Introducing Carla Reeves, Founder and Designer of Sanity Journals

In such a busy and fast paced world, Carla Reeves knows that each woman needs some “sanity” to life. It was while she was writing in her journal that inspiration came to her to start Sanity Journals- a business to help others have the peace and clarity that so often comes from journaling. Carla’s motto is simple, “unwind…connect…grow.” Enjoy getting to know Carla Reeves, Founder and Designer of Sanity Journals.

Hometown: Carpinteria, CA

Current Residence: Buckeye, AZ

Education: BA Business Administration

Professional Background:  Banking, Property Management, IT, Web Design, Email Administration, HR

What you wanted to be when you grew up:  When I was a little girl I wanted to grow up and be a Mom and a Monkey Trainer at one time.  Funny how I get to do both having two energetic little boys who love to climb.  Later in life, I dreamed of being a teacher.

What you are:  A Mom and Founder and Designer of Sanity Journals – teaching people the powerful tool of journaling!

Brief Summary of your Start Up:  Sanity Journals is a company inspiring people to take daily life from surviving to thriving using the power of writing/journaling!

Company Website? www.sanityjournals.com

What inspired you? My own experience of writing and the impact it had in my life.  In realizing the impact, I absolutely knew I was here to share it with others!

How long have you been in business? Officially, since 2007.  Unofficially, since 2002.

How did you fund it? Personal Investment

Do you have a Fairy Godmother (or Mentor)? My husband acts as amazing coach, mentor and cheerleader!  And I am blessed with many other Fairy Godmothers!

Do you belong to any Business Organization or Networking Groups? Yes

Current Business Challenge? My current business challenge is expanding reach and revenue.

What are you doing about it? I am growing myself, building relationships, implementing new ways of doing business such as teleseminars, online journaling, and e-courses that go beyond the local market.

Favorite motivational quote: “Whether you say you can or say you can’t, your right.” – Unknown

Family? Yes!  Married with 2 boys 5 & 7

If so, how do you balance family and business? With lots of intention, creative planning, structures that ensure quality time together, alone time, time as a couple, FUN time and work time.

Favorite book? Many favs, but Simple Abundance, Sarah Ban Breathnach comes to mind!

What do you do to relax? I write, read, get outdoors, garden, do Pilates, and listen to music.

What do you want to change most about your world? I want to see more happy people living life on purpose.

What are you most proud of? I am most proud of the Mom that I am, my family and the loving environment of our home.  I am proud of following the passion inside of me, and continuing to follow it even in the face of others not getting it.

What advice would you like to offer other Start Up Princesses? Persevere.  Believe in yourself.  Stay in action.  Plan.  Write your way.  Set up structures and support for your success.  Learn to give yourself pep talks.  Step into fear and self-doubt for the sake of something greater.

Favorite Magic Wand (tool/resource)? Writing/journaling

If you could design a tiara, what precious stones would you use? Diamonds! Pure and simple.

How to Get Your Marketing Mojo Working for You

Having worked with thousands of creative women entrepreneurs over the years, I see the common trend: you fall into the “safe marketing” place. Doing what everyone else is doing, using the same descriptor words, offering the same types of products and programs…and then wondering why your marketing efforts aren’t paying off with client interest and joint venture opportunities.

Turn your marketing around with these three Marketing Mojo perspectives.

1. What is your Movement? People don’t want to be marketed “to” or “at” anymore. Their days are too busy – they want to be moved. They want stories, passions, reasons to take action. They want hope and solutions presented to them that will change their routines and better their worlds in some way – whether it’s because they’ll change their habits, they’ll heal, they’ll laugh, they’ll be entertained, or they’ll achieve their dreams.

You have to step into your confidence about your passion and create more than a marketing strategy. Create marketing that moves people. They want to work with you or make a purchase from you because they are so engaged, your message is so compelling. They will read your ad or sales page, and they won’t be able to stop thinking about it – or talking about it.

Your movement comes from your own passion – either what has brought you pain or what brings you joy. A mother on my tennis team couldn’t find bottles and sippy cups that were “plastic safe,” so she created them herself. She is passionate about it, knowing that other moms are looking for these too. She is daring to put her passion into a product and sharing it with others too.

