If you haven’t ever seen a Twitter or Facebook post that has the “#amwriting phrase on it – it acknowledges the community of people who are out there – actively writing as a profession, a job, or passion. I hadn’t really used the designation before, because until recently as I would have been more likely to use the #ammeeting  or #ampowerpointing on most days.  But as I started this adventure of LittleBox Social, I find that I am spending a good part of my day writing with the desired outcomes of  either persuasion, information or entertainment.  And what an adventure it’s been!

You could argue that in my previous life at the Big Blue Box and other corporate jobs that a portion of my job was writing. Here’s the difference – I now have the ability to write in my natural style. For the past 20 years, I had been coached that my writing must be more concise, more to the point, more in the “less is more” style. I received feedback from some leaders that “Jenny, I’d read your emails, but they are just too long and I don’t have time.” Or “if I have to scroll down the message on my phone it’s not even going to get opened”. So I started editing the crap out of my messages. Tightening them up. Sticking to the facts. Bullets. Phrases. Short.

The result? I got pretty good at being an effective emailer. But that doesn’t count as writing; that’s just transfer of information. I’d barely call it communication. That kind of writing shrinks or minimizes what the reader thinks about, rather than expands it. Narrows the focus rather than broadens it. Now that I have the freedom to write in complete sentences vs. bullet points, I’ve re-discovered the joy of weaving a story through the play between words. I like the idea of being able to open someone’s mind to a new idea or thought and encourage them to build on it. I can ask poignant questions and use a vocabulary that would have been too fluffy or hard to understand. I call B.S. on the notion that it’s a bad thing if your reader has to pull out a dictionary to understand your writing. Instead, can’t we use words in a way that encourages learning and exploration? In fact, shouldn’t we?

In the past 90 days or so, I’ve had lots of practice in sharpening my complete sentence writing skills. I write content for two separate blogs, I’m ghost writing a series of articles for a client, I write proposals for new clients and I write scads of content for websites and social media posts for my clients. Each piece has a different audience and purpose, requiring a different tone and style. I didn’t know if I’d be able to get out of the corporate “box” to stretch this way, but feedback I’ve received so far indicates that I’m capable of switching it up effectively.

When I started my business, I knew that a lot of my time would be interacting with clients, managing their expectations and my deliverables. Ditto with networking – hours each week devoted to meeting new people and learning about their stories and how we may be able to help each other. Had someone asked me on April 8^th 2016, (my last day of corporate employment) how much time I would be spending writing, I would have shrugged and said “eh, not much”. I really had no clue how much of my day would be spent looking at a blank (or full) page – with that cursor just waiting for something brilliant to be typed. I had no understanding that I would enjoy plowing headlong into a writing task, being amazed when I looked at the clock, that several hours had passed without any awareness on my part. I had no idea that I would grow to enjoy the white noise of my home office as a background for the clickety clack of my keyboard. I had no idea how much fun I’d be having doing this all absorbing task.

Since then, I’ve learned that the fun comes from telling other peoples’ stories. I feel satisfied by pulling words together about a product, or a service, or an even an idea – so that someone will be compelled to sign up, buy or take action.  The happiness is having a client read what I’ve created for them and feel renewed towards their mission and purpose. The joy is from a client who reads my piece and is reminded that they have a unique value to add to their customers. On my best day, with my best work – the words I put together hold a mirror up for my clients and customers and help them see what’s beautiful inside.

Never, ever, in my wildest imagination of starting up a business did I think that this would be how I would spend my days. Not once did I think about it. Back in my corporate days, I would be happiest with a day packed full of meetings, as it would give me a way to “actively contribute” and pass the time. I enjoyed days where my meeting schedule was light, but rarely took advantage of those times to create something new. Now, I crave big blocks of time when I can write. I pick the place, the time, the topic and the medium. I write on my computer, or in a notebook with my favorite pen. I put together outlines on post it notes, or use my notecards in the Little box of ideas for writing. I get a sense of peace when I can write uninterrupted for hours at a time – a completely unexpected benefit from taking the risk of leaving cubeville behind and venturing out on my own. And as long as I am fortunate enough to have people hire me to be their storyteller, I’ll keep doing it.

