Here Goes Everything

Today is my last day working part-time at the local college here in Grays Harbor. It's been fun bringing in entertainment and putting on and planning events like giant bowling and lunch time karaoke, but it's summer time now (despite the warning email I got this morning about possible lightning strikes on campus) and I've got lots of other projects to get working on!

I've got three major goals or guiding values on my list:

1. Quality > Quantity. I will be focusing on taking all of the things that I do and figuring out how to slim it all down to the top quality projects, then making those things even better.

2. Connect. I love people. I love fast paced environments. I know that if I don't spend some time focusing on ways to stay connected to these things, I will become discouraged and end up spending my days watching The Wonder Years on Netflix and eating way too many burritos.

3. Make some money! Let's get real. I've got bills to pay...

By Banter Banner

Here's the short-ish list of things I'll be doing this summer:

• Use writing as an excuse to have more adventures in Grays Harbor. Drag my camera and friends along and post it all up here, here, here and here.
• Relaunch Gray's General Store... I've got some big ideas including an online store, new product lines and a co-working space!
• More picnics. Fancy ones. Like how they do in Portland.
• More hammocks.
• Fill my brain with inspiring and educational books, podcasts and videos... like this one:

Chris Glass - Designer for Wire & Twine from CreativeMornings/Cincinnati on Vimeo.

• Attempt to take on creative and self-improvement projects that I hear about in these books, podcasts and videos (... a photo a day like Chris Glass does... maybe).
• More, more, more copywriting, marketing and advertising projects!
• Get back into my running and yoga routine.
• Ride my bike more so I can have thoughtful and deep contemplations on my place in this world like my friend Kelly Hogaboom.
• Host a backyard music festival/camp-out.
• Try to help get a few businesses off the ground for friends and family.
• Generally (and hopefully) not be too lazy.

Wish me luck! (please... I'll need it)

Rediviva: A Rustic Revival

It was just after that random Aberdeen planning commission meeting I went to a while back, discussing ways to improve downtown, when I first heard the news that Andy Bickar had plans to open a new restaurant. The "young people" (that's what they call us, I'm sure) from the meeting headed out to happy hour at Billy's for a debrief. There's nothing quite like commiserating with fellow business owners and community leaders over a beer and a salmon quesadilla, compliments of the chef. Andy was among us and dropped the news that he was in the process of buying the old Mallard's Restaurant building, a few blocks away.

Best. News. Ever.

That was back in November of 2012. Now, we are mere weeks away from the opening of Rediviva. Named after the ship of Captain Robert Gray (yeah, hi, namesake of my store as well), the name literally means "revived."

He is, very literally, reviving this old downtown Aberdeen building. I stopped by last week to see the progress and, let's be honest, to get a first glance at what will probably be my new drinking hole. Compared to the previous building's high-end restaurant, I'll say this is going to be anything but a "hole." During my visit, I saw a lot of scaffolding and drywall, but I could already tell that it will likely be one of the most beautiful spaces in Grays Harbor. High ceilings. Exposed beams. Talk of a chandelier and over-sized art work. I'm in.

Andy wants this place to look like it was plucked right out of downtown Seattle and dropped in Aberdeen. Now, I'm a sucker for good interior design, but I'd also be willing to bet that the food will be top notch as well. He told me about his plans to offer fresh, local and foraged food at reasonable prices. Fresh seafood and oysters. New American, he called it. And let's not forget about the bar: micro-brews, hand-crafted cocktails and Mexican Coke. Anybody who cringes at the idea of serving regular fountain Coke is ok by me.

As far as I can tell, Andy's doing everything right: the layout (banquette seating really is the only reasonable choice), the design (rustic yet modern), historically significant (because us Harborites are weirdly obsessed with the past), and good food (we can assume, based on Andy's fancy awards and press attention). Next time you see me cruising the streets of downtown Aberdeen some random evening on the old Schwinn, you can assume I'm on my way to Rediviva.

Adventures in Retail: Getting Organized

The work on the new business continues!

Turns out opening a business is a daunting task and because of my impatient nature, I always try to do everything at once. So, I'm constantly making short movements toward designing the interiors, buying products, setting up a POS system, networking, getting all of the licensing taken care of... and trying to get some sleep!

I'm sure my stress level will decrease once the space build out is complete, but until then I feel like I'm on pause. It can be difficult to imagine how all of the products will fit in the store without being able to work with the items in the space.

What have I done to get organized? I started an excel spreadsheet and listed EVERY item I'm looking at buying and included the minimum order number and associated prices. Seeing this all layed out where I can easily manipulate numbers has been incredibly helpful.

I also grabbed a Word doc and started dropping in pictures of the things I'm looking to buy. I'm a very visual person and this helps me to visualize the store and how much space each of these items might take up or if they all make sense together.

We are also trying to figure out a way to purchase enough but not too much. We don't want to overdue it and spend all of our money right at the gate.

We are still on track for a March opening! I will keep you up to date as things move along.

Ready, Set...

Running a business is hard work! It has been made more difficult by the fact that I'm still working my full time job and trying to grow this business to be big enough to support myself by the 17th of September, but... whew.

I'm constantly trying to keep up with customers, update facebook, twitter, find people to work with on websites, photography, advertising, posting on craigslist and other classifieds, getting all of my paperwork and legal stuff in line, reqruiting new customers, and... oh yeah... actually making my product. It's been a hectic few weeks and I bounce between wondering if I'm actually making any progress!

I am so ready to go for this full time!

Want

I've got some news. Three weeks from today I will be leaving my full-time event planning gig. It has been a really interesting experience and I have learned a lot, particularly about management - the good, the bad, and the ugly.

I am very excited to see what happens next in my career and I'm sure big things lie ahead of me. But, I will definately take what I've learned here along with me wherever I go.

This train of thought was sparked by this article from inc.com: 10 Things Employees Want Most. You tell me, if you got all of the things on this list from your workplace, would you ever leave?

1. Employees want purpose.
2. Employees want goals.
3. Employees want responsibility.
4. Employees want autonomy.
5. Employees want flexibility.
6. Employees want attention.
7. Employees want opportunities for innovation.
8. Employees want open-mindedness.
9. Employees want transparency.
10. Employees want compensation.

After years of management classes in business school, I think this sums everything up very well. When it comes time for me to be a manager of my staff, I plan to post this prominently on my office wall.

My Vintage Year

I know I am crazy.

But I'm also crazy for vintage travel trailers and my birthday is coming up so...

What if a bunch of people gave me a couple of bucks and I could buy this little baby!

Let's get real here. This thing costs $2000. I have officially applied to have this project hosted by Kickstarter.com but that's a bit of a process.

My plan: Buy this trailer and turn it into my craft studio/home if I become homeless for some reason. I would totally remodel the thing, paint it, throw my Queen B Quilts logo up there. It would be amazing.

So, I'm not kidding (please refer yourself here, here, here, andhere. Help me out! You can give me a really great birthday gift and hopefully it will add up to a number that will warrant me buying this cute 1955 Vintage Duggan canned ham. If I don't get at least $1400 from this fundraising effort I will return all of your hard earned money (just make sure your mailing address is correct).

Thanks guys!

Let's See...

I Love You a Little $2.00 I'll Give Up a Beer for You $5.00 Pickpocketing is a Crime $10.00 I heard American Apparel is Going Under Anyway.... $20.00 I'd Like to Reserve a Night $100.00

The Board

How do you stay motivated as a solopreneur? I've been asking myself that question because I am a people person and, quite frankly, the businesses I run very rarely involved working with others except for my customers. BUT have you considered having a Board of Directors for your freelance life? I have heard this idea... somewhere (forgot)... but many large, publicly-traded companies as well as all not-for-profit organizations have a Board of Directors to help in making decisions and so, why not your business too?

Ok, you might have to do some serious schmoozing to get some people on the board if you don't have the cash to pay them for this but I think it could be an informal group. Maybe just a few specific people you meet up with or talk to each week to discuss your new marketing or product ideas and get some feedback.

I have had a few friends ask me for business advice recently and due to the fact that I LOVE small business, I am totally psyched to help them out. Obviously it's one of my favorite subjects so why would I say no? I'm sure there are many others out there like me.