2. Give Them A Reason To Care. The world has changed and is continuing to move fast. In our information-drenched world, you have to capture your potential customers’ attention and give them a reason to read what you’ve written, to listen to your teleclass (one of hundreds that is sitting in their inbox) or your pre-recorded audio (where they had good intentions when they signed up, but now they’ve forgotten why they want to take the time to listen – not to mention it’s gotten buried down the list of emails in their inbox), or take the time to watch yet another video on YouTube.

The world wants to hear messages that resonate with authenticity and integrity. Dare to step up and speak your truth about your passionate area of expertise and call people forward to take action on what really matters to them.

3. Find Your Authentic Marketing Style. Let’s face it, not every one is cut out to be Oprah. Having a successful business isn’t about being someone else. The real secret is to know yourself and use that for maximum impact in your marketing. If you are an amazing writer, then ezines and blogging are perfect for you. If you have a great voice, then try audios, an Internet radio show, or a podcast to get your movement out into the world. If you look appealing on camera and communicate well visually, then let your message loose in video. Don’t try to do what doesn’t come naturally to you…lean into your Authentic Marketing Style. People will love it! When they love it, they’ll pay attention. They’ll be moved to share it. And they’ll be moved to buy what you are offering.

Your Work:

Dare to let loose your passion. Create a movement. Go deep. Be truthful. Speak from your heart. Focus on the marketing vehicle that feels right to you and do it well…so well that people talk about it!

Enjoy,

Laura

Laura West is an award-winning online entrepreneur and president of The Center for Joyful Business.

Family Traditions – A Whole New Year For Starting or Continuing Them

Fairy Godmother Carol Rice, co-founder of CherishBound writes the following article: No matter whom you call family;  tradition will make your bonds stronger.

Family traditions can:

-Create good feelings and help with a person’s identity and sense of belonging.

-Impart values and foster cultural customs.

-Give us a sense of security and continuity.

-Give us a way to celebrate life; the big and the little moments.

-Are part of the glue that holds families together by giving us a way to spend time together, deliberately.

As a young mother I worried about whether or not my husband and I were developing “traditions” for our family.  I knew they were important, I’d seen “Fiddler on the Roof.”  (I can still picture Tevia snapping his fingers over his head as he belts out the familiar song “Tradition!”) But I didn’t know if my little family had any; and if we didn’t, how would we create them?

We all long for a sense of heritage that we imagine traditions will give us, but so often I meet people who think it’s hopeless because they don’t think anyone passed on worthwhile traditions to them and they feel in turn, they don’t have anything they can pass on, or they feel it’s just too late because they didn’t start soon enough.  It’s an amazing thing when hearts and minds are opened to the reality that the first step is as simple as realizing that you can be the first step…tradition can begin with you.  (And ironically, in the process of developing traditions, most of us discover there are traditions that have been passed onto us; we just didn’t realize it.)

Here’s a few ideas to get you started in the upcoming weeks:

New Year’s – Write bad habits/ bad experiences on paper and burn them in a pit and then write out your plans/goals for the New Year.

Chinese New Year –  Give your house a thorough cleaning, hoping to sweep away all the ill-fortune there may have been in the family to make way for the wishful in-coming good luck…then give each child a red envelope with crisp new dollars for the new year!

Civil Rights – Tell the story of Martin Luther King/ Rosa Parks/ Underground Railroad and then ask each family member “What makes a hero/heroine to you?”

Valentine’s – Have a “love box” then during Valentine’s week encourage anonymous notes of love and encouragement to be dropped in for each family member.  Read them at the table each night that week.

St. Patrick’s Day – Serve Green Eggs and Ham for breakfast and Corned beef and Cabbage for dinner (on a table decorated in GREEN)

Every Day:  Use post-it notes to leave messages of encouragement, gratitude, and love on your child’s made bed, bedroom door, pillow, or in on their sandwich!

Birthdays – Decorate the dinner table with balloons and/or crepe paper and have the birthday person’s favorite dinner.

As you start your own traditions this year consider recording them in a journal like this one at Cherish Bound. At the end of the year you’ll have a record of some of your most treasured moments.

Introducing Tamara Mickelson, Founder and CEO of Nannies Galore

We are pleased to feature Tamara Mickelson for this week’s interview. Founder and CEO of Nannies Galore, she has a vision and knows what it takes to “make it happen.” Characterized by perseverance, faith and a love for her 4-year-old daughter, Tamara is set to impact the childcare world by making it that much easier to find good nannies. Thank you Tamara!

