Nessa's Notes

I've moved my blogging over to my main website. I hope you'll join me at  http://vanessasdesk.com/whats-new/

We're up to number 23 in the 30 days of blogging , and although I have missed some days this has still been the best thing that could ever happen to this journal. Prompt 23 is an especially fun one; make a wish! When I was a teenager and going through some difficulties, my school couselor would often ask me what I would wish for if I had the proverbial three wishes. Back then it all seemed so simple. I would always answer that I only needed one wish: for everybody in the world to have all they needed and be happy. In my mind then, that meant that everybody would have all their wishes granted! I suppose that now I should have a more practical view of real life. And in some ways that earlier wish seems simplistic and unrealistic. There are some people who never have "enough" and some who refuse to be happy. So as I grew older my wishes stayed generally the same became more specific. My wish is that everyone could be well nourished and healthy. That no one would ever...

Number 21 in the 30 days of blogging is to notice what's changing as we post during this project. Other than the obvious change of making more posts, I wasn't sure if anything had changed. I find that it's definitely easier to post when there is a set topic or question to answer. And thinking about some of the prompts has given me ideas about how to include a broader range of subjects within my theme. This can only mean good things for my business and my mission. Thanks Susan!

I missed a few days in the 30 days of blogging , but the nice thing about this project is that it's so easy to jump back in. :) Prompt 20 is to share a childhood memory. When thinking about what would make a good recollection to share here, I reminded myself that the topic of this blog is wealth creation. That led to thoughts of Carolina Florist, the business my grandparents owned. "The Shop" as we called it was one of my favorite places to be and there are so many fond memories to recall. Grandpa's whispery whistle as he worked, creating his beautiful arrangements Grandma V teaching me how to update customer files when payments came in Watering and dusting the potted plants and "dish gardens" kept in the window displays Making endless boquets and corsages for Mother's day, and hundreds of palm crosses for Easter The elation when after countless tries, I finally learned to make a bow-ribbon pompom It was a good place and a good way to learn about busines...

Prompt 17 in 30 days of blogging is to visit one of the other participants and tell something about her. I picked Heidi Caswell , who I first met on the Ryze network. I have long admired Heidi for her sense of balance in raising a large family and running a successful business at the same time. Connect Simply is the name of her website, and a philosophy that many would do well to take to heart. She gets to the point and tells it without trying to make things more complicated than they need to be. How refreshing!

We're halfway through the 30 days of blogging - time flies when you're having fun. :) Topic 15, music, is an especially good subject, and one of my favorite things. Friends know one of my personal mantras: "books and music are essential to life". Just recently I discovered how important music really is not just as background to life, but to my business. Recently I've noticed that writing has become more difficult; it's harder to begin, harder to find topics, harder to achieve that flow. Since coming to take care of and live with my dad, I had assumed that my much altered living situation was the culprit. But when I visited for a couple of days with an old friend a few months ago, I remembered something. I always used to write with music playing but that hasn't been the case here. Sitting alone at my friend's kitchen table sipping a drink and with his stereo on, I wrote more in an afternoon that I had in 3 months. I'm positive that being able to rel...

Day 14 in the 30 days of blogging provides an especially important prompt for me. The "cause" I support most is not a a single charity or organization; I am passionate about the plight of the homeless. A while back, I decided to do a project to contribute to the cause. I wrote about it in this blog here . Even before this current economic crisis that has caused so many families to lose their homes, there were always marginalized people in our society. People who through no fault of their own have less than what is needed to survive. This is not right. It doesn't make any sense to me that in a world of such plenty there are those who have so little. I wish to help as many as possible to find ways to better their situation. I wish to serve both those who are on the edge and those who are in it. This mission is the main reason that my business still exsists. This blog and my project are only two of the ways I try to accomplish that mission. I sincerely hope that others wi...