So, if you don’t hear from me for a while on this blog, just know I’m sitting somewhere, with a cursor staring back at me. Waiting for the words to form about a client’s new line of custom jewelry, a non-profit event, a new business strategy, or a cool product.  I’ll be using complete sentences rather than bullet points. I’ll be trying out new words for effect rather than precision. I’ll be keeping it long rather than short. I’ll be sticking to the soul rather than just the facts. For me, #amwriting is about how much fun I’m having telling stories on behalf of other people.  I couldn’t be more thankful for the opportunity!

First I want to start out with this fact: I really do miss all of my BFF’s at Big Blue Box – you know who you are – the EBR team, the IT Gov Ops team, the HCC group circa 2012-14, The entire OMS team, the RRD Core team and exec sponsors – the list goes on and on. I miss you all and your cheery smiles across the hub, and your snarky comments about hanging out in my “office” at Sandy’s.  I feel the same way about my old RFC coworkers – even though we haven’t seen each other in years, I still feel so very closely connected to you –

there is something about the concept at Best Friends at Work that matters. I feel like I’ve made dozens of BFAW’s over the years and I am thankful for tools like facebook to help us stay in touch.

I’m now facing a new reality – speed dating strangers. Ok – I’m not romantically dating as I love my darling husband to pieces. Nope – I mean I’m meeting strangers every single day and building potential work relationships within the time it takes to consume ¾ of a cup of coffee. Sometimes it’s a one on one meeting where we swap stories about our business. Sometimes it’s in a structured group.  Sometimes it is a “one cup stand” – networking to say you did it, then never connect again (for whatever reason). Sometimes I can tell that there will be another conversation and maybe a potential work relationship. Sometimes it feels like there’s more of a connection that can transcend a client/provider relationship to something more like a friend.

I’m pretty transparent about the fact that I test out as an Introvert in the Myers-Briggs tool. Because of the career and hobby choices I’ve made, I’ve had to develop Extrovert skills. But honestly,  in any situation where I don’t need to have the “E” button flipped on, I’m happy to sit by myself and be quiet.  When I started this adventure, I knew that I would be pushing my boundaries in this manner – many articles and perhaps chapters of books have been written about “Networking as an Introvert”.  I have found my own methodology – crafted in my early career of working in a cut-throat banking environment in the 80’s, honed while working in the “always making a deal” mortgage banking world of the 90’s and truly tested in the community while representing a Fortune 100 company at various charitable and public events in the rocky 00’s.  By the time I started consulting in 2010, I had a sharp handshake, a genuine smile and a sparkle in my eye when I walked into a room of strangers. And I still have that… but again, if I had a choice, I’d sit in a corner and have a meaningful one on one conversation.

So now – I’m out here – connecting with people whom I never would have met in any other situation. Yesterday was a great example. I recently joined a local chamber of commerce, (Go TwinWest! ) and I was strongly encouraged to join a networking/referral group that they had starting up.  I arrived at the meeting – sat down and assessed the group. Generally younger than me and very keen on driving success. The mood was light hearted leaning toward  mildly snarky, which I enjoy. We did some brainstorming, made some decisions about how the group would work and ajourned.  I have to admit, I left in a bit of shell shock that a group of (mostly) strangers could get together and make progress like this in a 45-minute encounter.

Granted, my comparison point is coming from large corporate environments. Everyone knows each other, has already pre-scripted how the meeting is going to turn out, and well if we were meeting about it, there must be some kind of disagreement already, because otherwise, the decisions would have already been made.  I’ve gone on record that one of the reasons why I leave a company is because “I’m tired of sitting around the same table, with the same people and hear the same arguments, year over year”. I get frustrated with the predetermined destiny mindset so prevalent in large organizations.

So here’s the question I’m pondering right now – Do long lasting relationships actually limit opportunity and drive mediocrity? If so, then how do we disrupt these relationships to make them effective, but keep them close?  How do I take that consideration into my business model – if I prefer to have deep/meaningful relationships with the people I work with, how do I prevent drifting into complacency?

It’s an odd spot to be in, because I can actually choose a path to answer this question, rather than be forced into a model. I can modify my own behavior to get the right mix – I just need to figure it out. Perhaps I need to go sit quietly in a corner and think about it.  Drat!  –  it’s time for me to go meet someone and see if we can persuade them to join a group. Guess I’ll leave the sitting in a corner for another day!

