MarCom Writer Blog: General Musings Archives

I love PR Daily and the breezy articles they post each day, but I was a bit taken aback by Arik Hanson’s post, The Challenges of Working as a Solo PR Consultant. It bothered me because one, if you’re just starting out and read this, you get a very dismal view of solopreneurship, and two, it’s full of mind viruses.

Working solo is what you make of it. Herewith, my view of the BENEFITS of working as a solo consultant.

It’s as glamorous as you make it

Yes, it’s true, that when you work out of your home, you’re not working out of some fancy corporate office (read: cube) surrounded by rolling grass, mirrored windows, a cafeteria, vending machines and all that stuff.

But, that doesn’t mean your workplace has to be . . . well, tacky. If you’re just starting out, or even if you’ve been solo awhile, create the office of your dreams. I’ve been in business 15 years and last month completely redid my office from the ground up. I love coming to work each day!

Two, get dressed each day. Staying in your pajamas is just plain lazy. Make a habit to get up, take a shower, get dressed, eat breakfast, meditate and THEN start your day. I used to check email as soon as the alarm went off — which is how the pajama habit gets started — but I broke myself of that habit. How? I stopped using my iPhone as an alarm clock and bought the beautiful clock pictured for my nightstand instead. My phone charges overnight in the living room.

I also advise taking a page from the late Zig Ziglar. As soon as the “opportunity clock” goes off, jump out of bed, clap your hands and say, “Today is going to be a wonderful day because of all the opportunity headed my way.” You simply can’t stay in your pajamas after that — and you head off to the shower smiling and upbeat.

Build your own credibility

Sure, DH Communications, Inc. isn’t up there with Apple and Nabisco, but I have made a name for myself. You build credibility by speaking, writing articles for other publications, such as the Content Marketing Institute, posting case studies to your website and specializing in a niche (such as business-to-business marketing).

The hours, my friends, are FABULOUS

I read somewhere that you should create your ideal day that revolves around how you’d like to work. I did that — and then after reading, Be Excellent at Anything by Tony Schwartz, I created my ideal week. My energy level is pretty high Mondays and Tuesdays. By Wednesday, I’m tired. So I work until about 2:30 and then I go do a double workout at the gym, make a leisurely dinner, etc. Doing this allows me to recharge and roar through Thursday and Friday. By Friday afternoon I’m beat again. My ideal week includes eight hours of sleep each night and four gym workouts. I have lots of downtime.

Vacations are pretty good too

I’m not sure where this whole idea comes from that once you go out on your own, you can’t take vacations. You need vacations to recharge. Each time I take a vacation (and I generally take off two+ weeks each year plus long weekends), I usually come back to new gigs waiting for me. Plus I feel better. And, I’m brimming with ideas.

You can create your own virtual team

Working solo doesn’t mean working alone. I’m quite fortunate in that I’ve built a wonderful virtual team in the last few years.

Arik didn’t cover this point in his post, but the other meme I hear constantly is that when you work solo, you go for days without seeing another living soul except your cat or dog. Again, this is simply not true — if you create opportunities to get out and meet people. The things I’ve done over the years, and still do, to ensure I have a social life include:

• Asking business colleagues and friends out to lunch or dinner.
• Going to the gym (exercise will make you think better anyway).
• Calling another solo consultant friend spur of the moment and meeting for cocktails.
• Inviting people over for dinner.
• Saying “yes” anytime anyone invites me out.
• Attending chamber of commerce networking functions.
• Getting involved with industry associations (helps build credibility too).

Being a solo consultant and working out of your house is what you make of it. If you see yourself as a pj-wearing non-entity with zero credibility, that’s what you’ll become. Or, you can see yourself as the CEO of your one person company and conduct yourself accordingly.

What other benefits do you see in working solo? Post your responses below.

I’m writing this while sitting at my kitchen table which faces the windows where I can see my backyard pine trees and the sun glinting off the new snow from the recent blizzard. I can see the birds zoom in and out from the feeders — watching them makes me think of the jets lined up at airport waiting for their runway space to land.

I’ve been thinking quite a bit of late about how I work. As I mentioned in my last post, The Art of Distraction, I’m moving my office back to my home. My home office is a third of the size of my current office that I rent, necessitating scaled down office furniture and much clearing out of clutter and other things I no longer need or use.

