10 thing you must give up to move forward

 

Courtesy of the dynamic ladies @Shesays Singapore! Fine words for us all to follow.

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Value of social…

I was pondering not only the power of social media and networks today but also the value. You don’t know me but when Malcolm was writing about connectors he meant me. I’m one of those people who always knows someone somewhere…and I love connecting people. So is my social network valuable? And could I make money from connecting people? I know there are some enterprises out there, like empower, who are helping people earn for blogging. My problem is that the moment I hear ”multi-level marketing scheme” I break out in a rash and pull the plug out.

Seriously though given the fact that product recommendation is how we shop these days then my (and other friend’s) networks should have some sort of media value. Need to ponder this possible business model further. In the meantime I have coined a new phrase ”blog/tweet it forward” and am tagging and promoting the fact that Uber who are a really cool taxi service I can’t wait to use, started in Amsterdam a few months ago. There is a semi-family connection so Casper this one is on the house.

Please download the app and use them locally and worldwide.

So cool…and so welcome here in The Dam!

Heather LeFevre

One of the interesting things I stumbled upon along my ’round the world journey was an evening called House of Genius. It’s essentially three hours where anonymity and diversity of perspectives converge all in the service of fostering start-ups.

I found it fascinating.

So I’m bringing the concept to Amsterdam.

Our first session will be held on Monday, February 11, at the Pakhuis de Zwijger (very generous of them to host us!) Have a look of this video from New York to get a taste of what it’s like. Then visit the site to see if there’s a House of Genius in your city and apply to attend. (You must apply and have a ticket to attend.)

Our first session is also being sponsored by Petminds.

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Shades of Diane Keaton

Life imitating art? Sometimes I just want to chuck it all in and open a tearoom. Bake all day and earn money for it. And of course spend all day with my animals and in my vegetable garden (when I’m not baking)…I have come to realize that my dreams have been influenced by Diane Keaton’s film Baby Boom (sans the baby) and the BBC series ‘The Good Life’.

Sounds so tempting but I’d probably  miss the chaos of getting a campaign out the door within a month and although I have been told that my cookies, brownies and applesauce are heavenly is there market enough to keep the cats in kibble? In the meantime enjoy a picture of this month’s special, Vegan Carrot-Ginger soup.

Patience is a virtue…

Patience is a virtue. One must have patience, and optimism, in the world of freelancing. It’s always going to work out alright and something new is right around the corner. Of course as a red-blooded Yankee I do believe that opportunities need to be  nudged along. However in this business all you can do is let everyone know that you’re looking, available and then jump when opportunity knocks. In the meantime keep positive, network nicely (i.e. mean it and don’t be desperate), catch up on some business reading, learn something new and just keep your fingers crossed…

To 8 or not to 8..

I’ve been using a preview version of Windows8.  As Win8 has been out in the stores since October, Microsoft has started sending me messages that my computer will restart every two hours unless I purchase the license. Now it’s not that expensive and I’ve been rather charmed by Windows8. My dilemma is work – I’m pretty sure that most of my potential assignments in 2013 have only recently moved onto Windows7 and aren’t jumping towards 8. If I need to use my own lovely lightweight, hybrid Dell then won’t it need to be Windows7? Yes of course you can pop back and forth to Windows7 desktop, do that regularly to use MSOffice products, but there are differences and the laptop might not work on a corporate system…so what to do what to do?