Hey everyone! It’s been a little longer between posts than I intended – it’s all for good reasons, though – my workload is ramping up and it’s been so much fun working with clients! I’m learning all sorts of new things about the “start-up” process, social media and how I like to work… Here are the top things I’ve learned in the last few weeks:

10. My Robbinsdale neighborhood is really quiet during the day –especially the morning. I’m accustomed to the multitudes of dogwalkers, kids on bikes, young families out and about. I guess that’s the weekend personality of my area. Weekday personality is more like a sleepy tourist town out of season. I’m sure once school is adjourned it will shift – but for now Robbinsdale could be called snoozedale!

9. I really don’t need that much sleep. Or at least my internal clock is telling me that right now. I commonly wake up after about 6 hours of sleep – mind charged and ideas starting to flow. Not in the way that I used to wake up, jerked out of sleep by panic, but instead just ready to start my day. The trick is not disturbing any of the animals or my husband while I write stuff down or mentally prepare for the day and wait for the sun to rise so I can start my day.

8.Traditional networking is still not my favorite thing – but it’s a necessary part of this business. I’ve become much more practiced at the “Smile/Handshake/business card swap/10 second summation of my business” maneuver, however I’d really much rather meet people one on one and have an in depth conversation. There’s a reason why I don’t care for the speed dating approach to networking, and it’s the next item:

7. In an attempt to “be nice”, lovely people who are new connections will promise to follow up, have interest, knows someone who needs my help,  etc.., but when pursued will completely ignore you. Yes, I know that strangers would rather tell a fib than turn you down flat. But, come on – why lead someone on?  I know I haven’t been on the dating seen recently – ok, ever really. But I know a good connection when I make it. And I know when a fib’s being told. I’ve learned to simply move on quickly to the next open handshake available.  Authenticity matters – and I try to be as authentic as I can – every day.

6. My dogs aren’t really that great at helping me do work. In fact, right now, Parker, the barking beagle mix is thinking it’s time for dinner and is laying outside of my office door with her nose pressed up against it. “hey Parker – barking and whining and scratching won’t get you what you want!!!” well, maybe it will if I have to get on a phone call.    And then there’s the daily doggy wrestling match on the futon in my office. That’s really not helpful when I’m working. – but it’s nice to have them around!

5. Today I stopped at Target after meeting with a client- it’s the same Target that I used to sneak over too in my Cubeville days. Maybe I’m the only one that does this, but I would script out if I saw someone from the company there while I was shopping. I have no idea why I felt ashamed about making a Target run during the work day. I guess the old programming is still installed because as I stepped through the doors I went through the same process – get in, get out without anyone being able to see me.  Am I the only one? I doubt it…

4. Getting paid for my work feels really good. Like too good. I had two clients pay invoices to me last week and I was skipping to the bank and whooping it up! My billing rates are nothing near the rate I would charge as a full time consultant, or even as an employee. But each dollar I make right now is precious, and I am motivated more than ever to bring value to my clients and make them proud of the work I do for them in exchange for that payment.

3. I still run out of time everyday. I have more cool stuff to do than I can get done in a day. Some days I cut short and do non-work things, other days are very long. The fun part is I can decide which days those are. And if I have a frustrating moment because I can’t figure something out, I walk away and do something different – even if it’s watering flowers in my yard.

 

2. When you meet your competition (I mean literally meet them at a Chamber of Commerce meeting or a networking gathering), reach out and shake their hand. I’ve done this twice and each time, it breaks the tension when we both realized we work in the same space and could be hunting down the same client. Breaking that tension allows you to move on to make connections rather than obsess about how they work, what they charge , etc.

1. The number one thing I’ve learned in the last couple of weeks is to bask in the learning process. I’m learning this trade of social media one day at a time – I was counseled yesterday (by one of my competitors) not to waste time doing tasks that can be done less expensively by others. Like writing copy, or taking pictures for posts, or figuring out how to optimize something. Part of the joy I get out of this gig is being able to take the time to learn new stuff!

 

 

This has been a week of connecting with long time friends, colleagues and business partners. I’ve spoiled myself a little by having more than my once a week allotment of “personal” lunch dates. Since I’m in the fortunate position of having a few committed clients, I am able to take a tiny short breather on devoting 100% of my energy to business development. I still network on a daily basis, but it’s not the focus of my every waking moment – this week!

