The Simple Adventurist Entrepreneur

Never Lose Your Sense Of Wonder

ashley — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 18:11:39 +0000

I think back on being a kid and often miss the days where you didn’t have the worries you do now or the realization that there are mean people in the world. Although we can’t go back we can definitely tune out the negative even if at times it seems impossible. One thing I have learned on this journey of building a business is that there are a TON of people that want to rub elbows with you once you are going places. I love meeting new people but can’t stand it when people only want to talk to you when they need something.

Putting that aside, I always think back to my high school graduation where my guidance counselor gave a speech at the end right before the hats went flying. She was one of those people who didn’t say a lot so when she spoke, you listened. She turned and looked at all of us and said, “Class of 2001, I hope you dance.” And if you know the song she is referring to then you completely understand why I often think about those words and what they mean. Life is full of let downs and trials but never, ever lose your sense of wonder. Tune out the negative and dance.

Discount Lift Tickets and Free Photos

ashley — Sat, 28 Jan 2012 01:37:58 +0000

I am in love with snowboarding ever since I tried it 5 years ago. The first day was brutal but everyday after that it was just one of those things you can’t put into words. Having the chance to stand at the top of the mountain and have that as your view while cruising down the crisp white snow is AWESOME.

Yep, that’s me taking it all in before I take off. Okay enough about making you jealous about my fabulous ski trip because I know you want to learn how to find amazing ski lift ticket deals. If you’re like me and don’t live anywhere near a mountain, making a trip can certainly add up with a flight, hotel, car rental, food and lift tickets. I found an amazing website where you can get lift tickets for up to 80% off. Yes, I said 80% off.

The website is Liftopia.com It lists ski resorts by state and you can search by date on when you plan to travel to see where the deals are. They even have rental gear packages to help save you a little money and can even deliver it all right to your door. I could go on and on about how great this site is but I can see you sitting there ready to click on the link, so I will be quick about the next part.

Free Photos For Bloggers

If you have a blog or are in need of photos for a project then you need to check out PhotoPin.com Sounds too good to be true right? You can use the photos as long as you give credit to the photographer. That’s a pretty fair trade if you ask me.

I love finding new apps, websites and goodies to share with everyone so feel free to share yours below!

Watch Your Words Or They Become Your Actions

ashley — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 23:53:51 +0000

I love quotes. This quote is actually from the “Iron Lady” trailer with Meryl Streep. When I heard it I couldn’t help but write it down because there’s such truth in it. Had to share so enjoy!

Dealing With Problematic Customers – YEC Live Event

ashley — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 19:43:36 +0000

I got the chance to chat with young entrepreneurs and startups about dealing with bad customers and what to expect when they start a project with the client. There are so many customer service experts out there that tell you “the customer is always right” and that slogan is false. Here’s the real story…the good customers are your bread and butter and you should treat them well but the bad customers you need to fire. Why? Because those bad customers are taking away time you could be spending with your good customers. Makes sense right?

There were a ton of questions and many were asking about contracts and how to “pre-qualify” a customer. I had a blast sharing my tips and experiences with everyone. A big thank you to the awesome Ryan Paugh and YEC for making this happen.

Favorite New Startups: Codecademy, Inquire.ly and Polarfox App

ashley — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 18:00:58 +0000

I LOVE finding new startups and sharing them with everyone. Startups are on the rise and that’s a good thing considering there are no jobs out there, lets create them!

Here are 3 startups I am digging right now and just discovered this week:

Codecademy: learn programming with baby steps (by weekly email). Each week they send a new interactive programming lesson that’s sent via email. And it’s FREE. So whether you want to learn code for the first time or need to brush up on your current skills, Codecademy is your new best friend. Sign up here.
Inquire.ly: will collect all the data from your websites forms, store it securely in the cloud, and nudge you when you’ve forgotten about that important customer. We are going to use this for BB and pumped about it! Sign up here.
Polarfox App: Polarfox lets you easily edit and multi post images to Flickr, Facebook, Twitpic (Twitter), Picasa (Google+), Blogger, Evernote, Box and Posterous. Sign up here (beta)

Let me know if you check them out and get a chance to sign up for either of these startups. Feel free to share your favorite new startups /apps you have discovered recently. The great thing about all 3 of these is that each can help business owners and entrepreneurs with daily tasks and even learning something new.

