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2 months ago

in Entrepreneurship is not that risky, even in a recession on Twenty Set
(my reply of 3 small paragraphs mushed into one...guess I need to add the < br >s

2 months ago

in Entrepreneurship is not that risky, even in a recession on Twenty Set
Good post, Monica.

In a way I feel like I've been preparing to be an entrepreneur since I scored my job with a consulting company (I think this is because I read so many blogs as an intern/project assistant). But I've kept my job and nothing much happened - but I still have all my little draft business plans, and even a logo for myself. Am I halfway there? What about quitting a job to do it on your own?

I guess it depends on personal situation , and your particular sense of adventure. "Hitting the streets" seriously can't be that easy. I would have price advantage (by a mile) over competitors, but not resource (admin) advantage.
2 replies
monicaobrien's picture
monicaobrien Torbjorn,

To answer your questions:

I think of the halfway point as the 100% commitment to the business; the end goal is generally to build a successful business. So taking the first step is the halfway point. You're definitely on the right track though.

I think quitting your consulting job to do it on your own is difficult. (Wait. That's what I'm doing... yep, it's hard :) .) In this economy I probably wouldn't do it unless you have a lot of savings or a second stream of income built up. I've heard a good time to quit the full-time job is when you are making at least 50% of your current salary with your new venture. But who knows? I'm sure some people have done less.

And you're right. "Hitting the streets" is way tougher than I made it out to be. But if you love networking and meeting new people it is fun. Also, price advantage isn't always a sustainable competitive advantage. Generally, for consulting people like higher prices. Amazing, but true, at least in my experience!
torbjorn (my reply of 3 small paragraphs mushed into one...guess I need to add the < br >s

5 months ago

in Exposing the Hidden Truths and Empty Promises of Blog Networks on Twenty Set
Right on, Monica. I was quite close to doing a post a few weeks back to recommend bloggers out there, who rely partly on BC connections, to set them selves up for going solo if Brazen goes down the drain. But that had no place on my blog - theme wise - and also was just a kinda negative idea. You went about it in the right way and make some good points. That being said I may as well hang in there. My readership basically couldn't get any lower!
1 reply
monicaobrien's picture
monicaobrien

Torbjorn, I do think that’s one of the caveats of using
social/blog networks, is that you don’t have control over your content.
It’s true that if you invest a lot of time in a company and then the
company has financial difficulties and goes under, all the time you’ve
invested on comments sort of disappears. No blogger should be putting
all their eggs in one basket.


I too feared that I was maybe writing too negatively, and I’m
surprised that the comments have been so constructive actually. But I
really do think this is an important conversation for bloggers to have
with themselves when considering joining a blog network, and I also
think some of the ideas here transcend to other online content outlets,
so if you are interested in “the future of the internet” as I am, it’s
a fascinating conversation <img src="../../wp-includes/images/smilies/icon_smile.gif" alt=":)" class="wp-smiley"> </img>

7 months ago

in Blogging Is A Two-Way Street on evilspeculator
Love your site, man. Like several others here I am a mere leech for the time being, offering nothing back but reading everything you put out and trading some indicators very conservatively. I agree with what some say, takes time, but people and discussions will get better. I in fact follow your trends more closely than TimK's.

7 months ago

in thankful not to be on brip blap
Steve, try out Ubuntu. It's an open source (linux) operating system and can completely replace Windows. Can also be made to "look" like either one. Very customizable. I'm in the process of switching over, and will probably be deleting my Windows Vista partition in the near future.

Google it. Images and youtube videos are readily available too.
...or perhaps you've already tried and rejected that route...
1 reply
Steve @ bripblap's picture
Steve @ bripblap Torbjorn, I've actually got Ubuntu - I run it off a CD on my laptop. I was in the process of getting used to it.. and then the laptop died. The interface was fine, but I've just been worried a bit about the interactions with all of my peripherals - printers, USB keys, etc. But I should probably quit being such a chicken - I have a desktop with XP on it, so it's not like I really need two Windows machines....

7 months ago

in one more hill on brip blap
yessir yessir yessir. you've got soul Steve, and that's why we like you.

*Shadox - great comment. haha.

7 months ago

in Selling All My Belongings on ThrillingHeroics.com
Great soulful, personal post. Totally.

I'm glad that you're getting out there and away from what confuses and/or makes you unhappy. It may only take six weeks for you to realize you have something to come back for...or you may never find it, but instead learn to DEAL.

