As most of you know by now (and some of you don’t know) I am NOW living in Carrboro, NC – aka: the yolk inside the egg of Chapel Hill. I am no longer teaching high school and I moved out of Richmond to focus on my passions: comedy, writing, and new media. [If you are interested in some of the comedy work I'm doing, check out my comedy blog: http://www.mollyhastwothumbs.com.]

For the purposes of this blog, I’m going to strictly be talking about my writing and new media work.

Now that I am in Carrboro and I am getting a fresh start, I have refocused myself and I have set new goals. After a little over 3 months of applying for job after job, after job, after JOB, and hearing nothing I finally realized that I needed to step outside of my comfort zone and really work to expand my own business.

At such an early stage, it can be intimidating stepping out into the business world. I’ve been a freelancer for a little over two years, but only getting clients here and there to supplement extra income. The thought, even the PROSPECT, of working for MYSELF full-time has been such an intimidating idea that I’ve honestly been to afraid to really breach that realm and start the process of getting work. Honestly, I procrastinated. My innate fear of failure kept me putting it off. How many of you have been in that same place at some point? That place of knowing that you have the ability, the resources, and the know-how to get the job done or be successful, but because of a particular arena being so uncertain, you found yourself putting it off in fear of not meeting your goal? Well, that WAS me.

A few weeks ago, someone very close to me said something that was so simple, but completely changed my way of thinking, “I know you can do it.”

It sounds silly, but I had never had anyone express direct confidence in me that I could achieve not only personal goals, but also business goals. He gave me some great marketing, networking, and small-business books and resources — and I started reading.

I’ve now set myself up with a daily work schedule and routine. I’m contacting prospective clients. I’m following up. I’m networking. And ultimately, I’m learning. I’m learning every day about changes in my fields of expertise. I’m learning about business. I’m learning about organization. I’m learning about LIFE. I’m creating a vision and looking towards it with focus and a positive attitude.

Starting your own business can be tough. Transitioning from a part-time business owner to a full-time business owner is a daunting task, but with the right resources and enough support, it doesn’t seem so difficult.

I’m keeping myself motivated through milestones, checkpoints, and definitely rewards (Chipotle burrito, anyone?).

I’m confident that I can provide my clients with the services they need and a quality product. I am a hard worker and extremely driven. I know that this is the kind of arena that I can be successful in.

If you are “the master of your own business domain,” as I like to say, I would love to hear about your experiences. So, share them!

This quote popped up this morning in my e-mail and I found it’s timing to be nothing less than perfect:

“The only way of finding the limits of the possible is by going beyond them into the impossible.” -Arthur C. Clarke

Make it an AWESOME day.

All for now.

I don’t care what you say. Why in GOD’S NAME would they want to create a SNUGGIE for dogs? Snuggie’s for humans were bad enough, but a four-legged creature does not need a backwards robe.

Now look at this. This is a picture of my dog, Audrey. She’s adorable. Precious even. A gift from the doggie heavens. BUT she does not look cold in any way.

No snuggie needed.

Now look at this dog. He is adorable. On his own. He does not look cold. In fact, he looks uncomfortable. He is saying, “For the love of all things sacred, take this thing off of me.”

is that a dog or a burrito?

Everything about this is NOT okay.

So folks, don’t buy in to the Snuggie hype. Stand strong. And don’t put your dog in a backwards robe.

ADDENDUM TO POST: October 12, 2009 the SNUGGIE DOG COMMERCIAL

You deserve this.

I’m sure most of you Social Media geeks (no offense, I am TOTALLY a social media geek) have already seen this. I just thought I would share it on my blog. A lot of clients I work with wonder about how important social media REALLY is, or is it truly worth it to invest in something like social media. It is. And this video demonstrates a lot of the information that I have been preaching for a while.

What I love about social media is that it is ALWAYS changing. There is always something new and exciting happening. And I am never going to stop learning. I think that’s awesome. So, here it is… the SOCIAL MEDIA revolution.

All for now.

This is the SECOND edition of Molly’s HOW TO posts. I figure that over the years, I have gained some really important knowledge and it is my duty to disseminate that knowledge to the interwebs and those who peruse the interwebs.

you don't have to be THIS guy to look and sound smart.

