All we know is that the church prayed, the Spirit called, and the ones called obeyed. Barnabas and Saul had received some good training in Antioch, and they had done plenty of good work there. But now God was calling them—40% of the church’s leadership—to serve somewhere else.

The New Testament is focused on missionary endeavors in large part because our lives are shaped by knowing the end toward which creation is moving. In our life together you see the beginnings of the end—not in some prediction on when the world would end, but in the way we shape our lives in response to the Gospel.

How do you live in response to the Gospel?

Some think that once they’ve “accepted Jesus” then they have done all they needed to do. In some cases, however, you might not recognize anything has changed.

For some, faith is a Sunday morning add on—like a good suit or nice dress; it’s there when we need it but spends most of our lives waiting to be worn.

Some live as if the Bible is a how-to manual to solve life’s problems. Whatever you mention to another person, they are there with three steps to a better marriage or words of comfort in difficult times. They always have just the right response for your situation—whether you’ve asked for it or not.

Some people live with a deep sense of thankfulness and gratitude for what God has done in their lives, and it shows in their demeanor.

But I believe it’s most important to recognize that the values of eternity are on display in the present, and that our life together is to be part of the greatest rescue and recovery operation in the history of the universe. We have the opportunity to establish outposts of another kingdom, embassies of another world in the midst of this one; our calling is to make disciples

So what about us? I made the point earlier that Paul’s desire to receive a love offering for the Christians in Jerusalem was about much more than raising money—it was about building a global church. So too our fall Stewardship series is about more than just our financial pledge—it’s about our commitment to be an agent of reconciliation.

So what about us? These hymnals aren’t here because we’re calling a pastor. For now, imagine that they’re here because God needs someone to do some new thing. Are you willing to pick one up and see if the slip of paper is inside, calling you to serve?

[attic-chest]

quarantingzz

right when i got laid off from Uber, i had mixed emotions. happy? sad? excited? hopeful? crappy? i felt all those emotions and it all rained down on me like a fuckin hurricane, but i can say most of it was feeling thrilled of what’s yet to come for me. back when i still have my 9-5 job, i’ve been dreading every day having to go to work that i don’t enjoy anymore. i didn’t like what i was doing and where i was at. so for me to get my unmotivated ass to work, i always go and grab all the opportunities i could get just so i could fill the emptiness that i’ve been feeling. i got myself promoted. at first it was fun but then, it wasn’t enough. i did everything i could but the emptiness was still there. when this pandemic arose and WFH was our only option, i was really happy not bc of the pandemic of course but because i got to finally have a break from the everyday routine of going to work. but then again, no matter how many new things happen at work, I’M STILL IN A PLACE I DON’T FUCKING LIKE ANYMORE and i still carry that emptiness inside me. i’ve been wanting to file for a resignation for so long and it’s always getting pushed back. i’ve been stalling for way too long already and i couldn’t find the right time to resign because #1: i dont want to leave my friends, #2 they’re pretty generous when it comes to salary, bonuses and incentives and #3 workload is not that heavy. it was so hard to fucking let go of. so i decided i’ll file at the end of the year instead, but bwoi oh bwoi the universe made the move and removed me from the work i’ve been loathing so much. maybe i just felt sad at first because it was too sudden and i haven’t figure out what i’ll do next. but then i realized that if the universe already wants me to move to the next chapter of my life then i should keep moving forward and hope for the best. *fingers cross*

first thing i asked myself was, “what should i do now?”. “well, you’re free! you can do almost anything! what are you so worried about? all your plans can now be possible. you can now use your talent and get paid for your artworks! van life can now come to reality! or you can someday travel while doing freelance work. you got all your time in your hands now.”, i told myself. then something lit up inside me. finally after a long time, i felt excited to find a work/project that i like. 

when i submitted my first application on Upwork, i got accepted right away! and now that i finished my first project with my first client, a new one just sent me a project proposal. she asked me to recreate the illustration she sent. and here’s her reply.

this really made my day!! and also my first client just offered me a new project as well. so i currently have 2 ongoing projects at the moment 💜 always always thankful to the Universe for all the good things in my life right now. a big thanks as well to the book that im currently reading cause it really motivated me to get my ass moving. also, LAW OF ATTRACTION WORKS. i'll talk about that in another post. anyways, that's all. just want to get these here so i can look back on this and set as a reminder to myself just in case self-doubt comes knocking again.

[merriecana]

Serial Cheater: Ch. 2

[Human!AU DenNor When you find that special person, the one who you think you'll spend the rest of your life with... You'd do anything for them-anything to keep the love there, in your life... Even if that means getting on your knees and begging. Mikkel is cheating on Sigve and Sigve is trying to stop it--unconventionally. Rated Teen for language, rating will go up in third chapter. Warnings: Cheating and Language Part one is here 

Find this story on AO3 here] 

             Sigve sat idly, tapping the end of his pen against his lips as he stared down at his notebook in front of him. His therapist had insisted he start journaling to stop him from completely bottling up his emotions and thoughts. He let out a low sigh and surveyed the page staring up at him. Bottling up was his specialty. The fact that he was majorly introverted only added to this talent of his. It wasn’t that he didn’t feel the full range of human emotions or that he didn’t know how to express himself, he just very rarely felt pressed to talk about how he felt. Which would eventually lead to…bottling up. So he did his best to write down what he was feeling at the end of his day, more to show his therapist that he was actually putting in work than anything else.

             It had been two years since he’d spoken to Antonio about seeing Mikkel while the two of them had been together, and things were going swimmingly. That is, if Mikkel having found three new partners while being active on a gay dating app along with taking out of their joint banking account to finance his dates with these men and women is considered “swimmingly”.

             Sigve had done his part in trying to battle off these suitors but he just got tired and so he let it go on while agonizing over the details. He knew the code to Mikkel’s phone and would check every now and again—he was getting sloppy honestly. He would just leave his phone out nowadays. It seemed like a big secret that everyone knew. Berwald, a close friend who owned a local restaurant, had reached out on multiple occasions to offer him a place to stay if he needed it. Sigve hadn’t spoken directly to Berwald about the ongoing issue, but with the history between Berwald and Mikkel it was safe to assume that Berwald had a good grasp of the problem in their relationship.

             While Sigve wrote about his feelings almost nightly, he found that he kept coming back to Mikkel and his serial cheating. He would go to lengths to describe the pain that Mikkel inflicted upon him in his journal, but when it came time to speak with his therapist he would find something else to psycho-analyze about himself. He talked about his lack of social skills and his issues making friends. His therapist would then bring up the fact that he needed to be sure to be aware of codependency developing between himself and Mikkel. As soon as that was brought up he’d move on to a new topic. Body issues, stress at work, how to manage a group of individuals at work who were incredibly intelligent without talking down to them, the cons of buying a dog, his fear of falling out of trees that came from somewhere in his childhood, his major issues with the noises people made when they eat. He just kept putting it off. He kept letting their lives become more and more entangled because…

             Because maybe Mikkel would see that they share a bank account and realize that Sigve received the statements. Maybe he would stop to think about how many hours he had to work to afford their apartment that they shared because they decided to make that step. Maybe, when Sigve played Mikkel’s favorite song that he hated just so they could dance together to it, Mikkel would remember telling him that the way he danced made him fall in love. Maybe Mikkel would feel how cold Sigve treated him at night. Maybe Mikkel would go to that shitty Italian place that they went to on their first date and remember that feeling of young love that they had. Maybe buying groceries that catered to both of their specific tastes would remind him… Of something. Maybe he should just stop fucking trying so hard.

             He’d rationalized this thousands of times. He’d written it down in almost every journal. He’d listed hundreds of reasons that he had given Mikkel to stay with him and yet… Mikkel wandered—No. He didn’t wander. He breezed in and out of his life as if they weren’t in a 6-year long relationship. As if Sigve didn’t give him every piece of his heart in some fucked up appeasement tactic.

Hollowness swept over him the way the tide pummels the shore. For the first time in 6 long years, Sigve saw the end of the tunnel. It wasn’t going to change and it wouldn’t get better. Mikkel didn’t change for Berwald and he wouldn’t change for himself. He was wasting his life. He was accomplished—an engineer who was more than capable of being self-sufficient. He was attractive, under-valued, and on a track for lupus if his stress level remained at the level it had been throughout the past two years. His Xanax dosages had gone up while his self-esteem plummeted to lows that he hadn’t felt since highschool. He was having issues maintain friends at work because whenever anyone asked about his relationship his walls got even higher, and harder to get through. His therapist once lectured him on how “relationships are supposed to bring out the best in people” and if this was his best… Then he was shit out of luck.  