All of this change means I can build my dream office from scratch — and while it’s fun and exciting to think about paint colors and furniture, what’s really going through my head is this: How I work has changed. For the better.

What precipitated this change is my MacBook. I purchased my first one three years ago when my desktop PC got infected with malware — malware which took over my scanner, my printer, my browser, everything. I paid a lot of money to get my machine wiped clean but the malware came back. I was so frustrated and so tired that when I walked into the Apple Store with my son to buy his new MacBook (for which he diligently saved), I bought two — one for me, thank you!

To this day, my entire business is run off my 13″ MacBook Pro. Thanks to its portability and wifi, I found I could work anywhere — at my son’s fencing lessons, at Starbucks between meetings, and even better, while sitting on my bed.

Ooooohhhh, what luxury. Next to my bed are two windows with a large maple tree right outside. Soft white transparent curtains diffuse the sunlight. My bedroom is so peaceful and so beautiful that I found I was spending more hours there writing. (The last book I ghostwrote was written while sitting on my bed. I almost felt guilty the entire time — such decadence.)

Which brings me back to my new office and how I work. I finally realized that my real work — my creative work, the place where ideas develop — doesn’t happen when I’m sitting at my desk. It happens while I’m cooking. Or driving. Or pulling weeds. It happens while I’m lost in thought watching the birds or walking the dogs on brilliantly clear winter days.

Sometimes it takes a little while for ideas to develop. Sometimes they come to me unbidden or with a snap of insight.

And when they occur, I’m often not at my office. So, I find myself working at the kitchen counter. Or the table. Or on the couch in front of the fire. I wrote my entire Website while sitting on the back porch last spring listening to the birds, which is why my keyboard became covered in pollen dust.

This morning I woke up with a start at 5:00 AM with a solution to a problem I had been mulling over — and so, there I was in bed, with my laptop and notebook, putting my idea to work.

My new office, I realized, doesn’t need much. I need a printer and my phone and a desk on which to set my MacBook. I’ve decided my new office will be 100% clutter free the way my bedroom is and that my desk will be angled just so to catch the warm morning light. And, I’m going wireless — I’ll be able to print things from my couch or the kitchen or the back porch whether I’m on my Mac or my iPad.

The most profound thing I’ve learned in the last year is this: While my office is the place where DH Communications, the business, is located, and yes, I do want it to support me in my work, it’s not my office space per se that needs to be clutter-free and clean.

It’s my head — my brain — my mental space — that I need to guard and keep pristine and uncluttered. Because that is where I work.

Four years ago, I moved out of my home office and rented a commercial space. The reasons were varied but the main one was: I had been working at home for 10 years while raising my son. I felt like I had been housebound all that time — and was going crazy!

Plus, my son, who was 11 at the time, was growing out of his small bedroom and really wanted my office as it was double in size.

Renting office space has had many unexpected benefits. Instead of getting out of bed and heading straight for my computer — and then sitting there half the day in my pjs (or worse, sweats) — I now get up, take a shower, get dressed up and go to work. I love it.

And, it is quiet — no barking dogs (I have two) and no neighbor mowing the lawn. In short, I have nothing to distract me from my work, which, if I read comments on blog posts correctly, is nirvana for writer types like me.

It’s taken me all this time to figure out that I really need distraction to foster my creativity. No, not the ADD type of distraction that comes with social media. I’m talking about distraction in the form of breaks from work.

Working at my office means I sit for hours and go from one project task to the next — with little in the way of breaks. By 2:00 PM, I’m usually fried.

I came to the realization that maybe having an office might not be the best thing for me when I visited with my client Simone Joyaux during the summer. As we sat in her office talking about her Website Overhaul, we watched her life partner, Tom Ahern, work in the yard. “Moving here has been the best thing for him,” Simone said. “When he needs a break from his writing, he just gets up and works in the yard.” Their garden is breathtaking. And Tom, I might add, writes highly successful donor communications copy — the kind that gets people to hand over their money. (He’s really good.)

Matthew May, in his book, The Laws of Subtraction: Six Strategies for Winning in the Age of Excess Everything, talks about how researchers have determined that we’re most creative when we’re not working.