Hometown: Rancho Cordova, CA

Current Residence: Rocklin, CA

Education: Bachelors in Business Management and Masters in Marriage, Family and Child Counseling (MFT)

What you wanted to be when you grew up: I wanted to become a Veterinarian.

What you are: I am the founder and CEO of Nannies Galore, a single mother of one daughter, and a deputy sheriff for a local sheriff’s department – currently working in the Crime Scene Investigations Unit.

Brief Summary of your Start Up:  I researched my business for one full year before I officially started it. Once I decided on the company for my website design, it all fell into place.

Company Website? Nannies Galore at www.nanniesgalore.com

What inspired you? I am a single mother raising my daughter alone and I have been hiring live-in nannies for three years. In late 2008, I developed a strong desire to begin my own nanny website to help families find quality live-in and live-out childcare.

How long have you been in business? I officially started in August of 2009 and the website has been live since November of 2009.

How did you fund it? I made monthly payments to pay for the development of the site.

Do you have a Fairy Godmother (or Mentor)? My faith in God and trust in him has kept me sane and on track in my website business as well as being a single parent.

Do you belong to any Business Organization or Networking Groups? I am a member of the National Association for Moms in Business. I am also active on Twitter Moms, Twitter, and Facebook.

Current Business Challenge? Advertising is my main challenge as it is very expensive to advertise nationally.

What are you doing about it? I recently began to concentrate on local advertising since I live here and landed an article in the January issue of Sacramento Magazine.  I am actively networking with other mommy websites and mommy blogs to gain free advertising in exchange of advertising their business.  

Favorite motivational quote: “You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore”.

Family? I have a 4 year old daughter who attends preschool.

If so, how do you balance family and business? I work full time away from home so my daughter attends preschool which doubles as a daycare after the curriculum is complete for the day.  When we are home together, we spend quality time with each other.

Favorite book? I really do not have a favorite book.  I read everything from romance novels to self help books.  I am currently writing my own book which will be a quick and easy read for busy mothers.

What do you do to relax? My favorite thing to do on my day off (when my daughter is in school) is go see a movie.  With popcorn and soda in hand, it is my chance to escape from the world for 2 hours.  It is very relaxing to me. I am currently looking for a great yoga class.

What do you want to change most about your world? (I read this two ways….THE world and MY world).  What I would like to change most about MY world is my money situation.  It can be very stressful at times making ends meet when I have to pay for preschool and daycare.

What are you most proud of? I am proud to be the only one in my family to have served in the military.  I joined the Air Force at age 17.  I am also very proud of attaining my bachelors and masters degrees.

What I am most proud of is my daughter: I tried having children for years and after four miscarriages, I adopted a beautiful baby girl from Kazakhstan.  Due to unfortunate circumstances, I have been raising her alone since she was one year old.  She is truly amazing and has changed my life.

What advice would you like to offer other Start Up Princesses? Before you begin your business, research it for a long time and research everything there is to know about it.  Begin only when you are comfortable doing so and have the energy for it. It will take a lot of your time!

Favorite Magic Wand (tool/resource)? The internet (of course).  What would I do without it?  I can find anything I need on the internet! If it exists, it is on the internet!

If you could design a tiara, what precious stones would you use? I would use pure diamonds and my birthstone, the beautiful blue sapphire.

How to Know if Your Website Needs a Makeover

We’ve just redesigned StartupPrincess.com and so it’s been heavy on my mind lately…what about you? Are you ready for a makeover for your website? Check out this fabulous post by Fairy Godmother Sarah Bray of S. Joy Studios to hear her ideas so you can decide if a new website is in your near future.

Or, if you don’t have a website yet, check out this post by Jeremy Nicoll about how to get started with one.

And if you just want lots of awesome traffic for your website, check out this post by Theme Forest  that has 50 ideas on how to get your website noticed by the masses.

