Thursday, July 30, 2009

Get Into Your Creative Cave and Produce

Entrepreneur Christina Aguilera (pictured) will spin tunes on her very own radio station set to debut tomorrow, July 31. The 24-hour online channel will be distributed across Clear Channel Radio’s “iheartradio” network, and will feature interviews, news, personal commentary from Aguilera as well as her favorite tunes.

The Associated Press interviews Christina and here's how she addresses the first question of how does a radio channel fit you?

Aguilera:
We moved into our new house about a year ago but since I started working on the record, I have a studio in the backyard … and it just has been so perfect for me to just wake up in the morning, put on my flip flops and sweat pants, and just go back in the studio and pretty much get into my creative cave and zone out that way, so it’s been really convenient. So the paparazzi have probably been upset with me. I know they told my husband, they’re like, “Is she every going to leave the house?”
You never know how creative entrepreneurial juices get flowing.

Read the entire article and interview here.

Monday, July 27, 2009

Close The Bedroom Door; Get To Entrepreneurship

It doesn't matter where you're based, entrepreneurship can take place anywhere at anytime.
Suzanne Kantra, who was laid off from an editing job in October, is running an online publication called Techlicious.com out of the three-bedroom apartment in Manhattan she shares with her husband and three children ages 1 to 7. When she's working in her bedroom, the door is closed. For her older children, "knowing I'm home but not available has been an adjustment for them," she said.

Sometimes the kids forget what that closed door means, and Kantra is interrupted anyway. One way Kantra tries to help them with the enforced separation is not to do any work around the time they come home from school. That way, she can give them all her attention as they tell her about their day.
Adapting to a home based business is a new way of life. Read how other women manage it and make adjustments along the way here.

Tuesday, July 21, 2009

Women Entrepreneurs Ignore Recession


Is there an inverse relationship between the state of the economy and the number of folks looking to start their own business? Could be.

Take these Canadian women who are making the dream of owning a business a reality.
Inhee Lee, a 36-year-old recent arrival from South Korea, came looking for advice on how to take her business selling teddy bears online.

Judi Halla, a former personal trainer, decided she'd rather be outside walking other people's pets than inside getting the owners in shape; she's doing all she can to learn what resources are out there to launch her business.

And Merlinda Poon was looking for tips to take her invention to a new level. The 35-year-old computer scientist already has a business plan and a prototype for her device to assist the visually impaired scan and listen to documents. Now she needs to get patent protection, and find some funding.
Got the itch to start a business? You're not alone. Read more here.

Friday, July 17, 2009

What Talented Women Want

Journalists Claire Shipman and Katty Kay have co-authored Womenomics: Write Your Own Rules for Success. It's about what professional women want and how to chart a course to a more enriching and successful life. At the same time, it uncovers the phenomenal power that women have in today's marketplace.

If you want to take charge and change the way you live and work, read this book.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Estrogen Matters in the Real World of Work

When are folks going to stop spending money trying to prove to us that women matter in the world of work? They do. Got it?
The numbers make a compelling case. The studies Ernst & Young rounded up show that women can make the difference between economic success and failure in the developing world, between good and bad decision-making in the industrialized world, and between profit and loss in the corporate world.
Give me a break.
Their conclusion: American companies would do well with more senior women.
Does this sound a little close to home on what we have been preaching via this blog for five years? Hello Katty. Hello Claire. Hello corporate world. For goodness sakes, women, whether entrepreneurs or corporate execs = better performance all around for everyone, everywhere!

And let us not forget why women are leaving corporate America in droves:
In the interest of security, women used to be willing to channel their time, energy, and effort to the corporation's needs at the expense of fulfilling their own professional goals -- but no more. In starting their own businesses, they're seeking freedom, flexibility, recognition, more money, and opportunities to leave a legacy -- all of the things they once thought they would find within corporations. ~ Source: Escape From Corporate America (2003) by Laurel Delaney.
Read the entire article which includes reference to the Ernst & Young study: "Fixing the Economy? It's Women's Work."