If you want to try Canada (which probably is more of the same), get in touch.

*do you have an old Pancho for sale, or FREE?! didn't see one on your list...actually, you may need that.

9 months ago

in even my barber on brip blap
Think of it this way - maybe your barber knows how to "cut" his losses - or "trim" profits. I would venture it is NOT time to hop back in at full scale, maybe just bits.

As this (now much more than) crisis unfolds it only gets worse. We may still have more than 30% to fall in the long run. Until then perhaps it's time to time the swings with simple 50 and 200-day moving averages.

Long-long term? not yet - the market and its big guns HAVE ONLY JUST BEGUN PUKING BLOOD. and i mean PUKING!

10 months ago

in Your Major is Not What’s Holding You Back on Twenty Set
Oooh, my blood started to boil when you said "earth science, of all things" (because not enough people study the earth itself) - but it's the truth, Science overall is a tough job market, there's no doubt about that. It sounds like she is her own problem though, and overall, when you choose the sciences you're practically choosing academia, maybe for life.

Unless you score with a consulting outfit.

I was a Political Science / English major which was sufficiently useless. My interest in forestry came through my first student job, not school experience, and now I "do better" than people who actually majored in Forestry.

While school can provide some tools. YOU YOU YOU are your own solution.

10 months ago

in finish each day and be done with it on brip blap
I have to admit it's been a few weeks since I've checked in with BripBlap, and I'm glad I came back.

Way to keep it simple. Dreary, yet positive. Ha!

1 year ago

in Sacramento is the 8th Best Place to Live and Work in the States!? on ThrillingHeroics.com
Unless I am mistaken, Vancouver BC was recently listed as the #4 city in the world to live, on a recent list. As much as I love the city - I was there for 5 years, and now live just a ferry ride away - and as pleasant as it CAN be it doesn't deserve to be fourth.

Like the comments that you received it is tough to survive there because of housing prices. You have to be loaded to buy a house even in the crappiest parts of town, and their traffic problems are horrible. Vancouver made #1 in the world several times in the late 90's and has been downhill since - it should sit at number eight, barely in the top 10 until they figure out some basic traffic, and average citizen comforts.

One thing they do have it space, and place to play.

1 year ago

in 10 Controversial Climate Change Fixes to Spark Discussion—From Wired.com on ThrillingHeroics.com
**technology can't save everything I meant - rather than 'anything'...as it can do lots of good of course!

1 year ago

in 10 Controversial Climate Change Fixes to Spark Discussion—From Wired.com on ThrillingHeroics.com
Nice site Cody. I remember stopping through here some time ago, but now that I'm back I may stay a little longer. Blogging gets more addictive over time.

As for this post, it shows some interesting takes and responses to the climate problem - of which many people obviously don't see as a problem. WIRED's take on Old Growth and Carbon is full of monkeyshit, but at least they make a point to argue something, which to me is okay, as such discussion is more than warranted. Also, since my brother's a climate change researcher (see In the Green in my blogroll) I'm probably biased in believing that Global Warming is an issue as well as caused by increasing human impacts.

And, one can't just hope that our generation will be part of change etc...you need to BE part of that change! You're a leader, make it so! That, and technology can't save anything - real change has to come through actual change in habits.

1 year ago

in the simplest actions have profound effects on brip blap
Eating less meat is surprisingly important to sustainable consuming. The water and energy it takes to produce meat is incredible, as you point out.

http://inthegreen.typepad.com/blog/2008/05/hey-...

Sustainable agriculture needs to reach new highs, which is why I've found a new interest in (industrial) Hemp - its both good for the soil, and easy on energy and water.

1 year ago

in How To Get By With No Health Insurance on Twenty Set
Clearly I don't use my available (Canadian) healthcare system as much as I should, and it hurts because I AM paying for it in several ways, taxes included...

...it seems I'll only see the benefits when I have a major accident, or do any sort of checkups - which clearly also don't happen enough.

I guess having paid-for healthcare isn't like getting a gym pass. When I get a pass I feel obliged to use it to make sure I'm paying for good reason. Where medical checkups are concerned, and having a healthcare plan - I still don't feel compelled to use it. Probably not paranoid enough.

...like you said, I guess I'll have to wait for some sort of real injury or illness. Unfortunately.

1 year ago

in The Meaning of “Well-Rounded” in Corporate on Twenty Set
Depending on your area of work, moving from well-rounded to job specific will greatly improve your worth to the company.

