- ~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_
-
- EPnews -- from The Entrepreneurial
Parent
a work-family resource for home-based entrepreneurs
@ www.en-parent.com
- Volume 1, Issue 1
September 23, 1998
~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_
Do you find EPnews useful?
Please forward to a friend, or recommend it to your favorite
Web site or
e-zine. Thanks for your support!
For easy reading, simply print
out this newsletter.
- _______________CONTENTS_______________
The Funny Things EP Kids Say!
EP Times -- An Editorial
- EP Q&A
- Making Money Matters -- on making
money
What's It Worth? -- on saving money
- EP Member Profile
- We Recommend
What's Happening at EP
- Volunteers Needed!
_________________________________________
~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_
Our Sponsor
(YOUR AD HERE!)
- At first distribution, EPnews
is being sent to
a 100% clean list of 725 subscribers.
Be the first to sponsor this bi-monthly newsletter -
send an email to [email protected] for ad rates!
(Please Note: We absolutely do not accept
any ads for work-at-home "job opportunities"
that require an investment on the part of our subscribers.)
~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_~_
Welcome to the first issue of
EPnews! This extra-long issue was designed to
introduce you to our regular features and the new services at
our site, The
Entrepreneurial Parent. For those of you who have been waiting
on this mailing
list for awhile, thank you for your patience. We're back in full
swing and
look forward to providing you with one of the most trusted work-at-home
resources on the Internet on a regular basis. Have a suggestion/comment?
Send
us an e-mail at: [email protected]
any time.
___________________________________
THE
FUNNY THINGS EP KIDS SAY!
Why work at home? To lighten
up whenever you hear the funny things your kids
might say throughout the day. EP Kids are the primary driving
force for most
Entrepreneurial Parents who choose this work option, and here
at The
Entrepreneurial Parent we like to showcase the talent and spirit
of our
children before we get to ourselves. (See how we do this with
the artwork of
some of our EP Kids at the Member Showcase, http://en-parent.com/Profiles/Showcase.htm.)
If you'd like to share something
your child said that made you smirk, giggle,
or drop your keyboard in a laughter tantrum (!), you can send
your submission
via e-mail to: [email protected]
with the subject heading "A Funny Thing
My EP Kid Said!"
Here's our latest favorite EP
Kid quote:
=====
Dave and Lorraine Lindsey of Tekonsha, Mich., were traveling
with Scott, 9,
who has a good knowledge of computers. Several times Scott asked
if he could
do something, and his parents reminded him that they had answered
the question
already. "Process that information," his parents said,
hoping he wouldn't ask
the same question again.
"Access denied," Scott
said. "It doesn't compute!"
=====
Want a few more chuckles? Visit Grace Housholder's Funny Things
Kids Say
project at http://www.funnykids.com,
or pick up your own heartwarming,
coffee table copy of one of her books, "The Funny Things
Kids Say, Vols.
1-3" @ http://en-parent.com/familybooks.htm
______________________________________
EP TIMES
-- AN EDITORIAL
Look here for editorials on the
life & times of an EP.
"Living in a Three-Ring
Circus"
© 1998 by Lisa
Roberts
There's a well-kept secret on
my block that nobody knows about but me. Well,
maybe my kids know about it too, but not my husband. And maybe
the UPS and
Federal Express guys have taken a peek, but not my neighbors.
OK, everyone
knows that I'm an "Entrepreneurial Parent" -- but what
they *don't* know is
what my household has to turn into for this to happen.
The truth is I run a three-ring
circus every weekday, right here in my home.
No kidding. You have to see it to believe it, and very few do.
It's a circus
with no audience and no set act, no fancy costumes, loud music
or live
animals. But if you open the front door when youÌre not
expected to, you are
sure to find a whole lot of activity going on -- including balancing
acts,
gymnastic-type leaps, some clowning around and, on a few glorious
occasions, a
touch of magic...
If you're an Entrepreneurial
Parent, you know what I'm talking about. In one
ring there's the kids -- toddling or scurrying about -- looking
for fun,
adventure, and a wipe (thank you very much!). In the second ring
there's your
household -- chores, bills, repairs, calendar-tracking, holiday
planning and
the like. And in the third ring there's your work -- documents,
clients,
keyboard activity, phone calls, mailings, bookkeeping, taxes,
et al. Your role
as an Entrepreneurial Parent strikingly resembles that of a Ring
Master, and
if you don't take command of this demanding job that circus of
yours will
simply fold.