When I worked at home, I had built-in breaks — or what others call distractions. I’d write a piece, then get up and put in some laundry, wash dishes, or run the dogs around in the yard. It seemed as if I weren’t working, but I was because my brain was busy mulling over the “glitches” in whatever I was working on. Neuroscientists call this type of relaxed but aware thinking “alpha wave activity.”

According to May and the research he cites, taking breaks that allow your brain to work in this relaxed state can help you produce better work. In fact, it’s alpha wave activity that produces those a-ha moments that lead to real breakthroughs.

I’m glad I learned this because I’m moving back to my home office next month. And I’m happy to say, I’m really looking forward to all of the distractions inherent in a home office — especially taking breaks, running the dogs around in the yard, and sitting out on my back porch and watching the birds while I eat lunch.

What’s your experience with taking breaks from your work — and how do these breaks benefit you? Leave your comments.

I’m the owner of the LinkedIn B2B Social Media Group (ownership is changing soon!) and just spent a good 45 minutes cleaning out posts, most of which were spam or promotional in nature.

There’s no denying we’re in a content glut. Companies are vomiting content. I’m part of the content glut. I create it for clients, I create it here on this blog, I produce three email newsletters a month. It used to be, when I first started out, that I’d send out one e-newsletter a month. That’s it. I’d read a few newsletters each month but most of my content I consumed by reading magazines and books. I still read books but not magazines anymore.

I am overwhelmed by information.

As I was deleting the hundreds of LinkedIn Group posts that had built up over a two week period, I began to wonder if someday (maybe hopefully, please God) content would begin to derive value due to its exclusivity versus how many times it got passed around the Internet like dandelion seeds.

I have no answer to this problem. I only know that in the current content arms race, I have become more thoughtful about what I post and why. Hopefully my audience is better for it. I know I am.

I went into business the same year that Apple went into near-bankruptcy. Because of this, I made the decision to go PC, even though I loved Apple computers and had used one at my corporate job. It seemed like the smart thing to do.

I spent the next 12 1/2 years cursing Windows, Microsoft and PCs and spent way too much time battling viruses, computer crashes and lots of other things I don’t care to remember.

Then one day about a year ago, malware took over my PC — and my printer and scanner, too. “That’s it,” I said. “I’ve had it.” My son and I already had a date to buy him a MacBook; instead, I bought two. The second one, for me, was a total impulse purchase I made in about three minutes. I’ve never looked back.

I love my MacBook not because it works — which it does, every single god damned day — but because it’s beautiful. I run my hands over its sleek body. My fingers move quickly over the keys that don’t clack. Even crappy Websites look good on the high resolution screen. With my Mac I can work anywhere — from my bed to Starbucks — and do what I do best: create. Steve gave me and others that gift.

Good bye, Steve. Thank you designing beautiful products and for your service here on earth.

Back in October I wrote a post about how I was looking for ways to offload some of the mind-numbing tasks that eat up a lot of my time — and that prevent me from doing those things that I absolutely love.

The first thing I outsourced was my business bookkeeping. The bookkeeper, who is fabulous and worth her weight in gold, has spent the last two months cleaning out my books, which were filled with errors. She’s also been advising me on how to improve my cash flow and which expenses to cut. Most important, she’s helping me become better focused on bringing in income, which is my strength.

Things moved a little slowly at first and I wasn’t sure I had made the right decision. But last week I realized I had. She came to my office and **while I worked** she paid bills, filled out tax forms and did all that stuff I used to spend hours doing. All I had to do was sign the dotted line on various forms and things. I literally was like, “OMG.”

From there, I seriously began considering how I could better use my virtual assistant. She’s been with me for a couple of years now, but it’s been on again, off again as I really don’t use her to her full capacity. I started changing that by looking at the tasks I do that I *hate.* I’ve been sending more tasks her way — everything from cleaning out my email inbox and ordering letterhead to helping me with some of my project work.

This is still a work in progress as I fight the guilt of sending her tasks that I don’t like doing, but it’s becoming much easier. I love it when she sends me completed tasks — stuff that used to take me hours is all done and ready to go!

The next thing I want to outsource is a big one for me because I have huge resistance against it — hiring a company to come plow out my driveway after a snow storm. Anytime it snows more than four inches, it takes me two hours or more to dig out. And with this series of storms pounding New England, I’ve been digging out — a lot — and it’s seriously cutting into my work time.

I’ve resisted outsourcing this chore because I’m of sturdy stock; I can shovel my own damn snow, plus it’s good exercise, blah, blah, blah. I’ll let you know how it goes.

Do you outsource certain tasks in order to free yourself up to do what you love? If so, what have you outsourced and how has it worked for you?

Like many people, I have a computer hard drive crammed with files: documents, audio, video, PowerPoint presentations — you name it, I have it.

When it was time to replace my aging PC a couple of months ago, I got price quotes for a blazing fast Windows 7 machine that came with mega huge storage. “You won’t need another machine for a few years,” said my IT person.

I was all set to buy it when I walked into the Apple store with my son to get the machine he’d been saving for for months . . . and a half hour later, walked out with a 13″ MacBook Pro.

(And let me just digress here a minute to say that I cannot find the words to express the entire Apple experience. From the store displays to the packaging to the product themselves, you just don’t find anything like it — anywhere.)

At first I thought I’d use the machine as my personal laptop. It’s small, it’s portable, but it definitely was not a business computer.

When my aging PC started acting funny, I began migrating my business to the Mac — thinking I’d purchase a larger iMac later in the year.

In the process of moving, however, I discovered having a “small” computer was actually quite freeing.

Based on the “less is more” principal, here’s how having the small MacBook has made me much more productive:

1. I dumped (almost) all of my software — With the exception of the slimmed down version of Microsoft Office for the Mac, all other software is now cloud-based, including:

Basecamp and Highrise from 37signals — I use Basecamp to manage client projects and Highrise to keep track of contacts and tasks. (Highrise is far superior to Google Tasks / Gmail contacts). I can also access both applications through iPhone apps.

Harvest — This nifty application lets me keep track of time and expenses, and it syncs with Basecamp. And, with the handy iPhone app, I can track time while on the go.

Quickbooks Online — Quickbooks desktop software is bloated and hard to use. I hate it with a passion. But most accountants like it, and truth be told, it is easy to send your QB file to your accountant at tax time. QB Online, however, is much easier to use and because it’s online, I can access it from anywhere.

WordPress — Although I made this change before purchasing my Mac, it still counts as part of my overall “become more productive” goal. Instead of two Websites (my DH Communications site and my blog), I now have one site — simplifying everything. And again, I can access my site, and make changes on the fly, from any place that has an Internet connection.

Yield Software — I use this application to help me with SEO and PPC for clients. Don’t know how I lived without it.

2. I cleaned up my hard drive — Last year I spent a week cleaning out my physical office and removed piles and piles of paper. This past month I’ve cleaned out megabytes of unneeded files gathering dust on my hard drive. Cleaning out all this junk has made it much easier to find the files I need on a day-to-day basis.

3. I work glitch-free — With my PC, I was spending increasing amounts of time dealing with technology. Due to anti-spam, anti-virus, anti-malware, anti-pop-ups, anti-scripting, anti-anything software and browser plugins, nothing worked right.

Clients would point out things on Websites that I couldn’t see. Java never worked properly, rendering some applications useless. Then of course, there were the famous Window reboots that would happen right in the middle of a project I was working on. Argh!

Now everything just works. I’m finding I’m much more productive since I don’t have to stop mid-stream to deal with some “small” technological glitch that would leave me pulling out my hair.

In short, having my MacBook has freed me to do what I love: Create.

Have you moved from a PC to Mac? If so, what kind of Mac do you own and what do you find is the biggest benefit?

I recently moved my office from out of my home and into a professional building. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a long time.

I first started my business (in 1998) when my son was 12 months old. At the time, working part-time out of my home was ideal as it allowed me to spend more time with my son.

As my workload increased, however, it became harder to separate work from my personal life. Then, with the advent of social media and email overload, I experienced too many days when I felt like I was working around the clock and/or chained to my computer.

Moving my business out of my house has given me that “separation” that I’ve craved for a long time. (And quite frankly, not listening to my dogs bark during client calls is a definite plus!)

I thought moving my office would be a simple matter. I had my desk, a couple of file cabinets, and a bookcase out of my old office in a couple of hours.

It was the packing up that really opened my eyes to how lost I had become in my office — something that can happen to anyone who has been working in the same space for years.

Your sub-conscious affects your conscious

Once my furniture was gone, I was shocked at how dirty my office really was — even though I cleaned it regularly.