“It’s gotta end… ” He mumbled to himself.

             It was the first time he’d said it out loud and it broke his heart even further than it already was. He would have cried, but it wouldn’t have done anything. He realized about a year ago that crying didn’t fix anything. That, and that Mikkel was shit at comforting someone… Sigve closed his journal and glanced up at the clock. Mikkel should be home soon and the thought made his heart leap into his throat.

I guess that’s a sign, he thought apathetically, heading towards the bathroom to grab half a Xanax. Probably not the best idea, but with the rapid level that his heartrate was accelerating, he would need it to even consider talking to Mikkel tonight. And he was going to.—Do it, that is, not just consider it. He pressed his tongue firmly against his teeth, trying to quell the anxiety that was turning his stomach in knots. After a few seconds of staring blankly at the bottle in his hand he shook his head and popped it open.

             Better to not let his anxiety talk for him. His anxiety was at the root of this shit and now rational Sigve was going to have to dig himself out of this mess. A tied bank account, both their names on the apartment lease, furniture that they’d bought together over the years, plans for an upcoming vacation together, the fact that their friends ran in somewhat similar circles. There was just so much to piece apart once they were done and he had no idea how to do it. He’d molded their relationship to become that intertwined so Mikkel wouldn’t just… up and leave.

             He walked out into the living room and looked at all the pieces of their lives that were scattered across the room. Layers built upon layers that were going to come crashing down when Sigve confronted him. It was like the world’s most fucked up game of Jenga ever. His heart was still pounding as he let himself collapse onto the couch to wait. It would just be easier to keep going. Easier to ignore it all. Easier to have someone to call your own than be alone.

             As he sat, the silence set in. This was what being alone felt like. He glanced around the cozy home and took it all in. The place was a mix of themselves—what would happen when Mikkel’s things were gone? What kind of couch would he buy that was just for himself? It was a stupid thought but even his living conditions reflected that fact that in his 26 years of living, there wasn’t really a time that he’d lived alone. And there was no reason for him to get a place with a roommate when he was earning a full salary so… He’d have to figure it out.

             He was pulled out of his thoughts by the door opening. If he could sink into the couch and disappear he would have, but he couldn’t. The hollow feeling in his chest wouldn’t let him. It hurt enough to be a motivation to never, ever feel like this again. And so, even though he wasn’t sure his legs would keep him upright, he stood. Mikkel gave him a slightly confused smile and maneuvered his way around the couch to wrap Sigve in a warm hug. For a second, Sigve closed his eyes and tried to ignore how tight his chest was feeling. For a second, he wanted to believe that this would pass. But as he took a deep breath he smelled perfume on him and that was it. He pulled back from the warm embrace and stared up at his partner with what he hoped was a blank face.

“You smell like perfume. Not cheap shit at least—at least you still have good tastes.”

             Mikkel looked like he’d been slapped. His brows furrowed for a moment then the look melted into what Sigve called the “kicked dog” face that was Mikkel’s go to during fights.

“Must be the girl at work’s, she drowns herself in that shit—Sig what is this?” He moved to take him by the arms to pull him back close. “You know I’d never—.”

“Eight.” Sigve interrupted, taking a step back. “You’ve fucked eight separate people in the six years that we’ve been exclusive. Three women, five men. I’d give you their names but I’m under the impression that you remember them so.” He felt like he was going to be sick.

             The roller coaster of emotions that Mikkel was going through was scary. Disbelief, realization, denial, to a blank stare.

“Sig, why are you doing this to yourself?” Mikkel asked, his voice a little too soft.

“Why am I doing this to myself? What exactly am I doing, Mikkie?” His voice started to shake as he finished his question. “What have I done that makes this my fault?”

“You always go and put your nose into everything, babe,” his voice was sickly sweet—understanding almost. He held out an arm with the intention of pulling Sigve into his chest. Sigve stared at the extended arm in silence.

             Mikkel was terrible with silence, Sigve knew that. The longer he stood there, not looking at him, the more antsy Mikkel became. The heavier that silence became the more likely Mikkel was to start spewing bullshit excuses. Sigve wanted to hear what he had to say but he wasn’t going to beg for it.

“Sigve,” Mikkel moved closer and placed himself where Sigve had no choice but to look at him. “Aren’t you gonna say anything?”

             He was going to chew a hole in his cheek before the night was over if he wasn’t careful. He let out a breath he didn’t know he’d been holding then set his jaw and stared hard into Mikkel’s face. The soft, caring expression on his face made his blood pressure rise.

“That’s really your response to me telling you that I know? You turn it on me? You give me that pitying look and tut your tongue as if I’m some curious child who’s found out that Santa isn’t real.”

“You’ve always known who I am, Sig…” Mikkel was watching him. Sigve saw the intelligence in his eyes and was once again reminded who it was that he was dealing with. Berwald called him the master manipulator.

“You’re an asshole, you know that?” The blinding smile Mikkel gave him made his insides twist.

“Of course I am, Sig, that’s basically my pet name.” He laughed softly and moved both his hands up to hold Sigve’s shoulders. “You know that better than anyone, babe.”              Sigve dropped his gaze for a second, he had expected some of this behavior. Just because he knew Mikkel and how Mikkel reacted to being found in the wrong. But this shit, this shit was toxic. Sigve knew that what Mikkel was doing was obvious and wrong but for some reason he still felt some guilt.

“Sig, I love you. You’ve got a beautiful heart and a wickedly sharp mind and… I’m stunned by you every day, but,” the grip on his shoulders tightened, “you really shouldn’t have snooped into my shit. You always get yourself so wound up and then I gotta come and unwind you.”

             Sigve swallowed thickly. His stomach felt like a rock.

“Sigve, you’re the light of my life, you’re charming, you’ve got a wickedly sharp mind and… I’m stunned by you every day, but,” the grip on his shoulders tightened, “You should have used that pretty brain of yours and not snooped into my shit.”

             Sigve swallowed thickly. It wasn’t an admission of guilt but it was on the right track. The denial was worse than an outright admission of guilt and he couldn’t quite explain why.

“You should have just left your business yours then. Spending money from the joint account on your business makes it my business. You’re my business.” His voice was low but he was spitting the words out by the end.

             Mikkel’s grip tightened a little bit more and Sigve’s heart jumped into his throat praying he wasn’t about to regret his tone. And for just a second he was afraid he just might… But then Mikkel let go, sucking his teeth at him.

“It didn’t mean anything, Sigve. It was just sex.”

             Sigve tilted his head to the side and his brows shot up. “And that makes it any better?”

             There it was. He was free of feeling paranoid and obsessed, he had been right. He had known that he was right, of course. But hearing Mikkel admit that he’d been cheating somehow made him feel lighter. The elephant wasn’t quite so big anymore.

“It means it wasn’t important. It was just casual sex.” Mikkel’s face was unreadable. And that was scarier than shit. Throughout all of their fights, Sigve had never seen Mikkel not show his expressions on his face. Who the fuck was this?

“You don’t take your fuckbuddies on casual dates. You don’t buy the people you’re just fucking gifts. The people you’re just fucking don’t talk about you like you’re their god damn partner.”

             Expression returned to Mikkel’s face as he shoved past Sigve, running a hand through his hair roughly. He paced the length of the kitchen twice before whirling on him.

“You fucking TALKED to these people? What the fuck is wrong with you. What, did you run them off? Did that make you feel big and strong, Sigve? Like you had some power over me? What else did you do, go through my phone and social shit? I bet you tailed me to work on some days.” Mikkel was yelling at this point.

             Sigve was confused. He wasn’t sure what kind of reaction this was, but it had been the last thing he’d expected. His phone was on him, so he wasn’t exactly scared, but this was a side of Mikkel he rarely saw. The way he was pacing made him look deranged, like he was ready to fly into a rage at any second. He pulled out his phone without taking his eyes off Mikkel was was now watching him intently.

“Oh so now you’re just going to sit there silent. Where’s my fucking answer?”

Come get me from the apartment right now

             Sigve typed the message without looking to the best of his ability. He shook his head at Mikkel, his jaw still set, and hit send.

“What answer do you deserve, Mikkel?”

             Riled up, Mikkel puffed out his chest, “I deserve--,” he began before Sigve cut him off.

“You deserve nothing more from me.” With that he made a beeline for the bedroom and slammed the door shut.