How, as a Ring Master, do you
keep the show going without compromising each
act? The first trick is to make sure all three rings are properly
prepared,
practiced and can operate independently at times.
For instance, if that first ring
includes pre-school age children, then it
should also include a steady babysitter. No question, supplemental
childcare
is a must for this circle to operate effectively on its own.
Preparation here
means finding the right chemistry between childcare provider
and child(ren),
ongoing and honest discussions with each participant, and monetary
budgeting.
The practice part is simply putting in the time, preferably on
a steady and
part-time basis. With your monitoring and their enthusiasm, you
should find
(most of the time!) that this ring can and will run independently
when you
need it to.
As for the second and third rings,
technology lends a hand to boost the
independence level within these arenas. From dishwashers, microwaves
and
dryers, to computer programs, modems and voice mail systems,
a few of the
juggling acts within the household and business routines are
"Ring Master-
Free"! Put in a load of dishes, a load of laundry and a
leftover meal; let the
answering machine take your calls, the accounting program calculate
your
monthly profit margin, and your web page answer some of your
prospects'
questions. No guilt necessary -- you're a working parent and
you need help.
The other responsibility of a
Ring Master is to be ready and able to step into
all three acts yourself as needed. This is simple enough one
step at a time,
but it's quite a feat when all three rings need your help at
once.
Unlike a real circus grounded
in rehearsals and repetition, Entrepreneurial
Parenthood is often free-flowing and spontaneous, uncovering
a new act every
day. Sometimes -- despite your best attempts at planning -- the
school bus
pulls up the street at the same moment the express mail truck
pulls up the
driveway at the same moment the dryer bell rings. You have to
weigh needs
versus consequences before deciding which one of the rings to
step into first.
Do you greet your kids with a welcome home smile or turn your
back? Sign for
the package or make the driver wait a few minutes? Fold clothes
immediately or
let them become one big ball of wrinkles?
Coming up with a work ethic to
live by can help. Mine is family first, career
second, housekeeping third. Although I make it my business to
alternate center
stage activity among all three, having that value system in place
helps me
prioritize when all three acts unexpectedly demand my performance
at once.
Running a circus can be fun and
tedious, energizing and exhausting. We hope it
will be lucrative. We also hope we can keep it our little secret.
Towards that
end, it may be a good idea to tip the pizza man with a wink and
a couple of
bills every Friday evening. After all, you wouldn't want him
to spread the
word around town...(the last thing this circus of yours needs
is an
audience!).
=====
Want to learn more about how
to run your "circus" and make a profit too? Pick
up a copy of Lisa's book, "How to Raise A Family & A
Career Under One Roof: A
Parent's Guide to Home Business" (Bookhaven Press, 1997)
@ http://en-parent.com/order.htm
______________________________________
EP
Q&A
Have a question? "Ask the
EP Experts!" Look in today's "We Recommend" feature
to meet our 18-member expert panel who are ready now to answer
your questions
on a weekly basis (go to: http://en-parent.com/experts.htm
to ask your
question). We'll select the most universal and/or unique ones
and post them
here in each EPnews issue.
Q: I am a single parent who has
been sorting through the possibilities of
making ends meet while retaining some creativity of my own. (I
am a painter
and graphic designer.) For years before my two year old was born
I've had this
dream of having my own business. I know nothing of where to begin
with it. Is
this a crazy time to get started? I want the truth. I am so happy
to have
found your website!
A: Liz,
A wonderful book title says it
all for me: "It's only too late if you don't
start now!" Though this book is about mid-life changes,
it's true. Your two-
year old is not going to be two forever, but you could work your
day job
forever and she'll soon be 7 or 12, and you still won't have
a business that
fulfills you. So, start now!
If you have a day job, you can
start slowly. Apprentice yourself (informally)
to another designer, paint on the weekends or at night, locate
outlets to show
and sell your work. My best tip is this: find someone just like
you and start
a network, a co-op, or a support group! There is strength in
numbers. You can
talk about art/design while the kids nibble on each other.