Have a favorite startup? Share it below!

A New Year, Clean Slate and New Goals To Be Accomplished

ashley — Fri, 30 Dec 2011 18:42:22 +0000

I’m still amazed at how fast time flies and how much faster it gets as you get older. 2012 is almost here and you always hear everyone coming up with new years resolutions but my question is why do you wait “for the new year?” Too often we think that we have to have a reason to achieve goals or change the way we eat, workout, travel etc. But seriously, why wait?

There is one thing that you have to understand, life is short and you don’t know what tomorrow holds so get out there and live life to the fullest. We get so caught up in daily life or drama that we forget to actually enjoy life. We forget about the things and people we love when truly that is the most important thing in life.

“Life is not about money, fame, your net worth, objects or how many friends you have, it’s about leaving footprints on others hearts and helping those you meet along the way.”

Go ahead and think of right now (this new years) as a clean slate but from this day forward don’t be afraid to make a change or take a chance before the new year comes around again. Once you accomplish a goal don’t stop there, keep setting them. Every day is a clean slate so make everyday amazing. Don’t waste time on looking back and wishing you could change something, focus on what’s ahead. I once had the privilege of hearing Colin Powell speak at a conference and what I took away from his speech was this:

“Don’t waste your time looking in the rearview mirror, focus on the road ahead of you.”

You may have heard this before but I’m telling you that it’s true…be patient and good things will come. It’s so true and it’s happened to me so take my word for it. So celebrate the new year, enjoy it and never stop challenging yourself.

Happy New Year! See you in 2012!

Photo credit: SJ Photography

Tips On Using Social Media For Your Small Business

ashley — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 19:32:30 +0000

I recently wrote this on our BB Show site but decided to post it here too. I think social media is great…if you use it the right way. It blows me away how so many people try and make it more complicated than what it really is but I am here to tell you that it’s actually very simple. The most important thing you cannot forget is that even though social media is becoming one of the newest and best ways to communicate, you can’t forget about the face to face interaction. It’s all about the balance…

Are you still confused about the social media craze? Don’t worry, so are a ton of other people.

Don’t put all of your eggs in the social media basket.

Too many articles out there (literally thousands a day) state that social media is the most important thing you should do at this moment in time. While it’s important, it’s not the only thing you should be concentrating on with your business. Why? Because not everyone is on social media (actually even 60% of small business owners don’t use social media at the moment) and if you only concentrate on that then most likely you’re missing out on a HUGE audience of customers for your business. Also it can take up a lot of your time, and time that you should be putting into your actual business. There have been some great success stories from new business owners who use social media to their advantage and even build their audience through a certain platform. Take Mari from Foiled Cupcakes for example, she built her customer base through Twitter without even having a storefront. Watch the interview with her here to learn how she did it. Does this work for everyone? No, not always but it can be a successful tool if you use social media the right way.

Face to Face will never go away.

It doesn’t matter how many years go by or how far technology moves forward, face to face interaction will never go away. An email is easy, Twitter is convenient and to the point but there is nothing like chatting with someone and putting a face to a name. Yes, some that you meet in person you wish you would have just sent an email but it’s still a win-win situation. When you talk with people in person it gives them a chance to see the face of your business and brand. Think about how many people you admire or respect because of what they do. What happens when you get the chance to go shake their hand? You immediately like their business even more (or maybe even less but you get the idea). Be real and be upfront.

What’s the best way to use social media?