             With his back pressed against the cool wood he waited, heart thundering in his ears. He waited to see if Mikkel was coming in after him for a good minute before pushing off the door and grabbing a duffel bag and packing. His thoughts were racing. Why hadn’t he packed this earlier?—Probably some part of him wanted Mikkel to laugh off the accusations and give him a good excuse. One that he could believe so the two of them could go back to being together.

             He laughed softly at himself and grabbed an assortment of his clothes and shoved them into the bag. There was some clattering in the kitchen. Sigve went back to chewing on the insides of his cheeks. Hopefully Mikkel was an adult enough to not throw out his things if he left… He couldn’t let himself go there, honestly. He rested his hand on the handle to the bathroom and took a deep breath, really hoping Mikkel wouldn’t be in there when he opened the door.

             Upon entering, he let out a sigh of relief when he saw it was empty. At least he could get his medicine so he didn’t melt down as soon as he left. He grabbed as much of his stuff from the bathroom as he could. Just as he was loading it into his bag his phone went off. Berwald finally texted back.

             Finally, he thought, once again laughing at himself. It had been about three minutes since he sent the text and considering the fact that Berwald was likely at work the response was pretty timely. He shouldered the bag and opened his phone to read the text.

I’ll be there in 6, sorry I can’t make it sooner I’m walking out now

             Sigve’s chest felt a bit lighter. He didn’t have a ton of ride or die’s, but at the moment he felt like he did. He at the very least knew someone would be there soon if Mikkel decided to try anything. With that thought in mind he zipped his bag and stepped out into the hallway that led to the living room and kitchen. He steeled himself then headed for the door.

             Mikkel was sprawled on the couch, a drink in hand, staring blankly at the wall, pulling angrily from the glass every few minutes. The guy had a pretty high tolerance, so Sigve didn’t have to worry about his drunken belligerence—not for now at least. He planned on just walking past him and leaving but he realized he needed his keys to get back in and get his shit. They were hanging right by the television which was, as fate would have it, right in Mikkel’s line of sight.

             He grabbed the keys as quickly as he could, but he still felt Mikkel’s eyes on him. He felt some kind of wild guilt, as if Mikkel looking put out and sad was something he should be worried about. He swallowed and tried to push away the feeling. But Mikkel’s low voice cut through the tension filled silence before Sigve reached the door.

“So that’s it? Six years down the drain just like that? No goodbye, just walking out the door.” Sigve stared at the door in front of him for a second before glancing back to look at him. Mikkel hadn’t moved.

“You threw it down the drain the second you fucked someone else.” “I still love you, Sigve.” He sounded hurt. “That’s too bad, Mikkie,” Sigve said wrly, opening the door. “Because I fucking hate you.”

             With that, he stepped out into the warm summer night. The background noise of the city swept him up and set him at peace. Even with his life in pieces, the city was still alive. He was still alive—alone and alive.

             A gasp of a sob ripped through him as he made his way down the stairs to wait for Berwald to pick him up. This time, the tears felt cleansing. Things felt like they were going to get better. He didn’t feel whole, but maybe that would come with time.

[drmichaelmajickmikelikey]

Here's the introduction to my book, "I AM Magic Mike Likey! The Collector's Edition". If you enjoyed my TV-show in Winnipeg from 1985-1994, you'll LOVE this book, which is filled with humorous anecdotes and LOTS of pictures! It's September 2016, and I sit here and ponder all of my blessings with wonder and awe. At this point, I'm looking forward to spiritually-counseling my Theocentric Psychology clients, to holding a few metaphysically-oriented workshops, to writing several more books, and to the several magic-shows I'll be performing over the next few months, in addition to learning and honing more magic-tricks! It was in June of 1985 that I started video-taping the premiere episode, 58-minutes in length, of my television program "Kiddie Cabaret", which subsequently aired the following week on VPW 13 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It was a guaranteed pilot, which essentially meant that I was given approval to record subsequent 30 (really 28) minute shows ad-infinitum for airing at a weekly, regular time. I was only twenty-nine at the time, but I had dreamed of having my own television show (producing and starring in one) ever since watching "Magic Tom's Surprise Party" and "The Magic Land of Alakazam" on TV as a child! These shows featured a magician who did amazing illusions week-after-week, and I never tired at the wonders and marvels that these fellows had to offer. Every day (in Magic Tom Auburn's case) at 4:00 p.m. after school I sat myself down in front of the TV to see what tricks Magic Tom would do this time. He also featured a sci-fi adventure serial from the 1940's, "Rocket Man" which I embraced wholeheartedly as well. In those days in Montreal, Canada, all we had in the way of Canadian children's programming on television (besides American shows) was "The Friendly Giant", "Razzle Dazzle", "Tween Set", "Butternut Square", (later "Mr. Dressup") and "The Forest Rangers", all produced in Toronto, as well as "Johnny Jellybean", "Romper Room", and "Chez Helene", all produced in Montreal, in addition to Magic Tom Auburn's "Surprise Party". What a surprise indeed it was for me daily as I eagerly soaked up the tricks and sleight-of-hand that Magic Tom did; Tom was such an influence on young, Montreal, aspiring magicians, that they all called themselves "Magic this", or "Magic that", hence my professional stage-name, "Magic Mike". with the onslaught of other "Magic Mike's" in the 1980's and '90's, I later had to specify "Magic Mike Likey", but for many years in Winnipeg I was known locally as "Magic Mike". Winnipeg even spawned a young magician, "Magic Joey", an alcoholic beverage known as "Mike's Magic Elixir", and a high-end amusement centre in a Charleswood mall, "Magic Mike's"! My, the power of television, although quite frankly it was Public Access television, which essentially meant that anyone and his dog could have a TV-show on that channel because of CRTC regulations. CRTC stands for Canadian Radio and Television Commission. The CRTC would later (in 1994) rescind it's law, causing all Public Access channels across Canada to shut down, and with that the end of "Magic Mike & Company" as well as numerous other TV-show on that channel which Winnipeggers refer to as "The Golden Age of Television". The Golden Age of Television included such luminaries as "The Pollack and Pollack Show", and "The Continentals", more on these later on. There was also "The Jaret Sereda Show" and "The Noreen Shane Show", both of which featured and supported local talent. When local Winnipeg television stations decided to shut down production of all children's programming in 1994, gone were new productions of "The Fred Penner Show" and a show on broadcast television that I had been a regular on since 1990, "S'Kiddle Bits" with Juno-award winning-host, Joey Gregorash. This downward spiral (which resulted in my relocation to Vancouver, Canada in 1994) in television quickly upturned several years later when, in 2000, the CRTC reinstalled it's Public Access policies once again. But it was too late for most of us children/family entertainers who had long moved onto better things. Thanks to television of the '80's and '90's, we were given an indelible mark on the consciousness of the public; it still amazes me to this day, how many Winnipeggers of certain generations still recall "Magic Mike's Castle", one of my three television shows. Back to counting all my blessings. If the face of Winnipeg television wouldn't have changed back in 1994, I wouldn't have been motivated to move onto other things. Don't get me wrong; for years in Montreal, Toronto, and Winnipeg I had gainful employment as a Graphic Designer, Cartoonist/Caricaturist, and Magician, all at the same time! It still amazes me to this day, that I was able to buy a couple of houses on my salaries from these vocations, but nonetheless, I'm still grateful. With the loss of the television programs, and several of my regular clients, it was as if the rug was pulled out from beneath me, and I was thrown off; normally I would have just substituted these clients for several others, but there was something about losing the TV-shows that threw me off; it was as if I had "lost my gimmick", so-to-speak, as I was the only local magician to have a TV-show, and also, I'm told, it was the world's longest, regularly-produced TV-show about magic in the world! So there was also a record there; but it still threw me for a loop, and desperately seeking a new gimmick, I wrote and recorded in 1994 my second album, "M'ystery", the follow-up to my 1990 self-titled album "Magic Mike" which sold out in Winnipeg. I recorded it and mixed it in 24 straight hours, no sleep, with dedicated friends and musicians who had stood by my side for 13 years. With this in hand and a van filled with my belongings, we made our way to Vancouver in September of 1994. My girlfriend and I at the time had paired down six rooms of furniture into a crammed mini-van along with our two cats, seeking our fame and fortune. In retrospect, I should have dealt with and healed the trauma of apparently losing so much, (the shows and clients) but I did not, and subsequently suffered for it, arriving in this sight-unseen, bright and shiny new town with a bad attitude consisting of anger, resentment, and defensiveness. I slowly healed myself, but then I was treated very poorly (with verbal abuse almost daily and threats of physical abuse) at a New Westminster market where I had set up my retail business. I was unaware of the unusually large amount of drug addicts and people suffering from mental illnesses who resided there. Knowing this helped me to keep some semblance of perspective and objectivity. A year or so later, I began to lose all of my family members who resided in Toronto and Montreal, including my dad and favorite aunt in 1995, and favorite uncles in 1996, followed by my mother and other family members a few years later. This all resulted in my redefining myself yet again, (I had to "adapt" numerous times before) but also to finding "the real me" for the first time. I began to turn inward once again for answers, and I've never looked back! What seemed like tragedy and loss eventually resulted in my growth into a Clinical Hypnotherapist, Doctor of Theocentric Psychology, International Author, and BlogTalk Radio Host/Producer. For awhile I was right "down in the trenches", helping to heal the local down-and-outers, while in reality I was also healing myself. Now 23 years later my "humanitarian work" is sincere, not just about myself hanging on for survival. Again, I'm grateful for this. If you want to learn more about myself as "Dr. Michael Likey", find me on Facebook and search me on Amazon. This book is all about Magic Mike Likey. In reference to that; part of my re-empowering myself and coming back to magic after a 10-year absence, (to study and get three Doctorates) I jokingly and semi-seriously said, "I AM Magic Mike"! This was after returning several years ago to Winnipeg for a couple of book-signings, ("The Science of the Soul") and having a close friend say to me, "Smile, your glow rubs off on people; you glow when you smile; you ARE Magic Mike!" I realized the "power" in that statement: the character of "Magic Mike" that I had created and brought to life on stage and on television brings light and sunshine to people's lives, through his corny jokes, wondrous magic, and music; it re-empowers others, so why not re-empower myself through the very character that I had created? Why not indeed! Thus, the title for this book was born, "I AM Magic Mike Likey!" to help to convey a little of the real magic in life that I've been able to experience, and hopefully to share with you to some degree. The various chapters in this book are in no particular chronological order, merely random musings of a mad magician! As a thought, idea, or remembrance came to me, I wrote them down. There is no rhyme nor reason to this book, outsiders will not likely get too much from it; Winnipeggers of "certain generations" most certainly will, and it's for you that I'm lovingly sharing my life as Magic Mike Likey! Purchase “I AM Magic Mike Likey! The Collector’s Edition” on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/AM-Magic-Mike-Likey-Collectors/dp/1539092550