While I had not planned it, the focus of my week seems to have happily centered on stimulating conversations – with friends, colleagues and clients. I just left lunch with a former colleague – his contact name in my contact list is Bizio – a hold-over nickname from our old team – and I could not tell you why we called him that. I haven’t seen Biz in 5 or 6 years – but the time and distance didn’t matter – we picked up right where we left off. Lunch conversation started with the usual drill – family, kids, friends, jobs…. but then quickly moved to the fun stuff – swapping ideas about current economic, political and social trends.  While we tried to stay out of Doomsday “Hell in a hand basket” territory, of course, it drifted there. And Biz – thanks for the tip on the “Pitchforks are coming”  Ted Talk. It is on my watch list now! The point is – No matter how long it’s been since you’ve connected with a bright mind – give yourself the gift of time, some good food and a great sunny day on a patio  – and you’ll remember why you enjoyed working together so much and what a treasured time it was. Note to self – remember this when you find someone cool to work with – take the time to talk about non-work stuff. Stuff that is Creative. Stuff that isn’t Real.  Stuff that’s Important.

Yesterday – I had the great pleasure of two stimulating conversations – the first with a client and and the other with a recent former colleague. Both absolute leaders in their own right. Both on the cusp of a transition – different directions, but both about to make some kind of leap into a new world.  My client meeting was one of my favorite kind. We passed ideas back and forth, building on each other’s energy until we hit the “aha” moment – exactly where I needed this client to get to. I needed to hear his voice – his passion, his point of view – so that we could turn that into a series of articles. I had an image for the first hour of the 2 hour meeting – we carefully arranged kindling and tinder in a fire ring, then thoughtfully inserted accelerants. Then in the last 15 minutes, the match was lit and the fire went up.  Presto – we had it!  That’s my Raison D’etre – my reason for being. Working with people who are willing to push things to the edge, provoke change and diversity in action.  Nothing short of excellence.

Follow that with a lunch with a former colleague; in fact she was a senior leader whom I had the honor to serve several times in my tenure at the big blue box. She was a leader that demanded the best and the most out of the people who worked with her. Without this level of expectation, I would not have been able to make the impact that I did on the company, my team, or my career. So now, it’s a true treat to shed the personas of our old corporate roles. Now just colleagues who could both offer the other wisdom and inspiration. The conversation meandered between history and family, careers and mindsets, resumes, experiences and aspirations. Our conversation was a great reinforcement of my decision to make the leap to a new “Career”, and happy to see her enjoying her own journey towards finding what’s next. It’s good to have a familiar face as we both make the leap from comfort into the unknown.

My point is – when you don’t have an official forum for feedback that you’d get in a more traditional work setting, you need to create your own. Not just a group of friends who will applaud everything you do in the name of courage (Although that’s nice). I need to remember to seek out those who have expected great things out of me in the past – and ask them to continue in that role – Someone to push me to be the best leader I can be, rather than take the easy route.  Someone to remind me that mediocrity is a bigger failure than trying something new and falling on your face.  And someone to have crazy conversations about the future that might include robots, zombies and pitchforks.

 

 

I knew this day would come eventually – that day when I had to invest time in organizing my workspace so that I could actually find something that I needed. After returning home from a really great potential client meeting (yay!), I remember that I needed to take care of a small task. Of course, that task had been weighing on my mind for the last week or two but rather than add it to my daily to do list, it was floating around on my desk in the form of an invoice that needed to be paid.  Shame on me for the lack of to-do list hygiene, my mom would be raising her eyebrows at me if she were still around….

I plopped down my back pack, unpacked my laptop and kept it closed. Rather than checking emails, I knew I had to get this particular thing out the door and in the mailbox before the end of the day.  As I was sifting through the piles, muttering about my document retention policy (that I never got around to in early start up mode), I thought back to my working days before a computer. That’s right, boys and girls under the age of 30, there was a day when we carried notebooks and paper calendars. No electronics.  We wrote letters, not emails.  We left phone messages via pink call slips, not voice mails. We actually wrote memos to each other on memo paper. Did you know that CC stands for Carbon copy – which meant you inserted a sheet of carbon between the two sheets of paper at the IBM Selectric….  Booking a meeting took a carefully orchestrated series of phone conversations. On the other hand – we always answered our desk phones because we had no idea who was calling! We relied on each other to log it in our calendars via a pen or pencil – if the meeting was important enough, we’d type up a memo, copy it and put it in an interoffice envelope with a mail code to get it to the other person. Clearly, the reason why denizens of cubeville spend all their days in meeting rooms is the fault of the engineers at Microsoft Outlook.  If meetings weren’t so easy to arrange I’m sure we’d have less of them. I digress….