This week’s edition: “HOW TO: Seem a WHOLE lot smarter than you really are.”

Let’s be honest, these days, people are judged not only on how they look, but also by their breadth of knowledge of hot topics. Being smart is now SEXY. Well, not all of us are MIT grads or Nobel Prize winners, BUT that doesn’t mean that we can’t keep up with the Jones’s and at least, SOUND smart. So, here are just a few ways that YOU, too can sound like a walking encyclopedia Britannica.

STEP ONE: Vocabulary. Using big words will ALWAYS get you far. This doesn’t mean that you need to bust out the dictionary and make 1,000 flash cards… this just simply means that you have to learn a few key words and keep them in your big-word-vocabulary-arsenal. Here are a few to get you started:

• pedagogy: the art or science of being a teacher, types of instruction
• jargon: terminology which is especially defined in relationship to a specific activity, profession, or group
• aforementioned: mentioning something that came previously in conversation or a written piece (i.e. the aforementioned vocabulary words)
• subsequently: following, afterwards
• engender: to cause to exist, develop, procreate, beget (also a good word to use)
• derision: the use of ridicule or scorn to show contempt
• disseminate: to sow and scatter principles, ideas, opinions, and errors for growth and propagation, like seed

Memorize these. Love them. Then use them in conversation. It is COMPLETELY okay to steer a conversation in a specific direction in order to set you up to use one of these words.

STEP TWO: Reference Shakespeare or Oscar Wilde. This is simple. Memorize at least one quote from each. Then, in conversation simply say, “You know, this is just like that old Shakespearean/Wildeian saying… INSERT QUOTE HERE.” You will wow any crowd with your recitation.

Good examples of quotes:

• “Leave not a rack behind. We are such stuff / As dreams are made on; and our little life / Is rounded with a sleep.” -William Shakespeare’s THE TEMPEST.
• “America had often been discovered before Columbus, but it had always been hushed up.” -Oscar Wilde

STEP THREE: Memorize at least one current fact about the economy. This is pretty self-explanatory. Look up something from the stock ticker and bring it up in conversation. No need to explain, just say, “MAN, CAN YOU BELIEVE _________?” Then simply say, “I know man, me too…”

STEP FOUR: Say you ONLY read The Economist. People magazine, US Weekly, and the comic section are things of the past for you. The Economist is the only trusted, and unbiased source for information, and you read it. Daily. No questions. [The key is you don't ACTUALLY have to read it... just look at a few headlines and make sh*t up as you go. You're the king of knowledge now. OWN IT.]

There you have it. You are now on your way to sounding a whole lot smarter than you really are. Own it. Live it. LOVE IT. Fake it.

All for now.

Well, I am now a resident of Carrboro, North Carolina (near Chapel Hill, Raleigh, and Durham). So, I feel that it is my duty to also promote other awesome events in my new area and not just events in Richmond.

Here’s the scoop: [all of the following information is from the IGNITEraleigh website.]

Ignite events were originally conceived as technology variety shows, but they have grown into much more than that. Ignite is about ideas. Ideas can change the world. And it takes less than five minutes to spread one.

Each presenter gets five minutes on stage with 20 slides that rotate automatically after 15 seconds Around the world communities have been coming together to share their ideas.

Ignite was started in Seattle in 2006 by Brady Forrest and Bre Pettis. Since then hundreds of 5 minute talks have been given across the world. There are thriving Ignite communities in Seattle, Portland, Paris, and NYC. Now we’re hosting an Ignite event in Raleigh, NC.

For more about Ignite events see http://ignite.oreilly.com

To see examples of past Ignite events see Ignite Portland http://www.igniteportland.com and Ignite Boulderhttp://igniteboulder.com. And here’s a post about 12 Lessons in Entrepreneurship that was presented at an Ignite event.

Ignite Raleigh is planned by OurHashtag, LLC
Wayne Sutton @waynesutton
Kipp Bodnar @kbodnar32
Jeff Cohen @dgtlpapercuts
Ryan Boyles @therab

If you’d like to learn more about Ignite Raleigh, you can contact them the following ways:
Email: contact@igniteraleigh.com
Twitter: http://twitter.com/igniteRaleigh
Phone: 980-939-8956

So. Check it out. 5 Minutes. 20 slides. What will happen?