This week’s song is Lift Off by Jay-Z, Kanye West and Beyoncé.
Regardless if you like Rap, R&B or Hip-Hop, the idea of the listening to three people as successful as these alone gets me in the mood to strive for bigger and better things!
My favorite part of the song is the chorus:
We gonna take it to the moon, take it to the stars How many people you know can take it this far? I’m supercharged, we about to take this whole thing to Mars Now we gonna take it to the moon, take it to the stars We don’t know what we could do to make it this far So many scars, we about to take this whole thing to Mars
Hopefully listening to this will make you want to take your dreams “to the moon, take it to the stars”.
As small business owners we have to wear many hats to ensure everything gets done. One hat we should all wear is the PR hat.
Recently, I started following @WomenInPR. They give out excellent PR Tips for small businesses.
Their latest article 20 Things Every PR Pro Should Know How to Do, really gives various tips on what you should be familiar with to execute great PR.
Here are the ones I think are most beneficial:
Collaborate with others. Don’t view people in ancillary departments like marketing, advertising, branding, and HR as the enemy. Go for integration, not silos.
Repurpose content. Reformatting and tweaking a press release, article, interview, or blog post will save you lots of time and energy.
Create the subject line of an email pitch in fewer than eight words. Clarity rules.
Email a three-line pitch. Target your pitches, and understand what each reporter is looking for. Sum up how your pitch/story will benefit his or her audience.
Recently, I have been thinking I am never going to be able to find a job I LOVE. A job I’m excited about going to in the morning. In my thoughts I remembered my very close friend saying, “You never will find a job you love until you start working for yourself.” To this day think about what she said and I truly believe she is right, that is my destiny.
Even though people think it is easy to just up and start a business, it is really about what you are passionate about. What is your passion? I feel like my passion changes every five seconds but indeed that is not my passion that changes but just different avenues I want to take to enhance my passion. Through my reading both of books and on-line, one saying that sticks with me is, “If you want to know where your heart is, look to where your mind goes when it wanders”. This is so true. During my day dreams I constantly thinking about bringing people together through events and creating a buzz. My passion is definitely Public Relations and Events.
PR and planning events has been something I have done all my life. It wasn’t until college and majored in public relations that I learned there was a formal name for what I loved to do. Currently, I am taking my passion to the next level by furthering my education by obtaining a Master’s degree. I am excited to absorb all the knowledge I can so I will be able to pass it on to others.
For those that are in search of your passion, Loren Ridinger, Senior Vice President of internet retailing giant marketamerica.com and creator of the award-winning cosmetic line, Motives, recently posted Ways to Find Your Passion. In her post she lists these things to help find your passion.
Pursue new experiences.
Take a class in something outside of your comfort zone. You may discover a new element of yourself.
Think about what makes you really happy and what brings you joy. Can you make a career out of that?
As of recently my new favorite thing has been looking and searching for Infographics. As a person that learns better by having a visual representation these Infographics have really taught me a lot. As I was browsing through various website I found the perfect Infographic for business start-up.
Starting a business is something that requires a lot of research and planning especially in a fickle economy. This Infographic created by the Startup Genome, a website that focuses on business start-up, researched 3,200 companies to get answers on why start-ups fail.
Based on this information some people may continue to stick with job security. But risk is the name of the game when you are trying to start a business.
From T.I. to Gucci Mane Atlanta is known to crank out new rap talent. Newest to the scene is Future. Most are familiar with his 2011 homage to Al Pacchino’s Scarface’s character, “Tony Montana” and his vocals on the single “Racks” by YC.
Within 2011 alone Future has emerged himself from a local Atlanta rapper to a progressive rap artist making head way across the nation. “I credited my cousin, Rico Wade, for giving me the opportunity to let me shadow him and just hard work to my growing success”, says rapper, Future at the Direct Drive Record Pool event in Washington, D.C.
Just like his name his beats are futuristic on his singles, especially “Magic” featuring T.I. and Yo Gotti. Future blends his southern swag with catchy tunes “to make magic” that will have you bobbin’ your head.
On site Future has a very calm vibe about him. Even in the midst of the chaotic packed club, Future’s body language and speech is relaxed and poised until I mention Clark Atlanta University and what advice he would give students getting into the music industry, his entire demeanor changes. At first he seems surprised I even mentioned the university and then proceeds to shout them out and thanking the Atlanta University Center for supporting his music. He says, “For anyone trying to get into this industry just know it take a lot of hard work, a lot of grinding, a lot of time working in the dungeon to get to be successful. You just got to work hard man. And don’t let anyone steal your drive.”
Before rapping, Future was just like the rest of us working to make ends meet. But Future lives by the motto of working hard and with what has seemed to become overnight success with I am definitely certain his motto is on point.
It never fails, the low battery sign always appears at the less opportune time. We end up struggling to send that last e-mail or make that last call before we are dead to the world. With the recent ‘thumbs down’ of the iPhone 4S battery life (or lack there of), Philips has created BatterySense.