[antionetterparker]

Ranking the 20 best tips for starting a business in 2019

I’m guessing you landed on this page because you’ve been scheming up ideas for starting a business.

You’re on the right track in life.

Since I’ve built a couple 6-figure businesses in my day, I figured I could drop some intel for y’all.

There’s no better feeling than quitting your day job and building something that’s 100% for you. Coming up with business ideas for your business is the easy part.

The hard part is deciding which ideas are worthwhile, and then actually acting on them.

Although I’m a bit biased towards digital businesses, these tips will work for any type of business.

Let’s go.

30. Elect your LLC as an S-corp

When you file your taxes, you can elect to be taxed as an s-corporation instead of an LLC, even if you are an LLC.

They’re pretty similar, but an s-corp filing looks at you (the owner) as an employee of your business rather than a partner and pays you a salary. The salary you pay yourself is the only part of your earnings subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes, whereas without the s-corp status, you’d be paying that on all your profits. (1)

29. Solve a pain point

If your business idea does one thing, make sure that it fills a market need. Basically, look for a market first before you create a product (too many people do this the other way around).

How do you know if your idea does solve a pain-point in society?

Test it. Spend $100 on Facebook ads and target your product to your audience. Decent sales means you might be on to something.

According to Fortune Magazine, 42% of failed start-ups said that a lack of market need for their product was the reason they failed. [2]

28. Stop chasing shiny objects

Once you pick a business model, commit to it. Dropping your business 3 months in to chase the next hot business model will just lead to failure after failure.

Truth is, you can succeed with nearly any business model. When you’re deep into business model X and not seeing results, it might look like business model Y works better, but chances are your situation would be the same if you had started out with business model Y.

You just have to stick with it for the long term and block out any “grass is greener” thoughts.

27. Set specific short and long-term goals

Long-term goals are the big wins you’re going for, while short-term goals are the day-to-day or week-to-week accomplishments that keep the motivational fire burning.

It’s important that your goals are more specific than “make a lot of money” too. For example, say you want to make $100,000 in revenue this year. Break that down to a daily revenue amount (about $274) and strive to hit that amount each day.

26. Sharpen your sales skills

At its core, business is just selling. Brush up on your sales skills, but also your copywriting skills. Take courses, read books, etc.

Also, if you’re afraid of selling, now’s the time to squash that fear and get over it.

25. Outsource

You should outsource two different kinds of work:

1) Low-value, time-consuming work

2) Work you’re not good at

The former type of work is usually filled by virtual assistants, while the latter might entail functions like accounting, content marketing, or legal stuff.

Websites like Fiverr, PeoplePerHour, and Upwork are good for outsourcing one-time jobs you don’t want to do at a low cost.

24. Start a low-cost business

The second reason start-ups fail? Lack of sufficient capital. Nearly 30% of failed start-ups have cited this as the reason their business went south. [3]

Starting a business with a low budget, or even no budget, is possible, especially nowadays with the internet. Dropshipping, blogging, affiliate marketing, and info products are all great examples.

23. Bootstrap

Bootstrapping is the way of the future. Plenty of today’s biggest companies started out bootstrapping, or completely funding themselves rather than accepting outside funding and venture capital at early stages.

This gives you full control over your business, teaches you to be scrappy in times of hardship, and according to the Harvard Business Review, bootstrapped companies actually attract better talent.

Dell, Facebook, Apple, Coca Cola, eBay, Microsoft, and plenty more were all bootstrapped. [4]

22. Start while you’re still employed

Have a job? Stick with the job, save some emergency cash, and pour your spare time and money into your business until it’s making a steady income. When the timing’s right, jump ship and go into full-time business mode.

Some might actually fare better jumping ship early to get that “I need to succeed” psychological boost (the “back against the wall” method), but don’t do it that way unless you’re fine with the risk.

21. Take consistent action

Reading every business book on earth won’t earn you anything if you don’t take action. Neither will overthinking your business idea for months.

Obvious enough, but many people either say they’ll start a business and never do or give up after the initial rush of starting something new fades.

Don’t give up and quit overthinking. Act. Working on your business consistently every day is what brings results.

20. Don’t fixate on mistakes

Fixating on your mistakes too long can demoralize you into working less on your business.

Instead of wasting your time freaking out about something you did wrong, learn what you can from your mistakes and apply your knowledge moving forward.

After all, failure is a necessary part of success. Just search the internet for “famous failures” and you’ll see.

19. Manage your finances correctly

Mixing your personal and business finances is a big no-no. It makes it hard to keep track of things for taxes, but the law will also determine there’s no legal separation between you and your business by “piercing the corporate veil” and then strip away your LLC protections.

Get separate business checking and savings accounts and perhaps a business credit card for your business revenues and expenses. Unless you’re paying yourself, don’t draw on business funds for personal use.

18. Learn digital skillsets

I know I’ve said I’m digitally-biased, but this is important for all businesses nowadays. It doesn’t matter what kind of business you’re starting: the internet is how you spread the word, even if you’re in the brick-and-mortar game.

According to Forbes, these are the 7 most important digital marketing skills right now: analytics, SEO, HTML, WordPress, video, basic design skills, and SQL. [5]

Remember, you can outsource these… and if you want to take it all on yourself, there are plenty of trainings and software programs out there to help you out.

Learn the basics so you have the digital literacy to build your business.

17. Never stop marketing

Especially in the early stages of your business, you always should be marketing, even if you run a client service business and your client roster is full.

Because if 2 clients suddenly fire you tomorrow, you’ll be left out to dry unless you were looking for more clients.

16. Get good at time management

As an entrepreneur, time management means two things:

1) Focusing on the highest-ROI tasks first (selling, growing the business) and proceeding from there until you reach the lowest-ROI tasks.

2) Actually making time to get each task done throughout the day.

Try something like the Pomodoro technique. You’re “on” for 25 minutes, “off” for 5, rinse and repeat. Take a longer break every 4 Pomodoro sessions. (6)

15. Create multiple streams

I’m a big believer in diversifying and multiplying your income streams.

As a business owner or self-employed entrepreneur, not creating multiple income streams and sales channels is akin to an investor investing all their money in one company. What happens if that one company’s stock plummets? The same thing could happen to your income if you don’t multiply your streams.

Start with one, pour your time and resources into it, but then branch out from there when it’s finally bringing in decent cash — this will help you grow, and it’s the only way to achieve a sense of stability. Trying to build several new streams at the same time will only waste your money and burn you out.

14. Learn to pivot

If something isn’t working, don’t continue to beat a dead horse. Try something new instead.

Starting a new business is all about experimentation. If something isn’t working for you, just drop it and move on.

In the beginning, Dropbox, now a $1 billion tech company, tried again and again to explain their product to people via text, but no one was buying in. So instead, they decided to switch it up and make a funny video, almost as a joke, to describe their product instead.

What happened?

They went from 5,000 wait list sign ups to 75,000… overnight. [7]

13. Start with a minimum viable product

Don’t delay your launch. All you need to get started is an MVP (minimum viable product).

Once you’ve got that out on the market, you can tweak and improve until you’re raking in the cash.

Groupon started out as a group of friends and entrepreneurs who wanted to score discounts by buying things as a group. They made an app that allowed them to coordinate a group of 20 people (yep, just 20) who all wanted to buy the same thing, and then struck a deal with a local business. After realizing the power of group buying, Groupon was born. [8]

12. Start your business in Wyoming

You want to start up in a place that has a history of entrepreneurial success and a large pool of talented employees, but also (and more importantly), a good business tax climate and low costs.

Wyoming hits a home run on all these fronts, especially tax climate: they don’t have a corporate income tax, individual income tax, or gross receipts tax. They also have one of the lowest sales tax rates in the country. [9]

You can also consider Delaware or Puerto Rico (6% flat tax!) if your business is digital and you’re feeling alpha.

11. Don’t be afraid to experiment

Entrepreneurship = experimentation. Drill that into your head.

There’s a really good chance that your original idea to what you’re trying to do will evolve into something completely different, and that’s ok.

In fact, economists from the Harvard Business School published a study asserting that experimentation is not just key to, but in fact IS, entrepreneurship. [10]

10. Get some productivity apps

Todoist for organizing your work and keeping your to-do lists, Evernote for storing ideas or writing things down, Quickbooks for accounting/bookkeeping, etc.

Those aren’t your only options for those functions, so look around if you prefer something else.

Don’t go overboard on productivity apps. At some point, you’ll spend more time managing them than the time you saved using them in the first place.

9. Scout your competition

Know what they’re selling and for how much.

Know their conversion rates and their traffic analytics (Ahrefs, Alexa).

Read what people are saying about them. Read the reviews. Study their social media interactions. Check out news about the company and your industry in general.

What PPC keywords are they bidding on? (Spyfu)

What are they blogging about? If their SEO game is strong, how are they getting their links? (Ahrefs, Majestic)

8. Find a mentor

Get yourself a mentor. Forget originality — there’s nothing wrong with a copycat if they’re living a life you admire.

Do some googling, and find yourself an influencer in your industry. LinkedIn is a great place to do this if your niche is technical or business related, or if you’re more into something creative or visual do some searching on Instagram. Find their blog. Follow them on Twitter.

Read everything they put out, but more importantly, seek ways to serve them and expect nothing in return.

7. Build your network

“Your network is your net worth.” #truth

In the book Neighbor Networks by Ronald Burt, it’s shown that networking with a bunch of different people can boost your cognitive abilities and emotional intelligence.

And of course, networking can land you more clients and customers for your business. You might even meet a future business partner.

Thanks to the internet, networks are everywhere.

Facebook groups, sub-Reddits, and LinkedIn are probably the best places to start.

6. Use crowdfunding

82% of businesses fail to bring in enough cash to sustain themselves. Basically, there’s a good chance you’ll run out of money and flop early on. [11]

It’s not that hard to get funding for your business nowadays if you know a thing or two about PR and digital marketing.

Enter: crowdfunding. Websites like Kickstarter and GoFundMe have made it super easy to raise money for your idea, and you can still call yourself self-funded this way because it doesn’t count as venture capital.

5. Track everything

Remember how I said experimentation is at the core of entrepreneurship?

Well, experiments are about more than just trying a bunch of new stuff. You also have to track the success and failure of each thing you try in order to know what works and what doesn’t.

Test your ideas. Run polls, do A/B testing, track when something is doing well and figure out why. Then scale it.

4. Start a blog

Why do I have this blog?

I could just do my own thing, bring in my money and end it there. So why do I go through the trouble of spending 20+ hours on posts like this?

Because I think it’s important as an entrepreneur and business owner to share the knowledge and expertise you gain along the way.

Starting a blog that helps others offers them value, which is one of the best ways to get people to trust you and come back for more. It builds your cred and reputation, and it’s one of the best marketing tools out there.

Not to mention that constantly pumping out blog content means you’ll start to rank for certain keywords in internet searches.

3. Learn SEO

Imagine a successful business without Google involved.

It’s hard. Without traffic, (which is mostly Google, Facebook or YouTube) you’ve got nothing.

Lack of SEO is a big reason why businesses fail.

What really is search engine optimization??

1) Build out baller, organized content going after keywords….like this post… “how to start a business”, which gets searched 39,000 times per month

2) Get other people to mention or link to your articles

That’s 80% of SEO. Congrats.

2. Build time wealth

There’s a lot of talk nowadays about following your passions, finding your dream job, and turning what you love into a career.

Why not just make a ton of money and build a business that allows you to have time wealth?

Once you have an online business making $10,000 per month, you’ve built a lifestyle that allows you to follow your passions.

You don’t even need to be passionate about your business, although it definitely helps.

1. Help local businesses

Here’s the thing: there’s no more predictable path to building a profitable business than focusing on local services.

Competition isn’t there.

Instead of trying to start your own local business – which would require inventory, start-up capital, a storefront – you can help these businesses by providing them with leads to build their business.

Local lead generation provides more value to local businesses than just about anything else.

What business will tell you, “No thanks, we’re good, not interested in more leads..”

1) Build out websites that go after local niches, like pest control in a big city or a personal injury lawyer

2) Collect leads through email opt-ins or a phone number that you rent so you can listen to the calls

3) Collect money either through a pay-per-lead model or pay-per-sale, depending on what you negotiate with the business owner

Leads are the superpower of the Internet. Few people understand this.

Recap

There’s really been no better time to start a business.

There are some key takeaways when it comes to starting your own business that I want you to remember from this article:

1. Do something digital

Why? Low start-up costs and quick feedback loops, which validates your idea without spending more than $500.

Freedom to work from wherever you want, whenever you want.

2. Do something that can be automated

There’s no sweeter feeling than going to bed at night knowing that the paychecks you’re making will keep rolling in, even in your sleep.

Time is your most precious resource. Figure out which of your business ideas you can automate, and go with those.

3. Do something local

You may have dreams of going global, but start local first. Narrowing your focus and targeting a specific area will give you a huge competitive advantage.

4. Do something scaleable

Being able to reel in passive income is sweet, but it’s a little underwhelming when you’re reeling in $2.03 a month from your Amazon affiliate account.

It’s gotta scale.

—

Whatever you do, the most important advice of all is this: start your business.

Start something, because more than likely, your business will evolve anyway as you work on it daily.

Stop sitting around scrolling through articles.

I wasn’t shy about my #1 recommendation (local lead generation) because I’ve seen it work for many, many people.

I’ll Paypal you $500 if you show me a better business to start than our method.

via https://mlmcompanies.org/ranking-the-20-best-tips-for-starting-a-business-in-2019/

[mlmcompanies]

I’m guessing you landed on this page because you’ve been scheming up ideas for starting a business.

You’re on the right track in life.

Since I’ve built a couple 6-figure businesses in my day, I figured I could drop some intel for y’all.

There’s no better feeling than quitting your day job and building something that’s 100% for you. Coming up with business ideas for your business is the easy part.

The hard part is deciding which ideas are worthwhile, and then actually acting on them.

Although I’m a bit biased towards digital businesses, these tips will work for any type of business.

Let’s go.

30. Elect your LLC as an S-corp

When you file your taxes, you can elect to be taxed as an s-corporation instead of an LLC, even if you are an LLC.

They’re pretty similar, but an s-corp filing looks at you (the owner) as an employee of your business rather than a partner and pays you a salary. The salary you pay yourself is the only part of your earnings subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes, whereas without the s-corp status, you’d be paying that on all your profits. (1)

29. Solve a pain point

If your business idea does one thing, make sure that it fills a market need. Basically, look for a market first before you create a product (too many people do this the other way around).