There are a a ton of experts out there trying to sell you on how to use social media as if there is some “secret tips” you need to know. Here’s the inside scoop (and it’s free), it’s about “being social.” Seriously, that’s it. Be transparent because most can sniff out people who are only there to promote their products and/or business. Think about what you love when you see other brands and apply that to your strategy as well. Study others in your field and watch what works or doesn’t work. People make social media way too complicated when it should be fun and a way to give your brand a voice. Often small business owners jump on Twitter and have no clue what to do and update once or twice a week (sometimes even the same tweet). Don’t be that person, it’s about consistency. So now that you know the “secret” to social media, get out there and do it.

Should you venture over to social media?

This is a question we hear and see all of the time from small business owners. And our answer…yes. Should you jump onto all of the social media outlets? No. Go with one first and master it. You don’t have a ton of extra time to spend on it so use the small time you do have and give it a shot. Social media can be a great way to make connections with those you never thought you could ever reach by just email or phone. Check out this expert tip from Mike Michalowicz about social media.

Should you only use social media? No. Too many right now are using social media as their sole communication and it’s not the best thing for your business in the long run. 1. You can miss out on some great people not on social media. 2. You forget how to actually carry on a face to face conversation with those around you and even your customers.

Social media is a great tool to use for your business but just don’t get caught up in the wave of experts trying to tell you that there’s a secret on how to use social media. There’s no secret, it’s called being social. Never forget how important face to face is when dealing with customers.

What’s your take on using social media?

The Side Of Paddleboarding You Didn’t Know About

ashley — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 01:02:02 +0000

I have become a big fan of paddleboarding and even Yoga paddleboarding in the recent year. We wanted to know what it was like to run a business like this on a day to day basis and shed light on why it’s not just a “dream job and day at the beach.” Bob McFarland is one awesome guy and I loved getting the chance to interview him. Check out the interview right here.

Have you been paddleboarding recently and fell in love with it?

What I Learned Running A Half Marathon

ashley — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 18:00:02 +0000

For a long time I truly hated running, wait I actually despised it even in all the sports I did. Okay let me clarify that, I didn’t like LONG distance running but did enjoy the sprinting. Let’s put it this way that when my basketball coach in highschool told me I had to choose a fall sport to do to keep in shape I nixed soccer and cross country because they both involved ALOT of running. So I went with volleyball.

I’ve had numerous friends that got involved with running marathons, triathlons and even some that did an IronMan. They would say “oh Ashley you would love it, it’s such a rush and you will get addicted!.” I had no idea how they would get a “rush” from constantly running miles over and over. The only thing I could compare it to was when you block a girl’s spike at the net for the last point to win the game and have that “in your face moment.” It’s taken 4 years for me to finally break down to all of them and just do it. Although they wanted me to go for the gold in the beginning and run the full marathon I was told them “baby steps people, baby steps…I’ll start with the half.” So before I knew it I was signed up or actually my friend signed me up. I see an email and then a text that says “oh by the way I just signed you up for the half ” So the training began. (here’s the post when I started the training in the summer in case you missed it)

Through all the training, the mornings that came way too early and learning that runners are a totally different breed, I actually learned quite a bit.

Train with encouraging people. I’ve known this and have always said this to many but when trying something new or outside your comfort zone it’s so important to have encouraging people around. Just a simple “you’re doing awesome” goes such a long way. The group that I ran and trained with (IRunMommies) have a slogan called “No Mommy Left Behind” and they stick to that. They are constantly moving from person to person to chat, check on them and if someone is further back they loop back to make sure they are okay. This is what it’s about – Encouragement. Let’s face it, you’re not going to win an Olympic medal for the running you do. Maybe you’re doing it to challenge yourself (which is awesome) but at the end of the day you won’t remember a medal, you will remember those that took the time to encourage and push you.

Don’t slack. I can remember one time I was so sick in high school that I had to take off a week from basketball practice. The first day I went back I was a bit winded not only from being sick but from not being at practice to keep up. Taking off from running is just like that but worse. You could take 2 days off and feel like you have taken 2 weeks off. It’s about being persistent with your training and not slacking. Sure there are a ton of reasons you don’t want to run but take Nike’s advice and “just do it,” because if you don’t it could throw off your whole routine and mental state about it.

Find strength in the weakness. I’ve played ball with a lot of people and there are always a few that have to complain about every little thing and blame it on the fact the “net was too high or the rim is crooked…” Right. In running may thoughts go through your head and you have WAY too much time to think about how bad that knee, foot or joint hurts. If you have a pain in your side it doesn’t mean you’re going to die it means you are not breathing right or enough for that matter. Don’t make excuses and make your weakness come out as a strength.

Embrace it. We all get older and we all start to lose some of our “invincibleness” we had or thought we had shall I say. You could be in the best shape of your life after training for a marathon but life may happen where you don’t get the chance to run another race. When you look back at the days you trained, the memories you made and the pain you went through to get there, it should leave a smile on your face. Every time you run be thankful you have the healthy legs that you do to run those long distances, embrace it and take it all in.

Don’t overdue it, it’s not worth it. Playing sports as a kid I always pushed the limit and once again had the “invincible” syndrome where I truly believed I would never get hurt. When I did get hurt at times I would keep playing like an idiot and not be “truthful” about how bad I was hurting. I never wanted to show weakness. Although I never had a major injury until college volleyball, I look back and wish I would have figured out that it wasn’t worth it to hurt my knee, shoulder or ankle even more than it already was. There comes a point that if you’re in sheer pain that you need to stop before you have a lifelong injury. Increasing your time by 1 minute is not worth it for years of waking up with pain. You know your body, so listen to it.

Training for a marathon is not just about the training, it’s about life too. If you have persistence, drive, heart, strength and enthusiasm then you will always succeed in everything you do even through the bumps in the road. If I can tell you anything about what I know between life and sports, it’s give everything you do 110% and never look back.

The experience in Savannah I have to say was awesome. From the crowds that came to cheer us on, the thousands of runners bunched up together and accomplishing a huge goal was one memory I will keep for a lifetime. I can now say that I ran a half marathon and would encourage anyone to do the same.

Here’s a pic of the group right before we took off at the starting line. Yep, that’s me in the back in the blue. These are some amazing women not only as runners but as people and I love every chance I get to chat with each one about their journey as a person, runner and a mother. Learn more about them at IRunMommies.com and start your own IRunMommy group in your area.

What’s your training story?

51 Reasons We Love You, Dad

ashley — Tue, 22 Nov 2011 02:20:34 +0000

My sisters and I tried to think outside the box for our Dad’s birthday this year with him turning 51. All three of us have gotten into the DIY stuff (literally addicted) and came up with one cool project or we hoped it would come out as we pictured it. We decided to get a list together between the 3 of us of 51 reasons we love our Dad.

We had a ton of ideas and originally thought about using each quote on a post-it note or even paint chip/sample but then completely changed our minds once we got to Michaels and this is what we ended up with:

What we used to create this: (all materials are from Michaels)

Shadowbox frame that opens up
Black poster/foam board
Silver and gold paint pen
2 wooden numbers
One can of (blue) gloss spray paint

Just write your the quotes alternating each paint pen but make sure you trace out the number (or whatever you decide to use in the center) before you write all the way across the board. We had to cut down the board to fit the frame so make sure you that you have a good razor and steady hand to cut the sides. The wooden numbers were quite heavy so we used a very heavy duty contractor glue (you could use Gorilla Glue) to put them on the board. Let it dry before you stand it up or plan to show it off or use it.

It’s very simple to do and you could do it for anyone honestly. Dad truly loved it and had to sit there and read every single one quote on there. We actually put #51 on the back and included a note from each of us just to add an extra special touch. If you decide to do this for someone let us know and send us the pictures, we’d love to see them!