All the cooking and feasting seems to have put me a day behind in this adventure. But that's ok, I'll catch up. After all, it's a journey - not a race. :) Prompt 13 in 30 days of blogging is to write about strengths and what brings joy. This is an important topic that everyone should explore occasionally. The two subjects are closely connected since we usually like to do those things we do well, and we tend to do well that which we like. I believe that I have three main strengths: The first is something that I have always loved; reading and writing. Books have been my friends since before I can remember. (A trait I inherited from my English teacher/librarian mother) And I have a good ear for languages. The next would be that I am a caretaker. In addition to being a mom and foster parent, I've been an emergency medic, a doula and a group home manager for disabled adults and children. Helping support people as they develop towards their personal or business goals just com...

Prompt number 12 in the 30 days of blogging is to find a work of art that supports your blog. This isn't a work of art but a graphic I used on a booklet I wrote. It's a graph of a profit chart. I think it's representative of my work not just for the obvious business meaning, but for the larger illustration of progress. Any kind of progress. There are ups and downs in any challenge we take on; that's why it's useful to occasionally take a look at the big picture, so you can see the direction things are going. Progress is a wonderful concept.

Post #11 in the 30 days of blogging project is about blogging goals. This is a simple one for me. The goal for Nessa's Notes is to support my main website Vanessa's Desk . My business is all about removing the confusion and frustrations involved in setting up and marketing a small business; letting folks know they don't have to do it all, and they don't have to do it alone. My blog isn't as good as it could be - yet - but it is changing, for the better.

We're now one third of the way through the 30 days of blogging . This has been such a great experience for me that I'm already thinking about 'what happens next'. I'm wondering what I'll do after the thirty days are over. Today's topic is to remember a dream and talk about it's significance. One thing I've always had is a rich dream life - both awake and asleep. Here is one: I dream about collective as well as individual wealth, which is the main reason for this blog. I don't mean wealth as in a gazillion dollars; that type is illusory at best and when gained suddenly usually doesn't last. Although a certain variable amount of transferable currency is necessary that doesn't always have to mean money. I've written about this in this blog and elsewhere but for now suffice it to say that the wealth I dream about means everyone has enough, and just a little more to share with others. In this ideal (dream) world many of our societal ills w...

Prompt number 9 in the 30 days of blogging adventure is to make a list of 3 people who support me in my blogging efforts. First on the list has to be the creator of this 30 days project Susan Loughrin . Susan is a wonderfully caring and creative artist and brilliant photographer who I "met" on the Ryze network. This 30 days of blogging project has made it so easy to post regular entries - a habit I hope to keep. The other two spots must go to Bea Kunz and Debbie Dreyer . These ladies share a generous spirit and always have good advice to share. They lead by example; providing the template for honesty and balance in their writings and businesses. We've never met in person but these are my sisters. :) I owe a huge Thank You to all three of these talented women.

Yep, I missed another day but that's OK. Participating in the 30 days of blogging has been a wonderful boost - to my blog, my habits and my perceptions of why and what I want to accomplish. #7 is to Ask A Question . Being told to ask a question naturally makes you wonder what it is that you want or need to know. So, remembering my purpose for this blog and thinking about the assignment, here's my question: How do you define wealth, and does that definition sometimes seem to contradict itself? For example, everyone has heard the adage "don't put all your eggs in one basket", and most business "coaches" and internet "gurus" talk about multiple streams of income. One of the more popular pieces of advice is to create and sell e-books based on your main business offering, articles and other content. I think this is a great idea and I'm working on several of my own . But the how and why matters fully as much as the what. Do you think it's rig...

Day 5 of this exercise sounded simple at first: make a list . Of ten things that are important to me. My first thought was if I could narrow it down to only 10. So, I started thinking about what is truly important to me. According to my friend Mr. Webster, important means: marked by or indicative of significant worth or consequence : valuable in content or relationship. Significant worth. Valuable content. Relationship. My next thought was if there were 10 things that were worthy of such a list. 1. God and Them. 2. My children, steps, their friends, my neices, Godchildren, granddaughter, and all those wonderful folks who call me Mama-V or Auntie-V. 3. Books, words, reading, libraries, literacy and books 4. Pictures, letters to and from and special memories of number 2 5. Music 6. Friends. The ones who have fun with and make fun of me. The ones who come and go, and come back again. And especially the ones who love me and show me the way. 7. Grace 8. Beauty I think that's enough. Thi...

They say a picture is worth a thousand words - and photographs can speak especially loud. A photograph captures a moment in time, for all time. And yet, a photo can still be open to interpretation. First, I started to post a few photos of my kids and granddaughter (as they are the subjects of most of my favorite photos). I have several of those posted around the web. And I'm trying to stay in the neighborhood of what this blog is supposed to be about: entrepreneurship and wealth creation. But I believe children and family are the most important reasons for entrepreneurship and wealth creation. I'm not trying to ramble here, but there are times when bouncing thoughts around really is the best way to find your own truth. :) My grandfather was illiterate. He could read and write his name, but that was about it. As one of the oldest of (I think) 15, it had to be that way back then. But he raised 7 children who all graduated high school - and at least two who loved books and readin...

Ok, I got a late start and missed number 2 - but this is a process, right? Day 3 is visiting . This should be easy since I have a huge folder in my bookmarks for the sites of contacts, clients and associates. First up was a visit to my friend and mentor Laura Wheeler. Her blog Frumpy Hausfrau never fails to teach, and is usually entertaining too. Here and here are two of her recent posts that I think are especially helpful. Next, I felt slightly ashamed to discover that several folks that I don't visit nearly often enough are no longer there. Could I have done more to help and support them? This is definitely a wake-up call to put more time in the schedule to support those that deserve it. Finally, I landed at the blog of Mocha Dad . This guy is so inspirational - simply for the image he projects. When the media would have you believe that so few black men are taking responsiblity for their families, here is a man who motivates through example. As he talks the issues of day to da...

This is day #1 in Susan Loughrin's 30 Days of Blogging . I promise to try and keep up. :) #1 - Gratitude There have been so many blessings in my life that it's hard to choose just one to write about. But since that is the assignment, I will. Bea Kunz has been more than just a client, and more than just a friend. When I'm down she encourages me. When I'm up she rejoices with and for me. And she manages to do this for everybody. Generous is the best way to describe Bea. Not only does she grow and sell the most divine seasonings and teas, but she shares her knowledge and advice with any and all who ask. I am thankful for many people in my life. I must remember to express that more often.

One thing about me - other than my near obsession with helping folks pull themselves out from the bottom of the financial heap - is that I enjoy playing games. Most of my online "biographies" note that fact. Cards, board games, puzzles; it doesn't matter. I just like friendly competition. There's an online game I play from time to time. In this particular game you get points by making the best hand according to a sliding scale. But the only way to make a good hand is by cooperating and trading with other players. Some players will only trade for higher points. It usually takes them a longer time to assemble a good score. Then there are other players who seem to always give away the best pieces they get to other players in order to help them make good scores. You might think this would keep them at the lower scores for themselves. But that's not the case. I've tried it myself, both in the game and in business. When I enter the game giving and helping others, I ...

Thinking about wealth creation often leads me to also think about poverty, especially the extreme poverty that causes many to become homeless. There was a time after my divorce when I didn’t have my own place, and though we weren’t “out on the streets”, we were technically homeless. So I empathize with people who are going through that particular situation. One thing that I believe is that everyone must give. I think not being able to give is one of the worse aspects of poverty. Of course, this is something of a universal concept, expressed differently in various philosophies and belief systems. Some refer to the golden rule. Some call it the law of attraction or reciprocity. Whatever you want to call it, the principal is simple: you’ve got to give to receive. My pastor often says “you’ve got to be a blessing in order to get a blessing”. One of my clients is always talking about planting money so he can find some. For me, I believe in tithing and I also provide a significant amount of ...

I got the line "PR's Do Work" from a client who is also a dear friend. This is the caption she used to share her success when she was featured in a newspaper article. About three weeks ago I got a call from a reporter for one of the local TV stations. She wanted to do a news story about using Twitter for business. She said that when she did a search for local businesses on Twitter, my name came up first. So I agreed to talk with her. The story aired three times - on the 10pm news, the late night repeat, and on the early morning edition the next day. I have helped a few clients in the past with publicity, but those were print media. The results were always fairly good, but never spectacular or overwhelming. That is how I'd have to describe what has happened for me in the time since the story appeared. I started getting emails that night and after the peice appeared again in the morning, my phone started ringing. I was surprised that so many people were not only paying ...