How do you know if your idea does solve a pain-point in society?

Test it. Spend $100 on Facebook ads and target your product to your audience. Decent sales means you might be on to something.

According to Fortune Magazine, 42% of failed start-ups said that a lack of market need for their product was the reason they failed. [2]

28. Stop chasing shiny objects

Once you pick a business model, commit to it. Dropping your business 3 months in to chase the next hot business model will just lead to failure after failure.

Truth is, you can succeed with nearly any business model. When you’re deep into business model X and not seeing results, it might look like business model Y works better, but chances are your situation would be the same if you had started out with business model Y.

You just have to stick with it for the long term and block out any “grass is greener” thoughts.

27. Set specific short and long-term goals

Long-term goals are the big wins you’re going for, while short-term goals are the day-to-day or week-to-week accomplishments that keep the motivational fire burning.

It’s important that your goals are more specific than “make a lot of money” too. For example, say you want to make $100,000 in revenue this year. Break that down to a daily revenue amount (about $274) and strive to hit that amount each day.

26. Sharpen your sales skills

At its core, business is just selling. Brush up on your sales skills, but also your copywriting skills. Take courses, read books, etc.

Also, if you’re afraid of selling, now’s the time to squash that fear and get over it.

25. Outsource

You should outsource two different kinds of work:

1) Low-value, time-consuming work

2) Work you’re not good at

The former type of work is usually filled by virtual assistants, while the latter might entail functions like accounting, content marketing, or legal stuff.

Websites like Fiverr, PeoplePerHour, and Upwork are good for outsourcing one-time jobs you don’t want to do at a low cost.

24. Start a low-cost business

The second reason start-ups fail? Lack of sufficient capital. Nearly 30% of failed start-ups have cited this as the reason their business went south. [3]

Starting a business with a low budget, or even no budget, is possible, especially nowadays with the internet. Dropshipping, blogging, affiliate marketing, and info products are all great examples.

23. Bootstrap

Bootstrapping is the way of the future. Plenty of today’s biggest companies started out bootstrapping, or completely funding themselves rather than accepting outside funding and venture capital at early stages.

This gives you full control over your business, teaches you to be scrappy in times of hardship, and according to the Harvard Business Review, bootstrapped companies actually attract better talent.

Dell, Facebook, Apple, Coca Cola, eBay, Microsoft, and plenty more were all bootstrapped. [4]

22. Start while you’re still employed

Have a job? Stick with the job, save some emergency cash, and pour your spare time and money into your business until it’s making a steady income. When the timing’s right, jump ship and go into full-time business mode.

Some might actually fare better jumping ship early to get that “I need to succeed” psychological boost (the “back against the wall” method), but don’t do it that way unless you’re fine with the risk.

21. Take consistent action

Reading every business book on earth won’t earn you anything if you don’t take action. Neither will overthinking your business idea for months.

Obvious enough, but many people either say they’ll start a business and never do or give up after the initial rush of starting something new fades.

Don’t give up and quit overthinking. Act. Working on your business consistently every day is what brings results.

20. Don’t fixate on mistakes

Fixating on your mistakes too long can demoralize you into working less on your business.

Instead of wasting your time freaking out about something you did wrong, learn what you can from your mistakes and apply your knowledge moving forward.

After all, failure is a necessary part of success. Just search the internet for “famous failures” and you’ll see.

19. Manage your finances correctly

Mixing your personal and business finances is a big no-no. It makes it hard to keep track of things for taxes, but the law will also determine there’s no legal separation between you and your business by “piercing the corporate veil” and then strip away your LLC protections.

Get separate business checking and savings accounts and perhaps a business credit card for your business revenues and expenses. Unless you’re paying yourself, don’t draw on business funds for personal use.

18. Learn digital skillsets

I know I’ve said I’m digitally-biased, but this is important for all businesses nowadays. It doesn’t matter what kind of business you’re starting: the internet is how you spread the word, even if you’re in the brick-and-mortar game.

According to Forbes, these are the 7 most important digital marketing skills right now: analytics, SEO, HTML, WordPress, video, basic design skills, and SQL. [5]

Remember, you can outsource these… and if you want to take it all on yourself, there are plenty of trainings and software programs out there to help you out.

Learn the basics so you have the digital literacy to build your business.

17. Never stop marketing

Especially in the early stages of your business, you always should be marketing, even if you run a client service business and your client roster is full.

Because if 2 clients suddenly fire you tomorrow, you’ll be left out to dry unless you were looking for more clients.

16. Get good at time management

As an entrepreneur, time management means two things:

1) Focusing on the highest-ROI tasks first (selling, growing the business) and proceeding from there until you reach the lowest-ROI tasks.

2) Actually making time to get each task done throughout the day.

Try something like the Pomodoro technique. You’re “on” for 25 minutes, “off” for 5, rinse and repeat. Take a longer break every 4 Pomodoro sessions. (6)

15. Create multiple streams

I’m a big believer in diversifying and multiplying your income streams.

As a business owner or self-employed entrepreneur, not creating multiple income streams and sales channels is akin to an investor investing all their money in one company. What happens if that one company’s stock plummets? The same thing could happen to your income if you don’t multiply your streams.

Start with one, pour your time and resources into it, but then branch out from there when it’s finally bringing in decent cash — this will help you grow, and it’s the only way to achieve a sense of stability. Trying to build several new streams at the same time will only waste your money and burn you out.

14. Learn to pivot

If something isn’t working, don’t continue to beat a dead horse. Try something new instead.

Starting a new business is all about experimentation. If something isn’t working for you, just drop it and move on.

In the beginning, Dropbox, now a $1 billion tech company, tried again and again to explain their product to people via text, but no one was buying in. So instead, they decided to switch it up and make a funny video, almost as a joke, to describe their product instead.

What happened?

They went from 5,000 wait list sign ups to 75,000… overnight. [7]

13. Start with a minimum viable product

Don’t delay your launch. All you need to get started is an MVP (minimum viable product).

Once you’ve got that out on the market, you can tweak and improve until you’re raking in the cash.

Groupon started out as a group of friends and entrepreneurs who wanted to score discounts by buying things as a group. They made an app that allowed them to coordinate a group of 20 people (yep, just 20) who all wanted to buy the same thing, and then struck a deal with a local business. After realizing the power of group buying, Groupon was born. [8]

12. Start your business in Wyoming

You want to start up in a place that has a history of entrepreneurial success and a large pool of talented employees, but also (and more importantly), a good business tax climate and low costs.

Wyoming hits a home run on all these fronts, especially tax climate: they don’t have a corporate income tax, individual income tax, or gross receipts tax. They also have one of the lowest sales tax rates in the country. [9]

You can also consider Delaware or Puerto Rico (6% flat tax!) if your business is digital and you’re feeling alpha.

11. Don’t be afraid to experiment

Entrepreneurship = experimentation. Drill that into your head.

There’s a really good chance that your original idea to what you’re trying to do will evolve into something completely different, and that’s ok.

In fact, economists from the Harvard Business School published a study asserting that experimentation is not just key to, but in fact IS, entrepreneurship. [10]

10. Get some productivity apps

Todoist for organizing your work and keeping your to-do lists, Evernote for storing ideas or writing things down, Quickbooks for accounting/bookkeeping, etc.

Those aren’t your only options for those functions, so look around if you prefer something else.

Don’t go overboard on productivity apps. At some point, you’ll spend more time managing them than the time you saved using them in the first place.

9. Scout your competition

Know what they’re selling and for how much.

Know their conversion rates and their traffic analytics (Ahrefs, Alexa).

Read what people are saying about them. Read the reviews. Study their social media interactions. Check out news about the company and your industry in general.

What PPC keywords are they bidding on? (Spyfu)

What are they blogging about? If their SEO game is strong, how are they getting their links? (Ahrefs, Majestic)

8. Find a mentor

Get yourself a mentor. Forget originality — there’s nothing wrong with a copycat if they’re living a life you admire.

Do some googling, and find yourself an influencer in your industry. LinkedIn is a great place to do this if your niche is technical or business related, or if you’re more into something creative or visual do some searching on Instagram. Find their blog. Follow them on Twitter.

Read everything they put out, but more importantly, seek ways to serve them and expect nothing in return.

7. Build your network

“Your network is your net worth.” #truth

In the book Neighbor Networks by Ronald Burt, it’s shown that networking with a bunch of different people can boost your cognitive abilities and emotional intelligence.

And of course, networking can land you more clients and customers for your business. You might even meet a future business partner.