This free app, Philips Battery Sense was created to let iPhone/iPad users know what they can do with the remaining battery power do have. The app gives you a snapshot of how long you can do certain functions (i.e. talking on the phone, sending messages or gaming).
Although you are still responsible for charging your phone, this app will ease those battery woes and help our iPhone’s usability.
On an individual level we all views of what success is. Whether it is buying a home, graduating from college, having a family or owning a business, we all want to achieve success in some way.
As entrepreneurs there is a lot of pressure on us to be a failure but instead to be successful especially when taking a leap on faith to pursue our dreams.
A few weeks ago we lost one of the most successful businessman in world, Steve Jobs. In addition, to the gadgets and great innovations he left behind he also left us with his Seven Rules of Success. As a business owner these tips are vital. Some tips I recognized prior to learning of Mr. Jobs Rules but others really hit home.
Print these out and use them as motivation to be successful in your endeavor.
1. Do what you love. Jobs once said, “People with passion can change the world for the better.” Asked about the advice he would offer would-be entrepreneurs, he said, “I’d get a job as a busboy or something until I figured out what I was really passionate about.” That’s how much it meant to him. Passion is everything.
2. Put a dent in the universe. Jobs believed in the power of vision. He once asked then-Pepsi President, John Sculley, “Do you want to spend your life selling sugar water or do you want to change the world?” Don’t lose sight of the big vision.
3. Make connections. Jobs once said creativity is connecting things. He meant that people with a broad set of life experiences can often see things that others miss. He took calligraphy classes that didn’t have any practical use in his life — until he built the Macintosh. Jobs traveled to India and Asia. He studied design and hospitality. Don’t live in a bubble. Connect ideas from different fields.
4. Say no to 1,000 things. Jobs was as proud of what Apple chose not to do as he was of what Apple did. When he returned in Apple in 1997, he took a company with 350 products and reduced them to 10 products in a two-year period. Why? So he could put the “A-Team” on each product. What are you saying “no” to?
5. Create insanely different experiences. Jobs also sought innovation in the customer-service experience. When he first came up with the concept for the Apple Stores, he said they would be different because instead of just moving boxes, the stores would enrich lives. Everything about the experience you have when you walk into an Apple store is intended to enrich your life and to create an emotional connection between you and the Apple brand. What are you doing to enrich the lives of your customers?
6. Master the message. You can have the greatest idea in the world, but if you can’t communicate your ideas, it doesn’t matter. Jobs was the world’s greatest corporate storyteller. Instead of simply delivering a presentation like most people do, he informed, he educated, he inspired and he entertained, all in one presentation.
7. Sell dreams, not products. Jobs captured our imagination because he really understood his customer. He knew that tablets would not capture our imaginations if they were too complicated. The result? One button on the front of an iPad. It’s so simple, a 2-year-old can use it. Your customers don’t care about your product. They care about themselves, their hopes, their ambitions. Jobs taught us that if you help your customers reach their dreams, you’ll win them over.
Advertising is all about thinking outside the box. No matter what industry you are in you must make your product or service stand out from the rest.
As an entrepreneur sometimes it is hard to execute those out of the box ideas because of lack of resources or we are just flat out scared, but those are not excuses. As a business owner you must take risks and dive nose-first into what you believe in. Granted not everything you like and try will rub others the right way but you have to prove it to yourself that you are daring to be different.
When thinking of an advertising project or ways to advertise think of things that are associated with what you are selling or promoting. For example, you are promoting your new line of sneakers. Instead of using a picture of a tennis shoe to advise why not incorporate an imprint of the bottom of the shoe?! Of course it depends on your business and strategy but it is something different that still says “shoe” without stating the obvious.
In college, I had a friend that whenever you would wear something you wouldn’t usually wear or do something you wouldn’t usually do she would say, “Mmmhhmm I’m not mad at you. Trying something new!” Although we would laugh and mock her, those word always stayed with me. to this day when ever I do something out of my comfort zone I repeat those words.
In the meantime, take a look at one of my favorite Social Bookmarking site: StumbleUpon.com for some fun, out of the box advertising materials:
Who influences the Self Made? My answer is the Self Made. Nothing inspires me more than others who are trying to “Find a Way or Make One” (Clark Atlanta University motto).
As a way to keep my spirits high and keep myself motivated with ideas, I enjoy reading other blogs that deal with topics on Entrepreneurship and Public Relations.
As of right now, there are two blogs I follow religiously to learn new things and get ideas, The Future Buzz and Black Enterprise.
The Future Buzz is a great PR source that focuses on a lot of on-line marketing and promotions strategies that are helpful for small businesses because it breaks down on-line tips to be easy and informative. As someone who knows and understands the value of research but hates to do research, this blog provide quick and simple research methods to yield great results. Check out this great articles:
Providing keen information is The Future Buzz’s best asset to its readers.
On the other hand there’s Black Enterprise, although the demographics of the site is African-Americans the posts on this blog can help any demographic just so long as you’re interested, contemplating or already own your own business. Black Enterprise not only gives advice on starting a business but also on money matters, current events and lifestyles.
It helps average entrepreneurs with everyday issues that occur, like: