Fun fact: I am the most unathletic person you will ever meet. If you don’t believe me, watch the video of me rollerblading—it’s on my Instagram (you have to scroll through 567 dog photos to find it). Ironically, or not ironically, I am ridiculously competitive, which directly challenges my athleticism, often with disastrous consequences. Case […]
Remember Home Ec? I do. One hour of my day in high school where we learned the names of utensils, the difference between a teaspoon and tablespoon, and how to cook meat that wouldn’t kill us. It went the way of The Oregon Trail, replaced by digital whiteboards and iPads that took the solving out […]
“Can a person live on iced, shaken espressos only?” I texted my best friend, Sue. “Yes,” she responded. That, right there, is why Sue is my best friend. The past two+ years have been the hardest of my life. I was diagnosed with ADHD (at 45). I faced a situation that tested everything I had […]
Imposter syndrome won this past weekend. I think I spent most of Sunday staring at a wall, contemplating all of my failures. What a great time. Highly recommend spending your day like this. I don’t typically sit around and feel sorry for myself, but these past two years have been absolutely brutal. It caught up […]
Perhaps by calling it Sharkie Poo, it was a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy. All seven dogs have a nickname – Millie is Millie Vanilli, Noodle, Silly Millie…I’ll spare you the rest; you get the drift. It only felt fair and proper to give the Shark Robot a similar name; after all, he is now […]
I started writing this blog last year, and then Imposter Syndrome took over and I killed it. So now it’s more like 17 years but who the hell is counting anyways? I’m just happy to do what I love every day, even if it feels like a bad relationship at times. There is a lot […]
If I had a dime for every time someone referred to me as “too much,” I’d have a pretty decent chunk of change. Like…what does that even mean? Often-used words or phrases I’ve become intimately familiar with: Scary Acquired taste Abrasive Aggressive Loud A lot Intimidating I’d be lying if I didn’t admit these […]
I spoke to several female business owners/professionals in the past few weeks and they all have one thing in common, they’re exhausted. Just absolutely burned out. Their mental health is shit. Now is as good of time as any to remind you, you’re not invincible. Your physical and mental health is important, make it a […]
Dear Little Bode, We’ve been watching you the past several months as you’ve dealt with loss, grief, growth, conflict and so much more. You’re gonna be alright kid, you’re tough, stubborn and you’ve surrounded yourself with a damn good support system – they’re small and mighty. A lot of owning a business is about keeping […]
So, 2020 has been a bit of a challenge. I believe the word tossed around frequently is “unprecedented.” I’ve been talking to my small biz friends and we are all feeling a bit overwhelmed, now this isn’t a new feeling for any of us, but we are in uncharted waters and making decisions we thought […]
It’s been a while since I’ve posted, been a little busy ensuring we survive this damn pandemic. Priorities, I suppose. The first week, we lost over $15,000 in revenue a month, which does not include the clients who simply couldn’t pay but would when able. This happened on a Tuesday, by Thursday I made the […]
As if running a small business wasn’t hard enough, now we’re dealing with a pandemic. At this point, no one has any idea what that will mean for second-stage companies (between 10 to 99 employees), so we sit and wait. Waiting is not something we do well as business owners. Here is what we know: […]
I had an interesting convo with my therapist the other day (more people should admit they see one, helps erase the stigma), we were chatting about the stress a business owner deals with every day and how it bleeds into every other aspect of your life. By the way, this was supposed to be marriage […]
Ever find yourself scrolling through Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn…all the photos in your phone…the latest Ann Taylor sale…basically doing anything but tackling the looming project that is due? I’m convinced it is human nature to procrastinate, it just feels natural to find reasons to not do something. It’s like we are wired to avoid emptying the […]
The most important relationships in your business are the ones you already have. We spend so much time searching for the next big thing, new project, new client…we miss or take for granted what is right in front of us. Since we started implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System® (EOS®) at 8THIRTYFOUR, we made it a […]
I failed today in setting an example, in leading, in following our core values. I let frustration and stress get the better of me. Want to know the great thing about it? I have another chance to get it right. Tomorrow is a new day. Owning and running a business is tough and you are […]
It is hard to fight perfection. We are taught that we should always pursue it, even if it isn’t attainable. Why is that? If it is a lesson in failure then ok, but most often it sets us up for low self-esteem, feelings of inadequacies and disappointment. As a business owner, we feel that we […]
Quitters never prosper. Don’t be a quitter. We’ve all heard it before, but when is it time to throw in the towel? As a small business owner, when do you know that you have done enough? When do you determine it is time to part ways with a client, difficult colleague, or an employee? We […]
To be clear, I mean public speaking not just talking out loud. Although I do excel at that regardless if I have an audience. This week, actually today, I am talking to a group of professionals at OrgPro on measuring ROI on marketing efforts as well as personal branding. The latter is my most favorite […]
It will be 10 years for 834 Design & Marketing this fall. Some of those years I would like to forget, there was a lot of failure, frustration and drinking ?. People keep telling me that 10 years is a milestone, quite honestly…I’m just happy I managed to retain most of my sanity. I was […]
I was reading a recent Inc Magazine article and they interviewed multiple entrepreneurs such as Reddit, IPSY, SLACK and Shark Tank about how they spend their day. I thought, what a great idea! I will share a day in the life of a business owner…me. 9:00 p.m. Go to bed. Sit in bed and check social […]
We have a saying around our office, “Presentation is just as important as strategy.” What I mean by that is we could have an amazing marketing strategy that we put together for a client, but if we present it in Word with no logo, graphics or imagery it looks amateurish. We want to stand out […]
Dear Graduate, What an exciting time for you! This past weekend you graduated, celebrated with friends and family and toasted the accomplishment of receiving a degree. After a 4.5 hour ceremony you walked across that stage, shook the hands of lots of people wearing robes and weird hats and took your diploma and entered into […]