Thanks to the internet, networks are everywhere.

Facebook groups, sub-Reddits, and LinkedIn are probably the best places to start.

6. Use crowdfunding

82% of businesses fail to bring in enough cash to sustain themselves. Basically, there’s a good chance you’ll run out of money and flop early on. [11]

It’s not that hard to get funding for your business nowadays if you know a thing or two about PR and digital marketing.

Enter: crowdfunding. Websites like Kickstarter and GoFundMe have made it super easy to raise money for your idea, and you can still call yourself self-funded this way because it doesn’t count as venture capital.

5. Track everything

Remember how I said experimentation is at the core of entrepreneurship?

Well, experiments are about more than just trying a bunch of new stuff. You also have to track the success and failure of each thing you try in order to know what works and what doesn’t.

Test your ideas. Run polls, do A/B testing, track when something is doing well and figure out why. Then scale it.

4. Start a blog

Why do I have this blog?

I could just do my own thing, bring in my money and end it there. So why do I go through the trouble of spending 20+ hours on posts like this?

Because I think it’s important as an entrepreneur and business owner to share the knowledge and expertise you gain along the way.

Starting a blog that helps others offers them value, which is one of the best ways to get people to trust you and come back for more. It builds your cred and reputation, and it’s one of the best marketing tools out there.

Not to mention that constantly pumping out blog content means you’ll start to rank for certain keywords in internet searches.

3. Learn SEO

Imagine a successful business without Google involved.

It’s hard. Without traffic, (which is mostly Google, Facebook or YouTube) you’ve got nothing.

Lack of SEO is a big reason why businesses fail.

What really is search engine optimization??

1) Build out baller, organized content going after keywords….like this post… “how to start a business”, which gets searched 39,000 times per month

2) Get other people to mention or link to your articles

That’s 80% of SEO. Congrats.

2. Build time wealth

There’s a lot of talk nowadays about following your passions, finding your dream job, and turning what you love into a career.

Why not just make a ton of money and build a business that allows you to have time wealth?

Once you have an online business making $10,000 per month, you’ve built a lifestyle that allows you to follow your passions.

You don’t even need to be passionate about your business, although it definitely helps.

1. Help local businesses

Here’s the thing: there’s no more predictable path to building a profitable business than focusing on local services.

Competition isn’t there.

Instead of trying to start your own local business – which would require inventory, start-up capital, a storefront – you can help these businesses by providing them with leads to build their business.

Local lead generation provides more value to local businesses than just about anything else.

What business will tell you, “No thanks, we’re good, not interested in more leads..”

1) Build out websites that go after local niches, like pest control in a big city or a personal injury lawyer

2) Collect leads through email opt-ins or a phone number that you rent so you can listen to the calls

3) Collect money either through a pay-per-lead model or pay-per-sale, depending on what you negotiate with the business owner

Leads are the superpower of the Internet. Few people understand this.

Recap

There’s really been no better time to start a business.

There are some key takeaways when it comes to starting your own business that I want you to remember from this article:

1. Do something digital

Why? Low start-up costs and quick feedback loops, which validates your idea without spending more than $500.

Freedom to work from wherever you want, whenever you want.

2. Do something that can be automated

There’s no sweeter feeling than going to bed at night knowing that the paychecks you’re making will keep rolling in, even in your sleep.

Time is your most precious resource. Figure out which of your business ideas you can automate, and go with those.

3. Do something local

You may have dreams of going global, but start local first. Narrowing your focus and targeting a specific area will give you a huge competitive advantage.

4. Do something scaleable

Being able to reel in passive income is sweet, but it’s a little underwhelming when you’re reeling in $2.03 a month from your Amazon affiliate account.

It’s gotta scale.

—

Whatever you do, the most important advice of all is this: start your business.

Start something, because more than likely, your business will evolve anyway as you work on it daily.

Stop sitting around scrolling through articles.

I wasn’t shy about my #1 recommendation (local lead generation) because I’ve seen it work for many, many people.

I’ll Paypal you $500 if you show me a better business to start than our method.

[colinblouin]

Advice for Aspiring Leaders

It’s that time of year again, a time where many students ask me what I look for in a leader and what they should do if they’re interested in holding a leadership position. Truth be told, there’s no exact science to it. There are plenty of leadership styles out there, personality inventories, and so on, but the best leaders I’ve worked with have been a mix of many traits and abilities. To me, leadership is very organic and it totally depends on the leader. With that being said, I’ve come up with a few characteristics and nuggets of wisdom to hopefully help the aspiring leaders out there. So, without further ado...

There is no Y, O, or U in “Leadership”

This is a big one. You have to know what motivates you as a leader, and it can’t simply be because you want the title, or a resumé builder. Leadership is bigger than that, and there’s too much at stake to make yourself the focal point in any organizational capacity. Plain and simple, it’s not about you. If you’re motivated by your own self-interests, or if you have a sense of entitlement to the position in which you desire to hold, if you are chosen for that position, it won’t be nearly as rewarding as it ought to be.

Your leadership should be motivated by your passion to serve others, and your passion for the organization which you’re leading. That is that start of a great leader. You have to come into leadership with the realization that it’s not about you; it’s about serving something, be the organization or its causes, that is bigger than yourself. The greatest joy I would say any one person can ever feel is working with others to accomplish a goal that could not be done by any one person individually.

Your leadership can make or break an organization. You are much more likely to not only be successful as a leader, but to be appreciated as one, when you are selfless, humble yet hungry, and you have a self awareness that guides you to be empathetic and encouraging of others. What motivates you should be what motivates others, so...

Start with Why

It’s a good Simon Sinek read, and there are plenty of good Youtube videos (he has a few TedTalks) out there to hammer this point home, but you need the “why” to your “what” before you can be a good leader. It’s your purpose. The reason you show up. It not only helps you to decide what motivates you, but it ultimately helps you to communicate and motivate others. Find your purpose, and let that be your guide.

Often times, it’s easy to give our constituents the “what”, i.e. “we’re doing this”, or “we have to do that”, but it’s much harder to get others on board if there is no “why” to your “what”. People want to know why, often times just as much as we do what: it’s human nature. If you give the why, the purpose behind what you’re doing, and more specifically behind how you’re leading, and what you might need from others, it’s easier to create buy-in, and eventually, to find success.

Good Leaders Lead; Great Leaders Empower Others to Lead

Legacy and leadership go hand-in-hand, and because of that, your legacy should be at the forefront of your mind as you lead: what kind of state will the organization be in when you leave it? The question then shifts to not only if this organization is in a good place at the conclusion of your leadership, but are there others that will be ready and able to step up when the time comes? The best organizations empower others to step up; if you expand your organization’s leadership capacity, you increase your organizations success.

To do this, you have to encourage those around you, and show your sincere belief in them and their abilities. Look for others strengths and talents, and find ways to apply them and celebrate them within and beyond the organization. To be a good leader means to be a good mentor; model the way for others, but also help and guide them to their own successes. You’ll know you did your job well when you left your position of leadership, and the organization you’re leading, in a better place then when you found it, and in the most capable of hands.

Role up your Sleeves, Lead by Example

It may sound like a cliché. Many of us have heard “lead by example” a number of times. But there’s a deeper level of leadership found in such a cliché.

When I was 15, I worked in a grocery store for a major grocery chain. I remember being trained, and it came time for me to have to learn the procedures for cleaning a bathroom. Yes, a public bathroom. So who trained me? None other than the Store Manager, the highest paid individual in the building, was there with a scrub brush and cleaning solution. We spent the next hour and a half going around the store cleaning the bathrooms together. A man who made six figure salary, and a young boy who made $7.25 an hour.

Years later, he would retire, and as he and I had a conversation, I recalled that portion of my training, and I found myself asking him why he chose to clean bathrooms with me rather than have someone much further down the food chain do so. He told me this: “Leaders never ask anything of anyone they wouldn’t be willing to do themselves.”

This is important. It’s easy, more often than not, even encouraged, to delegate tasks as a leader. However, it’s just as important to work alongside each and every person you have the privilege to serve, when you have the opportunity. You have to show those who you lead that you’re in it together, no matter if the task is a dirty or difficult one. Role up your sleeves, get to work, and when it’s all said and done, you’ll be stronger as a leader for it.

Talk Less, Smile More

Not just a line from Hamilton (a personal favorite of mine), but a pretty valid bit of advice for leaders. Want another cliché? Sometimes it’s better to be the wisest voice in the room than the loudest. A good leader doesn’t jump the gun; they are composed, they take in information, and they process it in order to make informed decisions. They also let the passion guide them, but they don’t let it overcome them. 

