WASTING TIME

WASTING TIME

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Stop stalling!

Stop making excuses, telling yourself that you’ll get to your dreams when all of the stars align because they won’t. Over the past few weeks, I’ve been a part of or overheard conversations with able-bodied people waiting for their moments, a moment that is going to change their whole life. This moment is going to make them rich beyond their dreams allowing them to do all of the things they’ve been waiting for all this time, there’s only one thing.

They haven’t gotten off their asses yet and started anything. Not one step, class taken, not even a damn google search of where they need to start aligning themselves with their goals. Nothing! Being a small business owner, I’ve not achieved all of my goals yet, I can tell you that it’s not a fast process.

Sometimes it feels like no progress at all. Slow and steady becomes a mantra for me in the beginning but that’s the only way. Slow. Steady. Consistently. Everyday. But stop stalling. Stop wasting TIME telling the world about your dreams and you’ve done nothing to prepare for it when it comes.

It’s not fair to get people on board with your ideas but when they show up to help you see it through, you haven’t done your part. If you’re serious about any of the things you dream about, take the necessary steps to get the ball rolling. Ask plenty of questions, take notes, and if slow and steady is the path for you, Go Slow. Because slow progress is better than no progress!

Good Luck!

Lessons Learned

Lessons Learned

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Nothing you learn today will benefit you today.

A lot of the time lessons seem to store themselves safely in your mind as memories and experiences. They will travel with you, disguising themselves as useless information waiting for the right opportunity to shine.

But look at how far you’ve come! What skills have you acquired? What successes and failures have taught you the most about how to move forward?

All of your scars, bumps and bruises, heartaches, and headaches you get today are preparing you to be better tomorrow.

It takes time to learn who we are and what we’re made to be doing in life. Mainly because we have conditioned and prepared to take action and do good things with whom we’re becoming today.

So if all of these lessons reveal themselves over time, is there not a better time to get started than right now?! Nope, so get at it!   

Artist Highlight : Illustrator – Arp Laszlo

Artist Highlight : Illustrator – Arp Laszlo

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I’m always curious about why people do the things they do.  No matter if they are well seasoned or just getting started, I love when an artist sets out to express their thoughts on the world. These are people I find exciting and I’d like to introduce you to them and help spread the word about their awesomeness.

Meet Arp Laszlo,

I met Arp about five years ago at a Chamber Of Commerce networking function here in Dunedin, Florida. At the time he was a web developer and designer over at EchoLeaf. Already a father of four, a web builder and a lot on his plate, Arp still had the need to tap back into his creative mind of what his passions were calling him to do and make money doing it in the process. Art! Specifically as an illustrator.

Being an artist myself, I was looking for traits that would show signs of putting in the work and taking it seriously, because making a living as a creative is not an easy task. It takes a lot of work to get where you want to be. Still interested in his “why”, Arp agreed to answer a short list of questions. Here’s a preview of what we’re to expect to see from him in the future.

Enjoy!

Q: Why are you making the shift from web guy to illustrator?

Art is what I should have been doing all along. I wanted to attend art school at 11; as a teen, I wanted to be a cartoonist. But having a phenomenal short-term memory meant I got very good grades so I was pushed into more ‘practical’ pursuits by well-meaning people who had never done a creative thing in their lives. Rather than just do something to make a living, I’d rather scratch my creative itch and make a living doing something that engages me wholeheartedly.

Q: What inspires you to illustrate?

Honestly, I don’t know. I’ve just drawn my whole life, except for a bunch of years in my 20s & early 30s where it was pushed aside for other pursuits. But once I got back into it I just drew more and more. What really helped was technology because I can explore techniques that are impossible in analog art. And being able to paint without any setup is a godsend.

But more than anything, it just makes sense to me. That’s not saying that I’m great at it – there are frustrating aspects too as my skills doesn’t meet my standards in many areas. But I’m clear on what I do well and what my limitations are. And the hunger to improve has never been present in anything I’ve done just for money. I just know this is what I’m supposed to do.

Q: How many projects do you have going on at once?

2 art projects currently – which would be 3 if you count my efforts to improve and learn skills. On the web side I usually juggle between 3-6 projects at a time.

Q: What would you like people to know about you as an illustrator?