It was in that instant of standing in an empty room that I understood why you must keep your workspace immaculate.

Cobwebs on the ceiling, piles of paper, and lots of unnecessary “stuff” equals cobwebs on the brain — and unclear thinking.

Because I had to empty all my drawers so that I could lift the furniture, I took the time to clean out my files. What started off as an “easy” task ballooned into days of going through piles of paper.

I realized that although my files *looked* organized, they were anything but. I ended up recycling five bins of paper.

Even better, I culled four drawers of files down to one — and ended up throwing away YEARS of hard copy writing samples (all of which were covered in dust due to sitting on shelves, which tells you something).

I also realized I no longer needed many of my books and called Got Books, who carted away seven cartons of them. (Whew!)

At the end of the day, it took me a week to clean out my office, files, and assorted items. It was a lot of work but well worth the time and effort.

My new office is immaculate and pared down. For the first time, I’m able to use my entire desk because it’s not covered in piles of magazines, printed reports, and other junk.

And, I now have a good view of where I’m going . . . because my view is no longer obstructed by years of detritus.

Have you moved your office and/or done a total clean out? If so, what lessons did you learn?

When you sit at your desk all day (the way I do), it’s easy to fall into bad eating habits. To aliveate stress and break up boredom, I often snack: chips, crackers, nuts, and candy get consumed pretty regularly (which is one reason why I work out!).

In this guest blog post, Marci Anderson, Registered Dietitian and Certified Personal Trainer, gives tips for healthy snacking when you’re crunched for time. Take it away, Marci!

As a nutrition therapist I get to talk about one of my very favorite subjects A LOT — food. But for most of you, food is the last thing on your mind when you’re slammed and a deadline is fast approaching.

Let me assure you that feeding your body and your brain is an essential component for increasing productivity, enhancing your mood, and improving your health. And after counseling hundreds of people, I’ve discovered one nutrition principle that is either friend or foe — snacking.

Here are the four most common pitfalls busy professionals make when it comes to snacking, as well as four simple solutions to break the bad habit cycle.

Pitfall #1: Going too long without eating.

When work is busy its easy to push eating to the back burner. I recommend eating every 4-5 hours. This becomes much more manageable when your snack is pre-planned and convenient (see next tip).

Pitfall #2: Falling victim to the nearest vending machine or candy jar.

When ravenous hunger strikes and you don’t have a nutritious snack handy, anything (and everything) will do. Before going to sleep at night, pre-plan a snack or two to bring to work with you and keep it easily accessible.

Pitfall #3: Snacking on carbohydrates solo (i.e. candy, crackers, fruit).

No, carbs are not evil. But they are metabolized very quickly, supplying your body with instant energy. If you feel hungry 30 minutes after eating an apple, now you know why. A snack should reflect a mini-meal with carbohydrates, fats, and proteins.

Carbohydrates supply quick energy and are good for the brain, protein supplies longer lasting energy keeping you fuller longer, and fats trigger hormones which elicit feelings of satiety and satisfaction.

Pitfall #4: Munching to procrastinate.

Yes, eating is a very effective way to avoid a project or assignment. But the consequences are often less than desirable. If you need a distraction try a few jumping jacks, push-ups, or lunges. Taking 60 seconds to increase your heart rate will clear your mind and reduce your levels of stress and anxiety.

Here are 4 super simple snacking solutions that are well-balanced, affordable, and tasty.

1. Cottage cheese with fruit. Do not buy fat-free. I go for Hood Cottage Cheese with pineapple.

2. Whole grain crackers with peanut butter or almond butter. I make mini-sandwiches (PB smeared between two crackers) ahead of time and keep them stored in a zip-loc.

3. Yogurt with slivered almonds. Again, I avoid fat-free yogurt. The 6 oz. Activia yogurt is tasty and just the right size.

4. Larabars. If you like convenience food, this is a MUST. These bars are made with dried fruit, nuts, and spices, minimally processed, and filled with healthy fats and fiber. You can find them at Whole Foods, Trader Joes, Costco, and even Amazon.

For more nutritious tips, check out Marci’s blog at http://www.marcird.com/_blog/blog. You can learn more about Marci by visiting her website — she’s based in Massachusetts and helps people find healthy balance through daily exercise and proper nutrition.

The following ad says it all — namely, that each of us creates our own reality.