I love this idea and I'm thinking right now who I should pick. It could even be a group of other business owners that gather each week to drink coffee and talk business. I think it would be worth it. You would stay grounded and motivated (and caffienated).

I've Got Personality

A study from the Guardian Life Index lists six characteristics of entreprenuers. It's good to know that I have similar personality traits to successful small business owners.

Collaborative
Success-oriented small business owners understand how to delegate effectively to
others within their business as well as build strong personal relationships with their management team, employees, consultants, vendors and customers. They are more
committed “to creating opportunities for others.”
Self-fulfilled
Success-oriented small business owners place a high value on the personal fulfillment
and gratification that their companies provide them, relishing the self-determination and respect that comes from being their own boss and being in control of their personal income and long-term net worth. They are more desirous of “doing something for a living that I love to do,” “being able to decide how much money I make” and “being able to have the satisfaction of creating something of value.”
Future-focused
Planning for both the short- and long-term future are key traits that characterize
success-oriented small business owners. They are more focused on cash flow and more
likely to have “a well thought out plan to run our business for years into the future” as well as “a well thought out plan to run our business day to day.”
Curious
Success-oriented small business owners are more open to learning how others run their businesses. They actively seek best practice insights regarding management, business innovation, prospecting and finding/motivating/retaining employees.
Tech-savvy
Technology is a key point of leverage for success-oriented small business owners. They more intensely value their company’s website and are significantly more likely to “rely a great deal on technology to help make our business more effective and more efficient.”
Action oriented
Finally, success-oriented small business owners are more proactive in taking initiative to build their businesses. They are more committed to “taking the business to the next level,” “differentiating ourselves from our competitors” and “having something to sell when I’m ready to retire.” They also see adversity as “a kick in the rear to help move you forward.” Not surprisingly, they are less concerned than other small business owners about the overall state of the economy.

Read the full report here or another article about it here.

Tiny Office

Speaking of Tiny Houses, how about a Tiny Office?

I think I need a job where this makes any kind of sense. At this point I don't, but someday!! I'll just have to get creative since I do not have a green thumb. Not even close.

I was thinking that maybe I should get a trailer like this for my great American road trip and deck it out with a bed and a desk.
Thanks Sunset! You always keep me focused on the important things.

Queen B Quilts

Business has picked up a bit for Queen B Quilts, my t-shirt quilting business adventure which I started four years ago. I haven't put much effort into advertising or sales, but have relied merely on word of mouth, facebook and my blog to get my name out there. I have had the right amount of sales for my needs and wants up until now. However, I'm considering an expansion of sorts.

Recently, I approached the store Assemble in hopes of partnering to host quilting classes at their shop. We will be offering this class (a two parter) in July. I'm really excited by this idea of teaching a group to make their own quilts, because... well, I'm a social person and quilting alone in my apartment doesn't really thrill me. Just having the class listed on their website has boosted visits to my blog and facebook sites.

So, now I'm starting to think I could really take this somewhere. I have a few ideas I would like to implement as soon as I get a second to really concentrate on this project. I don't ever want to veer away from t-shirt quilting, but I'm trying to find new ways to offer it to everyone.

Stay tuned...

Get Noticed

7 Ideas for Generating Buzz for your Business

Quick Starts

I always seem to be in a search to define myself through a test or put myself into a category, and judging by the number of personality/temperament tests out there I think most of us are searching for definition too.

Anyway, back down to earth. Inc. has a two parter on Entrepreneur personalities! I got a little bit lost in the first part, since I'm not much of a baseball fan but part two really lays it out nicely.

I didn't take any test, but I know myself well enough to know exactly which category I fit into right away.

“Quick Starts” enjoy initiating new things. They are creative problem solvers and think laterally. Easily bored, Quick Starts tend to begin lots of projects but need help finishing any of them.

I've managed to teach myself to stop starting so many projects, but that desire is always ALWAYS there. As Lewis Carroll wrote in Through the Looking Glass, "Sometimes I've believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

My challenge is, as always, how do I put this strength to good use? I often think this is a good skill for millionaires who don't mind losing a few bucks on a new business or at least have a few bucks to get something off the ground. How can I find a way (within my means) to put my creativity to work?

YES!