Many times, the problems I���ve seen some leaders encounter is their inability to get out of their own way. What I mean by this, is that their leadership causes stagnation rather than progress. They get wrapped up in the little things, or they try to be the loudest voice in the room without logic or reasoning at the helm of their decision making, and it leads to a mess, sometimes small, and sometimes big. Don’t be that kind of “leader”.

Also understand that some of the greatest leaders are also the best listeners. The best leaders listen to understand, not simply to respond. Sometimes the people you’re working with just need to know you hear them, and beyond that, that you will try to do right by them. Not everything needs a response. Let your actions reflect your values, and the needs of those around you. Don’t just tell people you hear them; show them.

Don’t Be Afraid to Fail

There was a blog-post I did years ago called Millennials, Achievement, and the Importance of Failure. One of arguably the most important lessons all leaders must learn is that failure is inevitable; it’s what you do in response to that failure that determines just how good of a leader you really are.

Bad leaders take failure and place it on the organization, rather than accepting their own faults. Does that mean the organization doesn’t share some or much of the blame? Not exactly. But it is your responsibility to create a teachable moment from that failure, regardless of where the responsibility lies. Let your failure be a learning experience that propels your organization forward, rather than backwards.

Don’t be afraid to own up to your shortcomings; promise to work on them, and get better each and every day. Take constructive criticism; just because you’re a leader doesn’t mean you’re above improvement. Try to be proactive rather than reactive. Try not to make the same mistake twice.

Attitude is Altitude

This is one of my all time favorite bits of advice from one of my all time favorite mentors; I think it also happens to be one of the most important. It’s one of the truest things I know: enthusiasm is contagious, but negativity is a plague. People are aware of your attitude, they’re aware of how you carry yourself; they will be a reflection of that as you lead them. The line from Remember the Titans goes, “Attitude reflects leadership.” It’s true.

Whatever your organization may be going through, whatever challenges it may face, your attitude, determines where your organization will wind up. Your negativity will sink progress like quicksand, and will do nothing for morale. But your enthusiasm can, and ultimately will, help you to guide the organization to the heights it aspires to and beyond. Be enthusiastic. Even when its hard, even when your plate is full, even when others around you, aren’t: be enthusiastic. Your attitude will determine the level of success you reach both as an organization, and as a leader.

That’s it! 

Lead selflessly and authentically. 

Lead with a purpose. 

Lead to empower others. 

Lead by example.

Lead and embrace failure.

Lead with positivity and enthusiasm. 

[blackpjensen]

Get To Know Martin Flores

Martin Flores is the director of urban design and planning for San Diego’s Rick Engineering Co., a 60-year-old multidisciplinary planning, design and engineering firm that has grown to 430 employees and nine offices.

Flores oversees efforts in all five California offices. He and his staff manage large- and small-scale land-use planning and development; land entitlements; master planning; redevelopment; streetscapes; wayfinding and gateway signage; and river and urban park projects throughout California, Arizona, Colorado and Mexico. In addition, his team performs public outreach and supports participatory design endeavors, particularly with public realm improvements, civic buildings, community centers and parks.

Before joining Rick Engineering, Flores served for 15 years as the senior urban planner and landscape architect for the San Jose Redevelopment Agency. In that capacity, he designed and managed land development and public realm improvements and completed streetscape, lighting and signage design guidelines as well as neighborhood, river and urban park projects throughout San Jose.

A graduate of California Polytechnic State University at San Luis Obispo in landscape architecture, Flores has guest lectured at Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley and San Jose State University. He is a board member of Lambda Alpha International. Other memberships include the Downtown San Diego Partnership, Urban Land Institute, American Planning Association and the American Society of Landscape Architects. He is the past chair of the Landscape Architecture Design Council at his alma mater and most recently served as a panelist at the 2015 LABash, an annual student-led landscape architecture conference hosted each year since 1970.

PHOTOS: MARTIN FLORES

Proudest moments in business: My most satisfying moments are when I see a project I helped design or manage come to life. Most of my work is in the public realm. It begins with an idea that needs to be vetted through a political process, continues through funding and design processes and ends with construction. This may take many years and often includes the delicate negotiation of trade-offs and consideration of alternatives. This takes patience and persistence, but in the end, if and when it is built and people are enjoying or engaging in the space, that is my greatest joy.

I also started as a lecturer at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and was one of the original founders of the Landscape Architecture Design Council. This opportunity to mentor and teach students by “giving back” is rewarding. There is significant reward when students contact me years later about how I made an impact on their careers and lives. That is an unbelievably proud feeling.

Biggest business challenges: One is the creation of new public and private environments in older communities. Many times the existing infrastructure is aging or failing, requirements for stormwater control are challenging, and in some communities denser developments are misunderstood or opposed. Our public and private clients are looking at strategies to solve these issues. Sometimes these strategies are at odds with each other. My background in redevelopment and working for a multidisciplinary firm enables me to more easily solve the problems with creative, sustainable solutions.

Second, because of the economic upswing, our middle- to upper-management staff members are looking for more opportunities to advance their salaries and careers. We are being challenged to provide

adequate compensation and find qualified people to fill the void.

Landscape design/build inspiration: I love to travel and read the entire range of books and periodicals about building and design. My travel often takes me to cities where I love to walk and ride public transportation. I can see how spaces work, touch new and different materials and get a personal feeling of being in the spaces. I request and read the periodicals from our Geographic Information Systems, engineering, water resources, lighting, graphic design, planning and landscape architecture divisions. They all provide me with a much deeper understanding and appreciation of the synergy among the disciplines and the role each plays in a quality outcome.

Favorite plant or plant combination: I like all varieties of Japanese maples for their delicate trunks and branch and leaf structures. Their colors and form offer a textural foreground or background, providing a beautiful accent for nearly every occasion.

Monday morning motivation: I am motivated by the joy of my work, projects, co-workers and clients. They all work together. Sometimes one motivates me over the other. I have truly been very lucky to be surrounded by very talented people who care about how and what they do.

Business worry that keeps you up at night: I worry about maintaining a steady client base and taking care of the people who work with and for me and their families.

Landscape design mentor: Very early on, I just knew I would be in the design field. I was mesmerized when I saw photographs of the seminal work of Mexican architect Luis Barragán. I felt an instant connection as he transformed the International Style into a vibrant, sensuous Mexican aesthetic by adding vivid colors and textural contrasts and accentuating his buildings’ natural surroundings. He convinced me that the use of color, form and a simple and very limited palette of materials can be dynamic and everlasting.

I also have been really fortunate to collaborate with some very talented people and design firms over my career, including George Hargreaves, Tom Adiala, Cheryl Barton, Royston Hanamoto Alley & Abey and SWA. Their combined talents and approaches have really been my mentors.

Favorite business or landscape design book: I am an avid reader, constantly looking at any and all books about design. I designated one part of my office as a library, where I read about planning, landscape architecture, development, sports, fashion or graphics on my lunch hour. There are four or five stacks of reading materials that I keep just in case one of my projects requires research. Sometimes, when clients or staff members visit my office, they need to sit next to one of the stacks. This can be embarrassing, but then I realize it helps reinforce to my visitors how I appreciate that design is not fixed in time, but is evolving, obligating me to stay abreast of these trends.

Project that makes you smile every time you see it: That would be the streetscapes, river parks, urban corridors and multifamily housing units in downtown San Jose that I worked on for 15 years with the San Jose Redevelopment Agency. My daughters still live in San Jose, so I have many opportunities to see how my projects are holding up and, in some cases, aging. I know practically every tree, utility box and element of public realm infrastructure there. Whenever I walk in downtown San Jose, I get such a feeling of accomplishment.

Five-year business projection: The projection, if it tracks anything like the past 12 months, is that we are going to be very busy. There’s every sign that we will be starting projects that have been dormant for years. I see the public and private sectors becoming more active. Our offices in California, Arizona and Colorado are becoming very busy, which is a very good indicator of things to come. In the next five years, I look forward to the challenges of a new set of design issues, such as water management, aging infrastructure, environmental compliance and environmental stewardship. I also like challenges, and in the next five years, I want to push myself to teach, learn and advance the craft.

Connect with Martin Flores

Website: http://ift.tt/2yKSlQ2

Facebook: http://ift.tt/2hIFnqX

YouTube: http://youtube.com/user/Rickis3D

Editor’s note: This article was originally published in September 2015.

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