In some cases, being well-rounded may as well mean you're an intern. Once you are the go-to person for specifics you know you've found your place in the company.

Then again, you never want to be known as "not well-rounded".

Good, quick, succinct post!

1 year ago

in The First Step To Starting a Blog: Ask Yourself If You Actually Want One on Twenty Set
It's true. Furthermore, you have to be good at keeping your writing succinct and readable. I have a friend who just stared up a blog. He's a great writer, in fact he does it for a living, but each of his posts is a massive essay. I guess that's something that you should do when you've already started one, but it's definitely an intro criteria.

Also, if you're one of those people that is bad with keeping in touch, bad at replying to emails, and generally doesn't succeed in keeping organized, blogging's probably not a good idea.

1 year ago

in go to hell on brip blap
What's odd is that as I get more comfortable in my current 'corporate' job (mini-corporate) and I'm taking opportunities in educating myself, I'm feeling the stronger urge to keep a real emergency fund at hand, for when I feel the urge to leave (ahem, after part-time school is complete) and take the challenge on my own.

I would think that as I became more comfortable I would need that "go to hell" less, but in fact I'm feeling uncomfortable in my growing comfort!

Make sense?

1 year ago

in Don’t Think You’re Valuable? Think Again. on Twenty Set
@Rory - in which case, focus on where your value is (is the message I got from Ryan), even if/when you're searching for a new job.

I go through some pretty bummer stretches at work, but it's amazing how that 'good' work can revitalize you, and even help you push for better quality on that crap that no one's going to see anyway.

Don't mean to try to answer for Ryan, but today was the day I negotiated a raise, and focussed on the future value aspect - managers love seeing that you're taking charge of your own value and strong-points.

1 year ago

in Don’t Think You’re Valuable? Think Again. on Twenty Set
I especially like the 'know what you like' point, cause that's where we're likely to shine. I feel that. It's so hard to do more than just satisfactory work in something we find unimportant or mundane.

To really show your value you need to push back one's frustration, and just do it as if you love it. Somehow, love it all.

1 year ago

in Entrepreneur Life vs. Corporate Life on Twenty Set
This is good. I like how he speaks it as it is (or could be). He's right in that there are many many a folk talking-up the specialness of entrepreneurship - and it must just dominate one's life.

Still, I must say - it won't stop being a goal of mine. I feel like it has to be (as many must feel) because there's a certain god-like, creative element to it. Also, low-level corporate jobs (ahem) just don't continually satisfy. Like the author, I as well consult, or more clearly, I work for consultants. What they are teaching me is that I will never make as much money as them as long as I am working for them. Freedom, learning and growth, yes, but they are so 'the man'.

Eventually we all want to be 'the man' (or wo-man).

1 year ago

in 4 Simple Tips To Remember For Your Next Speech on Twenty Set
I would add: move. That is, act natural. Express naturally with your body language and arms or hands - naturally not like a fool.

Also, moving keeps the nerves at bay. When we're nervous we tense up and our speech, breathing and even thought process suffers. Once you start to open yourself up to your audience the interaction and movement will come more naturally.

Also, all these tips are easier said than done. Also, saying 'easier said than done' is so easy to say.

1 year ago

in the whole life sabbatical (part 1 of 3) on brip blap
Interesting topic. I've known someone who 'walked away', or at least tried to. The problem was that she walked into a very similar situation which she was in at the previous city. Just with a different crowd around her. I think she blamed her surroundings and tried to leave it.

Soon enough her old defunct boyfriend had joined her in her 'new' location, little did she know the drug scene there was just as big, if not bigger, and she's back to sleeping through her job because of her same old habits.

ADVICE: if you're going to walk away, do your RESEARCH and follow through with it! (i guess...)

1 year ago

in Getting Along With Just About Anyone on Twenty Set
yea. I think the key as well is the 'getting along', rather than 'friends' method. Although, it doesn't mean you can't act like friends.

A positive, and moderately passive attitude usually does the trick, along with an actual conversation once in a while.

1 year ago

in gimme my cash blankee on brip blap
If we're buying our stock throughout the 'recession' (dollar cost averaging) - then we don't have to 'time' the market - buy once a quarter, or twice a year...whichever's affordable. It's also a sketchy idea to try to decide if CEOs are buying stock out of optimism, or making a point (marketing).

cash is good too.
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