Saturday, July 11, 2009

Demystifying Judith Hill

Who was the mystery singer (and entrepreneur) who performed at Michael Jackson's memorial tribute? Judith Hill (pictured).
Born in Los Angeles – her mother was a Japanese immigrant and her father a member of a '70s funk band – Hill, who had planned on singing backup for Jackson's scheduled This Is It! tour at London's O2 Arena this month, was surrounded by musicians since childhood.
Another star is launched. Read more here.

Sample Judith's music here.


Wednesday, July 08, 2009

Be Happy. Rely On Yourself.

BusinessWeek's small business team keeps cranking out great articles, contests, resources and tips for small businesses. Here's an excerpt from a recent guest blog post, "Anatomy of An Entrepreneur," authored by the newest edition to the BW team, Emily Schmitt:
Carol Clark, who has founded four companies in her 62 years, also fits the profile of the typical entrepreneur in this study. She says she thrives on the risk involved in running her own company, which gives her the chance to earn more than a standard wage. Clark, who lives in Hattiesburg, Miss., co-founded a hang gliding school in Salt Lake City when she was 32 years old. Today she owns DigiDentist, a dental patient enducation software company that she founded when she was 55 years old. Clark is well educated. She holds a bachelor's degree in psychology from San Fransisco State University and started (but did not finish) master's work in speech communication at Oregon State. She says the thought of waking up at six in the morning to pull on pantyhose and sit at a desk appalled her. "I’ve had a lot of office jobs, too, and I don’t have a problem with authority per se, but I’m too smart to really work in a situation where it doesn’t demand the most of me," said Clark. Why does she love being an entrepreneur? "I think it’s the appeal of having to rely on myself." she says.
Read the entire post here.

Monday, July 06, 2009

Meet Michael Jackson's Female Lead Guitarist

Orianthi: "Michael Jackson was amazing. He had an aura about him."

VIDEO: Watch Michael Jackson's final rehearsal here.

Orianthi entrepreneurial? You bet. As unfortunate the circumstances, a star is born.

Pictured: Orianthi and Michael Jackson (may he RIP).

Correction 11/4/09: It's Jennifer Batten in the photo -- not Orianthi (please refer to the Comments). We changed the link above too! Thanks readers.

Saturday, July 04, 2009

The Official Escape From Corporate America Blog Turns 5



Celebrating birthday No. 5 for the official Escape From Corporate America Blog and No. 233 birthday for America.

Here's a reminder of where it all started. In 2003, I wrote a wildly popular article, "Escape From Corporate America," that was published by The Conference Board. It caused such a stir that the following year I decided to start a blog about it. Here's the lead paragraph to the article:
Divorce, dumping, or abandonment: Call it what you like, but many women are trading in Corporate America for entrepreneurship. According to Cheskin Research, they are starting businesses at twice the rate of men and have become a major force in both the traditional and the e-business marketplace. The Center for Women's Business Research estimates that, as of 2002, there are 6.2 million women-owned businesses, employing 9.2 million workers and generating $1.15 trillion in annual revenue.

In the interest of security, women used to be willing to channel their time, energy, and effort to the corporation's needs at the expense of fulfilling their own professional goals -- but no more. In starting their own businesses, they're seeking freedom, flexibility, recognition, more money, and opportunities to leave a legacy -- all of the things they once thought they would find within corporations.

Still sounds all too familiar, doesn't it? Since then, even more women are breaking away from what is considered "corporate prison" to start their own businesses.

So today is your day. Enjoy. Have fun. And thank you ever so much for your readership.

Go out -- escape -- to celebrate your freedom and independence!

P.S. Here are the first three posts to the official Escape From Corporate America Blog in 2004:

Post 1
Post 2
Post 3

Wednesday, July 01, 2009

Turn Unemployment Into a Lifelong Dream

If you can dream it, you can do it. Kim Leslie is living proof.
Today, Leslie, 38, is the owner of Kokopelli Cafe, a business she opened in May on Woodland Square Loop that is surrounded by state office buildings and looks across Huntamer Park. Her fledgling cafe has two employees and business is off to a good start, she said.

Among her customers are at least 250 who return on a regular basis to use their punch cards for future discounts, Leslie said.

“I couldn’t be happier,”
she said Tuesday. “I enjoy getting up at 4:30 a.m., but I never used to.”
Read her story: No job? Create your own work.