One book to consult for basics
is by Janet Attard, _ The Home Office and Small
Business Answer Book._ It has very basic but thorough Q&As
for just about any
subject for SOHO entrepreneurs. (Note: Janet's book is available
through the
EP Bookstore at http://en-parent.com/bizbooks.htm.)
And finally, start developing
a focus for your business: ask yourself what it
is that will make your business uniquely yours, why do you *need*
to be in
business. Then create and fine-tune your vision from there. I
don't know of
any business with a strong focus that has met with initial failure.
Good luck on your journey!
========================================
Jay Ann Cox, Ph.D., (Mom to Charlie 1-13-96)
EP Single Parent Expert
Sarabi Consulting and home pages
http://www.kjsl.com/~lizard/index.html
AP-BIZ listowner http://www.apbiz.com
Seeds list owner & author, http://www.familycoaching.com
mailto:[email protected]
=========================================
___________________________________________
MAKING
MONEY MATTERS
Being available to your kids
and managing a career under one roof sounds to
many like the best of both worlds, but without pulling in some
kind of income
what's all the effort for? Making Money Matters! We're cramped
for space this
issue, but here's where the spotlight on specialty home businesses
and how to
make money with them will shine. If you have a unique home business
or home
career and want to share tips with the EP Community on how you've
made money
(what marketing efforts work/don't work), send an e-mail to [email protected]
with the subject heading "Making $$ Matters." We'll
be happy to collect your hard-earned ideas and post the best
of them in EPnews and/or on the EP site! (Thank you!)
_____________________________________
WHAT'S
IT WORTH?
- "Psychology of Thrift"
- by deB
Sechrist
Since many Entrepreneurial Parents
are on tight budgets as they struggle to
balance work and family through limited resources, this EPnews
feature is
devoted to sharing frugal living tips. If you want to contribute
your money-
saving tips with the EP community, send an email to [email protected]
with the
subject heading "$ Saver." We'll be happy to collect
your hard-earned ideas
and post the best of them in EPnews and/or on the EP site! (Thank
you!)
=====
When it comes to living thrifty, most of us weigh the value of
our time
against the value of money being saved. We expect a certain minimum
investment
of our time, and we've come to expect that it takes awhile to
find the best
bargains.
But if you're having difficulty
stretching that dollar enough to make ends
meet and don't have more time to invest in hunting down bargains
or Do-It-
Yourself projects, you can still probably improve your cost-efficiency
by
understanding the psychology of thrift.
For example, many of us save
some money by buying goods in bulk -- with
coupons, on sale and at warehouse discount stores. This becomes
a routine that
easily fits into our schedule once we decide to do it. But having
a
"stockpile" of goods can create an atmosphere of waste.
Simply moving your
"stockpile" to a less convenient or visible location
(like the basement or a
large pantry) can help reduce this effect, and meanwhile you'll
get the full
value of your good buying habits.
Training the family to become
thrifty is a challenge that is well worth the
effort. Here are a few ideas to get the kids involved:
--> Challenge them to find
ways to save money, time or energy and reward them
with part of the money saved or special time spent the way they
want to spend
it.
--> Let them earn extra allowance money through recycling/reusing
efforts such
as washing out sandwich baggies for reuse.
--> Ask them to cut, sort and file coupons, and pay them a
penny for each
expired coupon they weed out of your files.
--> Teach them how to use a calculator in the grocery store
to determine the
best buy on items.
Finally, brag about it! Share
your money-saving tips, tricks and ideas with
others. You'll always find someone willing to tell you what they
saved and
you'll pick up even more ways to cut costs or add value to what
you do spend.
=====
deBorah Sechrist is the mother of three, Co-Founder of The Entrepreneurial
Parent and owner of deBweB, a web design business. Find out more
about deB
at http://www.en-parent.com/webdsn.htm.
_____________________________________
EP MEMBER
PROFILE
Selected straight from our "EP
Showcase." (If you'd like to purchase your own
EP Profile Page and spread the word about your home career on
the Web and in
EPnews, read how to do so at: http://en-parent.com/faq.htm)
EP: Debbie Williams, Mom to a
2-year old boy
=====
HOME BIZ: "Let's Get It Together," a home and office
organizing and time
management service for busy parents.
=====
MISSION STATEMENT: To help parents balance work and family by
offering
organizing tips and teaching time management skills.