My point is that “back in the old-timey days” of the 1980’s – when my career started, everything was paper based. A desk full of papers was expected. How you filed them made the difference between neat and messy, between effective and incapable.  In the corporate banking culture – even before the days of privacy regulations, we were encouraged formally and informally to keep neat desks. A place for everything.

 

Swing through time and on the pendulum of technology change – my recent job at the Big Blue Box – I was so paper-free I rarely sat at my assigned desk. I worked out of my trusty backpack and survived through my phone and my laptop. I was known as a gypsy who was more likely to spend my days at a booth in the cafeteria than at the desk that was assigned to me. Through the use of tools like Sharepoint and network drives, I was able to store and access  99% of the information I needed without a scrap of paper.

And now I’m back in the middle – I do as much as I can electronically (Since there’s an app for nearly everything!), but a lot of small business is still done through papers, flyers, letters, brochures, and cards. It’s not like I’m going to spin up a sharepoint site just to store my documents and scan in everything, right?

The good news – I found the invoice near the top of the pile of papers on my little desk (It’s really little – like 30″X 45″ – an old family antique)…. and it’s now safely in the mail. The bad news – it was at the top of the pile and I am now no longer required to organize my desk….

 

Sounds like a great project for the weekend! Happy Friday everyone!

 

 

 

 

 

People often ask me what I do “all day” as I start up this business… if I take out my 94 year-young mother in law – I think most people really understand what a self employed person does “all day long” – WORK!

Here’s the difference between a Cubeville resident and a self employed small business owner – aside from client emergencies, I’m fully in control of my calendar.  I don’t have a staff meeting – unless you count the conversations I have with dogs about how they can’t bark while I’m on the conference call. I don’t have set lunch hour – unless you count that 4 minutes I spend assembling a turkey sandwich, then eat it on the way back to my office. I don’t have a “quitting time” unless you count that moment of quiet when I realize all of my other family members are downstairs watching Wheel of Fortune!

My work days are never the same from day to day, or so far from week to week – which is my favorite part of being self employed! Every single day is completely different than the one before it, and very different from the one that follows it. While it’s not as comfortable as every Wednesday one on one with my team routine (including that delicious Special K bar from the Cafeteria in Cubeville), it’s comforting to know that each day brings something new to think about.

Each day it’s like walking into a local seaside restaurant and asking about the “catch of the day” – and then deciding if I want to order it!  So for those who are truly curious about how I spent my day today – here’s the play by play:

5:15AM – Wake up and hangout until other creatures stir from slumber – think about what’s going on today. Eyes most still closed. Brain, though, is buzzing.

6:00AM – Head downstairs and let the dogs out, make coffee. Check email for exciting news from clients or partners. Check in with my kids on Facebook (they are also early birds at the old age of 21)

6:15 – Head back upstairs with Coffee for me and my husband. To be fair – he usually makes the coffee and brings it to me – he’s a sweetheart! 

6:30 – AM Daily Calendar review over coffee with the dogs and husband. Watch the weather. Bathe, get dressed

7:00 AM – head into office (20 feet from the master bedroom). And crank up the MacBook and check emails for real. Make my to do list for the day. Get a few easy things ut of the way, like pay my phone bill, sign up for a news service, follow a few new twitter accounts and retweet some cool things.

8:00AM – start creating a presentation for a  proposal review meeting on Friday  –  a client who is looking to increase his B2B brand awareness with LinkedIn Marketing Campaign. Work on that for an hour and the realize I need to leave to go to my only meeting for the day. Pack up and hop on my scooter.

9:30 – Scoot to a local coffee shop for a meeting with the local Chamber of Commerce to get the scoop on member benefits – great decision to join this Chamber as well as my hometown chamber – will mean lots of great connections.

10:30  – hung out at the coffee shop to  finish up the proposal and sent it off to my co-conspirator on the project for his valuable input

11:30 – scooted over to grocery store to pick up lunch supplies. Headed home and made a lunch and chatted with my son about his day.

1:00 Worked on some materials for a non-profit organization – I’m giving a new board member orientation presentation this evening.

2:45 Chatted with my husband about materials we need for a project up at the cabin this weekend and some of his plans for the rest of the week.