That I’m available for work. And if you’re looking for someone influenced by comics and children’s books, that I may be the one you’re looking for. Check my work and see if it resonates with you.

Q: What are your overall goals?

To be a complete creator working on graphic novels and stories. And getting the chance to work for hire on interesting projects.

Other places to find Arp.

Portfolio

Instagram

Everyone’s a Marketer, and an Expert?

Everyone’s a Marketer, and an Expert?

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Everybody is a marketer these days because of social media. Anyone can set up a camera or start a blog and moments later be on display for the world to see. Don’t get me wrong, I love how simple tech has made it for all of us to take more control of our lives and tell our stories at the pace we decide.

My only concern is for the many people who make the decision that they want more out of life, they want to grab control of their fate and jump out into the community of people making moves on the web. Right out of the gate, before they have thought about who they are and what they have to offer the people, they fall into the trap of how to get more likes, more followers, and how to become a social media bad-ass from day one. They spend hours, weeks, months trying to crack the code of being themselves while going about life like everyone else.

A handful of free workshops, a years worth of online courses and thousands of dollars later, most of us still find ourselves confused and overwhelmed and feeling like the only solution is to scrap it all and start over again. Instead of taking the time to reflect on what they learned from the process and question what they would need to do differently, they stall. When they turn to the experts that got them to this point, these experts can’t help push them through to what the problem is because they have spent no time learning what you as a customer needs to help you to figure these things out about yourself.

In fact, they have thrown you into a pot with every other person like you with their general approaches to what most times are very specific needs. It’s no wonder why so many of us second guess ourselves and give up before we have gotten started. My answer is that there is no one answer, no one real approach to how we should get shit done as individuals.

If we worried less about likes and follows and focused our time on how we are best suited to serve each other through our products or services and get really good at just doing that, our journey in becoming better marketers for our business will be rooted in becoming better believers, thinkers, and storytellers of ourselves.

Note To Self: Care more about the things that interest my clients. Learn as much as I can about those things and use that as information for better decision making in the future.

What Streams Of Income Should I Have?

What Streams Of Income Should I Have?

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What streams of income should I have? This was one of the hardest questions to answer as I started to focus more time on my business. I spent a lot of time with this question because of how I got into being an entrepreneur in the first place. I had always been working toward owning my own business, but I was taking it slow. Picking up jobs here and there as I worked more steady full-time gigs. As time went by, I got more comfortable with having a job and stopped thinking about my business as much.

So my arrival here has been pretty unconventional, by my standards anyway. I got fired from a job I had at the time, and I was not prepared to make my next move. After looking for a steady gig for a bit, it did not take me long to figure out that I didn’t want a job in the first place. And that I’d be better off doing this for myself.

I needed money and I had to figure out how I would make it without doing things I knew I’d hate myself for later. So I made a list. I sat my ass down and made a list of things I didn’t mind doing on a daily basis, which would allow me to keep my schedule free to work on learning to be a better businessman. None of the jobs I eventually chose paid me large amounts of money, but they demanded less of my time and more importantly, less brain power.

Freeing me up to figure out how Beach And Main is going to make money. After making my list of small jobs, the answer to how I was going to stay afloat was simple. Stick to things you like and that come naturally to you. Do the things you may be doing already and not getting paid for, no matter where you are in your process of becoming a business owner. Keep a few side hustles. If you don’t know what those side hustles need to be, sit down and ask yourself …

-What are the things I’m already good at doing?

-What things would I not mind getting paid to do?

-How much time am I willing to spend on those tasks?

-And will it allow me to grind and stay focused on my goals for my business?

Don’t Forget To Smile.

Don’t Forget To Smile.

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December 6th, 2017 6:23 am

Speak up! Use your mouth. Use all of the muscles in your neck, head, and face if you have to. Stand tall. Stand confidently. Be heard! …
And don’t forget to smile.

Things to be grateful for …

-Today I am thankful for all of the loved ones around me. My children especially. They light my way and fuel the fires that keep me moving forward.

-I’m also thankful for the monetary gains I’ve made so far. They have been proof that next year and the road ahead are filled with promise.

-I’m proud of my ability to wake up every day and dedicate my days to helping others live up to their potential.