=====
TOP PRODUCTS: Organizing Newsletter * Organizing Forms * In-home
Consulting *
Online Consulting
=====
EP DISCOUNT: If you're interested in Debbie's services, mention
the EP
Profiles and you'll receive a FREE back issue of the "Let's
Get it Together"
newsletter (hard copy or electronic version). Just send a message
to Debbie at
[email protected], with the subject
heading "EP Profiles" and your preferred
contact info, and you'll receive your copy asap!
=====
EP REWARDS: Although our household budget is challenged by the
lack of an
additional income, my husband and I agree it is definitely worth
a few
sacrifices. When you stay at home to raise your kids, you don't
seem to need
lunch money, working wardrobe, or day care fees. If you are creative,
you find
bartering systems for babysitters, are able to go to work in
play clothes, and
learn to like pbj every day of your life. And it's so rewarding
to watch your
kids at work or play, and secretly catch them being GOOD.
=====
FULL CONTACT INFO:
Debbie Williams
Let's Get It Together
P.O. Box 590860
Houston, TX 77259
Email: [email protected]
URL: http://www.organizedtimes.com
=====
To learn more about Debbie, her work-family tips and her professional
services, go to: http://en-parent.com/Profiles/Williams.htm
today!
_____________________________________
WE
RECOMMEND
In upcoming issues of EPnews
we'll be highlighting outside resources (web
sites, associations, books, special services, etc.) for Entrepreneurial
Parents in this spot. Today, however, we'd like to recommend
our own
18-member, EP Expert Panel -- including the products, services
and web sites
of each. We're proud to say that our panel of EP Experts were
chosen because
of their professionalism and dedication to their respective fields,
and we
thank them in advance for offering their invaluable mentorship
to all our EP
members, subscribers and visitors.
===============
Your Family Experts:
===============
Jodie Lynn, our Parenting Expert, is the author of Mommy - CEO
(Constantly
Evaluating Others), 5 Golden Rules, and nationally syndicated
"Parent2Parent"
columnist. (freeweb.pdq.net/bman/jodie_lynn/jodiesarticles.htm)
=====
Azriela Jaffe, our Relationship Expert, is the author of three
entrepreneurial
books (two on relationships), and nationally syndicated "Advice
from A-Z"
columnist. (www.isquare.com/crlink.htm)
=====
Grace Housholder, our Humor Expert, is the author and publisher
of "The Funny
Things Kids Say" (Vols. 1-3), a freelance writer and a newspaper
columnist.
(www.funnykids.com)
=====
Joe Spataro, our Homeschooling Expert, is the founder of the
popular web site,
"Homeschool Zone." (www.homeschoolzone.com)
=====
Judy Lederman, our Childcare Expert, is the author of "Searching
for Mary
Poppins" and runs a home-based public relations company.
(www.searchingforpoppins.com)
=====
Jay Ann Cox, Our Single Parent Expert, is the mother of a 2-year
old and a
writer, family/business coach and community organizer. (www.sarabi.com
and
www.familycoaching.com)
===============
Your Career Experts:
===============
Paul and Sarah Edwards, our Home Career Selection Experts, are
best-selling
authors of several home business books, radio and TV hosts, and
newspaper and
magazine columnists. (www.paulandsarah.com)
=====
Gil Gordon, our Telecommuting Expert, is the founder of Gil Gordon
Associates
and maintains a highly reputable telecommuting web site. (www.gilgordon.com)
=====
Nancy Collamer, our Part-Time Career Expert, runs a home-based
career
consulting firm that specializes in counseling stay-at-home moms
looking to
re-enter the workforce and full-time working moms looking to
start their own
businesses.
=====
Pat Katepoo, our Work-Family Transitions Expert, is the founder
of a home-
based career consulting service, Work Options Inc., and creator
of a popular
workbook-on-disk, "Flex Success: A Proposal Blueprint for
Getting a Family-
Friendly Work Schedule." (www.workoptions.com)
=================
Your Business Experts:
=================
Terri Lonier, our Business Start-Up Expert, is the creator of
the award-
winning Working Solo product line, including books, workbooks
and tapes,
offering independent entrepreneurs comprehensive information
and resources.
