Recently in entrepreneur Category

Little do you all know, I am actually a crazy mad woman behind the scenes. I (supposedly) get things done and run a company, but in truth--my wheels STAY spinning.

But I am working on it. The past few days I have been contemplating some really big moves and plans for 2009 and I realized I am way too unorganized to do anything. My first goal is to get organized, create systems to keep myself organized so I can be more effective with my time and energy. I hired an assistant months ago--but she doesn't do any work because I haven't delegated much to her at all. This needs to stop.

Anyway, as I temporarily avoid replying to email (I am backed up, to say the least) you guys keep writing in! To tell me how great and wonderful and awesome I am! And! If only you knew! I am a mess. LOL.

I just wanted to write a short note to say THANK YOU:

To everyone who writes me sweet and encouraging emails (I'm going to write back I promise).
To everyone on Twitter who takes the time to pay me any mind.
To all my online and IRL friends who supported me throughout 2008 with all your encouragement and support.

The good and bad times of 2008 were so much better with you guys in my corner with your emails, text messages, IMs, tweets, DMs, messages, meetups, videochats, Facebook comments, phone calls, blog comments, etc.

THANK YOU.

I haven't been able to stay on top of replying to everybody, and I apologize if you may feel like I ignored you. I promise, I read everything that comes in....getting back is another story. But I am working on it! So, thanks again for your time and energy and good vibes.

/end corny entry and return to Bat cave to organize....something.

I have been working a lot lately, mostly on the startup, and I've been running myself a little ragged. Due to this I have been searching for things to help me stay focused and calm, but organized and competent. Two things in particular have greatly helped me:

1. An Assistant. I hired an assistant because I was putting off some of my paperwork and smaller items and procrastinating with getting things done on the business side. My assistant is superawesome. I started her off with only a few hours a month, but I am going to increase her hours as much as she can handle (and as much as I can afford) so that I can have sort of a backup person to remind me of things, stay on top of my pile of bills, etc. My assistant is definitely more than just an assistant though, so I am very lucky to have her on board.

2. Mini Vacations. This past weekend I went to Atlanta for Morehouse/Spelman Homecoming. No, I didn't go to Spelman but I have lots of friends who went to Morehouse and they go to homecoming every year. Anyway, I did the  unthinkable and didn't work for 3 whole days. I just kept an eye on email via my iPhone and had lots and lots of fun. Staying in a nice hotel, renting a car, and inviting your friends to come share in on the fun helped reset my frantic life. I often work 7 days a week, and perhaps something like 15 hours a day. It was very difficult to leave my work behind, but I managed. I think I may plan for something like this every other a month: a trip somewhere either to visit family and friends I haven't seen in a while or to go to a special event. I feel much more focused and refreshed now that I am back, and I didn't break my bank either.

I am still in search of other things to stay healthy and sane, but so far I feel like I am off to a good start. What keeps you balanced?

Life is moving along well in the world of running my own business. Between working with my clients, managing the business side of the business, and launching a startup, my schedule is crazy. I have evaded a few panic attacks the past few weeks, which is good because they wouldn't have been worth it. I alternate between obsessing over my checking account balance everyday, and swiping away to my hearts content and forcing myself NOT  to look at my bank account balance for days. There's got to  be a happy medium in there somewhere.

I want to thank all the folks again who come by and send me a sweet email or leave a comment to cheer me on. It seems right when I am almost to a low point (albeit dramatic--I really don't have much to be sad about lol), somebody somewhere says something to put a smile on my face, and I push forward. Thank you.

I have a cold. I need health insurance. I know how to get health insurance. I know how to get affordable health insurance. But I am being silly and want to save that money. I will get my health insurance soon though. SOON. I just have to get my mind right and fill out those forms again. I hate forms. I hate paperwork. So much so, I have $250 free bucks waiting for me. I just have to fill out a form to get it. It's been a month and I still have not filled out the form.

I had to send a fax out of state this week. It cost me something over 5 dollars to send 4 pages over at Kinko's. What the mess? I have two fax/scan/copy machines, but no phone line. I don't think getting a phone line is worth the cost...I've been looking into some electronic faxing solutions. If you know of any, let me know.

Now that I am the master of my own schedule, I have been thinking about going to more conferences to beef up my skills and such. I don't like networking (surprise! It's because I am shy). But I love conferences. So, I am going to SXSWi this year, and I am batting my eyelashes at The Future of Web Apps. I have never been to Miami, either! I just need to get myself one more fat contract and I will sign right up.

I find that I am addicted to work. Doesn't matter which project (a client, the startup, my pet projects), I am just always working working working and getting a little lost in my work. Like, I'll go out on a weekend night, come home at 2 am and then work until 5 am. And  for some reason I cannot sleep past 8 am to save my life. My energy is on a hundred, thousand, trillion! I felt guilty for taking the day off to be sick in bed. I need to watch myself. Good thing I have planned a vacation at the end of the month. Going to ATL (again) to see my best bud as well as one of my line sisters, and have a very non-work filled weekend. I am excited. Of course, I plan to play hard, so that means I'll be working hard up until then. Maybe if I can schedule in weekend getaways every month or so, I will be ok.

Ok, I need to get my day going. I have roughly four hours of meetings today. Fun.

I was wandering along my social media happy trails (i.e. surfing for something interesting to read, watch, consume), and I came upon this here video of Gary Vaynerchuk at New Media Expo NY. It is titled, "Building Personal Brand Within the Social Media Landscape." I suggest anyone into web, social media, branding, etc. watch it. I think it's helpful if you need that extra push in getting your web projects DONE, or even started. I know I need a daily push. Sheesh. I might need to watch this very morning when I wake up to work on my projects.


Enjoy.