3:45 Having returned to my office upstairs, I picked up an email from a client – he sent me the information I need to put together his Facebook page!  He calls my cell phone and we agree on a deliverable approach and timing – Excellent!

4:00 – Start writing this blog – realizing I just might be late for my 5:00 board orientation if I don’t get a move on.

4:30 – finish up wiring this blog an think to myself – Does anyone really care about how I spend my time? Well – I’m not sure – but if nothing else, I now have an archive of how I spent today, one of those typical work days in my life right now! I’m sure I’ll look back at this entry a year from now and either shake my head, laugh out loud, or cry. I’m not sure which one, but I do know I’m the luckiest person to have this opportunity in my life and determine my own destiny every single day!

4:32 – Consider adding pictures and grab one from my scooter pic archive -because no body reads a blog without a picture right?  Off to my Board meeting – Happy Hump day everyone!
4:59 pm- update! Boom! Made it on time! 

It’s a big 36 hours for our family – My twin sons are graduating from college this weekend – one tonight from the University of Minnesota, and the other from Illinois Institute of Technology tomorrow Morning! Logistics aside-  it’s an exciting time for everyone!  Completion of major accomplishments, starting new chapters, all the usual stuff you here in commencement speeches (and I’m sure we’ll hear it all! – Twice!).

The reality is this success came in small moments – while this last semester was challenging for each of them, it was 4 straight years of hard work and dedication to making the most of their classes that got them to today.  Every quiz, homework, paper, midterm, presentation, final. They all add up to this moment. And I’m happy to say that we celebrated those success along the way, rather than storing it all up for one big crescendo of a moment!  Ta Dah!

Today’s simple point – don’t forget to celebrate success each day – no matter how small. If you wait until that big moment, you might loose the point of how you got to that goal. The distant memory of getting the big idea, or of publishing your website for the first scary time. Launching your brand. It’s all worthy of a “Cheers!” in my book.

I hope to follow my own advice in my new venture – and if I don’t, I know you, intelligent readers will remind me! Happy Weekend and don’t forget to celebrate your success!

Seriously – I woke up yesterday morning to a dreary sky and with a tug in my brain that I originally thought was the deflation of my outstanding experiences last week. Top of my to-do list was to reach out to several very interested, very potential clients. Moment of truth time. If you’ve ever been in a sales or development role, you know the feeling, the voice in your head. It’s the voice that I need to ignore. The voice that says “you know, Jenny, you were just fooling yourself. Your product isn’t that great, you aren’t “all that”. If you make contact with the people on the fence about doing business with you, you’ll just affirm the fact that they don’t want to do business with you. It’s better that you just wait for them to reach out to you. That’s the safest path – no news means its still possible, and that’s way better than a flat out “no”, right?”

So, I took a deep breath and told the voice of what I call the “itty bitty shitty committee” (IBSC) to go straight to the depths of Hell.  I texted, emailed or voicemailed everyone whom I had promised to “pester” about a decision. I was cheerful and optimistic in my follow up. I had a potential client meeting that I had prepared  for and felt good about.

I walked in to that client meeting and lo and behold – he committed! Then, as I was on my way home, I got a phone call from another one – she was a “GO!”. Then not an hour later – I got another phone call – and he was ready to take action as well!

Three clients confirmed in one day. Three clients who will be part of my very special Founders Club (they may not know it yet, but they will soon!). Three clients who will help me understand even more the “why” behind this business and help me craft my value prop, my process and my brand. Three clients who have taken a risk on me as an unknown entity and my plan is to over deliver on their expectations.

I started this business specifically so I can help small business owners who don’t have a marketing department, a sales department, or an anything department.  Just the “Chief Everything Officer” looking back at you in the mirror every morning.  I’m proud to help these new clients and hope that I don’t disappoint them in any way!

Watch out world, LittleBox Social is on the map! I can’t wait to show off the results of my work with them! Coming soon to a facebook page or a twitter news feed near you!

I’m a long-time To-do list enthusiast; I’ve been making lists my whole life – at work, at home – I keep them in archives and neatly cross things off of them so that I can read them if I need to. I try to keep them organized so if I ever need to figure out when the last time I cleaned out the fish tank was, I can do it quickly (inevitably this spawns a “poor fishies” response with that task moving to the top of my list.)