(www.workingsolo.com)
=====
Jan Zobel, our Recordkeeping/Tax Expert, runs a home-based accounting
firm and
is the author of "Minding Her Own Business: the Self-Employed
Woman's Guide to
Taxes and Recordkeeping."
=====
Peter Kent, our Web Site Expert, is the author of several technical
books
including "Poor Richard's Web Site: Geek-Free, Commonsense
Advice on Building
a Low Cost Web Site." (www.poorrichard.com)
=====
Marilyn Zelinsky, our Home Office Design Expert, is a journalist
and the
author of "Practical Home Office Solutions" and "New
Workstyles for New
Workplaces."
=====
Silvana Clark, our Low-Cost Marketing Expert, is the author of
"Taming the
Marketing Jungle" and the creator of a popular seminar entitled
"Marketing
With A Big Imagination and A Small Budget."
=====
Joe Vitale, our Copy/Cyber-writing Expert, is the author of "CyberWriting:
How
to Promote Your Product or Service Online (Without Being Flamed)"
and the
owner of a home-based copywriting service. (www.mrfire.com)
=====
Michael Lamb, our Profit From Home Expert, is the producer of
an innovative
radio and Internet program, "The Moneyroom." (www.moneyroom.com)
_____________________________________
WHAT'S
HAPPENING AT EP
Well, in a word, LOTS!! Today
is the official "re-opening" of The
Entrepreneurial Parent - with all new community and career resources
for
at-home working parents. Check it out!
Ask the EP Experts @ http://en-parent.com/experts.htm
EP Member Showcase @ http://en-parent.com/showcase.htm
Discuss Amongst Yourselves @ http://en-parent.com/discuss.htm
EP-zine, Info to Go @ http://en-parent.com/infotogo.htm
EP "Wave" @ http://en-parent.com/epwave.htm
EP Links @ http://en-parent.com/links.htm
EP Toy Store @ http://en-parent.com/toys.htm
EP Video Store @ http://en-parent.com/videos.htm
EP Software Store @ http://en-parent.com/software.htm
EP Bookstore @ http://en-parent.com/books.htm
EP Private Coaching Services @ http://en-parent.com/coaching.htm
_____________________________________
VOLUNTEERS
NEEDED
Looking for a project to sharpen
your home career skills on? The
Entrepreneurial Parent could use some help. Lisa and deB are
swamped with EP
work and can't seem to get to everything we'd like to. If you
offer any of the
following services through your home business, consider volunteering
your
efforts and EP will post an ad, contact info and link to your
site (if you
have one) at the top of the page you help us create!
EP needs help with:
=====
Our message boards. Right now we have some bare bones cgi program
and we'd
like to have a more polished area for you to "Discuss Amongst
Yourselves" when
the mood strikes. If interested, go to: http://en-parent.com/discuss.htm
to
see what we have up now and to start brainstorming new ideas...
=====
Setting up a chat room. Our plan is to have a chat room available
for
scheduled topic chats, workshops and occasional seminars. Because
we want EP
to be a safe, trusted source for work-at-home professionals and
we're aware of
the multitude of work-at-home scam artists on the Internet, we
don't want to
have an open chat room because we lack the staff to monitor it
24-hours a day.
However, we'd love to share some "real-time" with our
members and invite guest
experts to share tips of their trades.
=====
Inserting a search function throughout the site. No further explanation
needed. :-)
=====
If you'd like to step up to the
plate and volunteer for any of the above, or
discuss this mutually beneficial opportunity further, we'd love
to take a peek
at your portfolio and/or learn more about what you can offer.
E-mail us at
[email protected]
with the subject heading "EP Volunteer," and let's
touch
base. Thank you!
___________________________
CONTACT/SUBSCRIPTION INFO
The Entrepreneurial Parent, LLC
is not engaged in rendering legal or
financial advice. If expert assistance is required, the services
of a
licensed professional should be sought.
This newsletter may be redistributed
freely via the Internet. Re-publishing
of separate articles for your print publication needs approval
first; write
to: [email protected] for permission.
© 2000, The Entrepreneurial
Parent, LLC
Editor: Lisa M. Roberts
EP Webmaster: Deborah Sechrist
POB 320722, Fairfield, CT 06432; http://en-parent.com
Ph:/Fax: (203) 371-6212, Email: [email protected]
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Subscribe: [email protected]
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