I learned this amazing skill from the Chief list maker in my family  – my mom.  She would take any scrap of paper and make use of the available space and make a list. The usual suspects – grocery lists, Target run lists, errand lists, Saturday Morning activity lists.  Her preferred tools –  scrap paper recycled from some other activity, ripped into ¼ sheets and a trusty ball point pen.

Then there were the specialized lists based on current activities: Camping? A meal plan for each day as well as a supply list intersected with equipment. Traveling? Packing list for each kid/adult with special attention paid to individual requirements (Comic books for the kids, novels for the adults; Socks – always extra socks). Fundraising party in the works? Invitation lists, seating charts, menu planning, Stocking the bar down to the umbrellas and garnishes.  Those usually used whole sheets of paper and sometimes even warranted fresh, never used paper. That’s when I knew it was a big deal.

 

My father had the same list habit, with a more formal approach. Since he was a scientist, he was very methodical with his planning. His lists were contained in notebooks rather than the back of a flyer for the school PTA meeting.  While my mother’s notes were written in a loopy cursive of a teacher with a degree in Art and Design, my father’s lists looked like they were produced on a drafting table. And some were – Building a cabin? Lumber yard supply lists, equipment rental contacts, nails, screws, tools. Learning how to make sourdough bread? A list of supplies and timeframe for each of the protracted steps. Lists were integrated into nearly every part of our life.

And it worked for us to keep family stuff straight. Not to the same degree as the overscheduled family lives today. Instead, I view it as a way to make sure that all the logistical stuff was taken care of so we could have fun! My family’s parties were popular because we could focus on the people rather than a missing ingredient for the meal. Our cabin was built because we thought of all the materials tools that we needed to bring instead of taking precious time to head to the nearest hardware store (19 miles away).  In other words, I grew up viewing lists as a way to add precious time back to the family.

I was also a Girl Scout until I reached the inevitable “Care more about mixed gender social activities than selling cookies and earning badges” age – which hit me at 13 or 14 years old. Girl Scouts are also list makers. Badge requirements, craft lists, song lists, outdoor survival tips, service requirements. The Girl Scout handbook is full of great lists!

Obviously, I thought everybody operated this way  – until I went to Language camp with some of my school mates in 8^th grade and found some of my friends lacking some basic necessities.  I thought – “didn’t you follow the recommended packing list?” Sheesh – that was the beginning of an eye opener that lasted many years.

I made lists in school, babysitting activities, my first job at McDonalds, High School focused on the countdown list of days until graduation. Activities for my friends and I to experience  – I know we wrote some strange things down – Hypnosis, staying up all night, listening to records in reverse, boys we liked, girls we hated….  What most people just talked or gossiped about, I think I made written lists.

My experience with my family of list makers told me was: if you write it down it gets done. If it gets done you are happy. Remove the middle step and you get: if you write it down you will be happy.

If you search Entrepreneur Magazine’s website for “To do list”, there are dozens of articles/posts on effective to do lists. Top 3 reasons, Top 5 tips, Four effective ways, on and on. Writers are taught in the first class they attend: Write what you know. Business 101 should include something similar: Do what you are good at. I’m a list maker and I’m darn good at it. I do it every day (even on Mother’s day). It’s not something I chose, it’s just something I do. It provides me structure and eventually freedom from the pressure of deadlines.  I am grateful for the exposure early and often in life.
Thanks Mom and Dad!

I say both! Today, I’m visiting a friend in Wheaton, IL as we head to Chicago to pick up one of my kids from college (he’s graduating next week!). We’re in town, having lunch and I look around and see many small business that are thriving. Locally owned and operated restaurants, shops, boutiques – open with plenty of customer traffic. And I have to wonder what the difference is between this community of businesses and similar towns that have town centers that have been taken over by chain stores and restaurants.

I can make some assumptions -average income base, support from the local politicians, the attitude and preferences of the local planning and zoning officials. All those things go into creating a community. However, I do think the citizens and their understanding of how patronizing a small business can benefit their community plays a big part.  I’m fascinated and compelled by the #shoplocal movement. You’ll see more about that over on the LittleBox Blog eventually.But in the meantime, I’m going to sit back, relax and enjoy the company of my dear dear friend who I don’t see often enough. And I’ll try not to do “market research” while we are enjoying our time together!

thanks for showing me around Lovely downtown Wheaton, Amy!!