Plan Now to Attend a Fabulous Conference (or more!) in 2010

This week I’m attending  Altitude Summit at the luxurious Grand America. I’ll be cheering for Startup Princess friends who are speaking (Sarah Jane, Allison, Steph).  As I’m getting ready to attend the event–arranging sitters, freezing meals, getting laundry done, etc. I’m thinking about other national blogger/social media/business conferences I want to attend.  Attending events, especially national conferences has really been worthwhile for networking and getting sponsors, I highly recommend it (not to mention F-U-N)!  The great news is we’ve just officially set the date for our 4th Annual Startup Princess Touchpoint Conference- September 24th at Noah’s in South Jordan, Utah. Our event features incredible keynote speakers, breakout sessions, lunch, video marketing competition, attendee boutique & more! Please plan now to join us. Get inspired, connect & learn more business strategies to grow your business.

What conferences are you attending this year?  Leave a comment!

Living as a Creator with Limitless Capacity

Fairy Godmother Heather Madder, Life Coach and Author shares a message about how to creat a life and business with limitless capacity (clip from Startup Princess Touchpoint Conference 2008).

Business Baby Shower Contest

Celebrating entrepreneurial moms and all they do to birth and grow a business

Barrington, NH – The Business Baby Shower, a new contest celebrating entrepreneurial moms and all they do to birth and grow a successful company while balancing family life, was recently launched as a partnership between The Mom Entrepreneur and Corporate Mom DropOuts.

The Contest, which runs from January 1 – April 30, 2010, will create awareness of mom entrepreneur companies and their products and services. Participants will complete an application process as well as submit a two minute video of their business for consideration by a panel of judges.

“As a mom entrepreneur myself, I’ve found that starting and growing my own business was very similar to the process of birthing and raising my children. There’s a lot of love, dedication, commitment, hard work – and occasional frustrations – that go into both,” said Lucinda Cross, of Corporate Mom DropOuts, co-founder of the Contest. “We’ve created a forum that recognizes and honors the unique challenges that go into simultaneously raising children and ‘birthing’ a business.”

The Business Baby Shower Contest is open to mom entrepreneurs, in any industry, who are looking to start or grow a business. To be eligible, mom-owned companies must be located in the United States or Canada with the exception of the Province of Quebec and where prohibited by law. All entries will be judged on a variety of factors, including (i) degree of business solution; (ii) creativity of solution; and (iii) practicality/broad applicability of solution.

“We work extensively with mom entrepreneurs and are continually inspired by their creativity, innovative ideas, tenacity, exceptional multi-tasking and ability to balance their careers and families,” said Traci Bisson of The Mom Entrepreneur, co-founder of the Contest. “The Business Baby Shower celebrates all of these wonderful attributes and allows us to highlight and honor some really amazing women.”

First, second and third place winners will be chosen in May, and will be “showered” with thousands of dollars worth of media exposure for their business from Media Sponsors as well as prizes, services and bonuses from Contest Sponsors.

“Mom entrepreneurs are a rapidly growing demographic and we believe in supporting, recognizing and celebrating the great work that these busy, smart, creative and courageous women are doing,” Cross continued. “We’re excited to see the nominations and learn more about their stories.”

For more information and to enter the contest, please visit www.businessbabyshower.com

Introducing Debbie Svay Savage, Founder of Baby Emi Jewelry

I first met Debbie Savage from our mutual friend, Heather Ledeboer of Mom4Life.com about
3 1/2 years ago.  Debbie was just starting her jewelry business and was excited to network and learn everything about business and how to distribute her product.  Debbie’s been a constant friend and supporter of Startup Princess.  I’ll never forget how she helped us get our Orange County Chapter off the ground in 2009 with some other top notch ladies I adore. And above all it’s been a pleasure to watch Debbie soar with Baby Emi Jewelry and share her love for her Cambodian culture.  Just 3 years ago she was struggling to get her first boutique and now she’s sharing her jewelry with Celebrities galore, been featured in dozens of magazines, and is being featured this month in the Sundance Film Festival gift baskets.

I love hearing what celeb baby is wearing her Cambodian ankle bracelets and how that has translated into massive sales for her company. Way to go Debbie! Enjoy her story here… she is truly a Startup Princess who understands what it means to “Make a Wish, Make it Happen.”

Hometown: Sandy, UT

Current Residence: Laguna Niguel, CA

Education: B.S. Brigham Young University, M.S. Utah State University

Professional Background: Cancer Control Specialist for the American Cancer Society, Sherman Oaks, CA.  I loved this job because everyday I went into schools to teach children how to live a life being cancer free through sound nutrition, regular exercise and staying smoke-free.

What you wanted to be when you grew up:  Miss USA

What you are: A happy mommy, blessed wife and successful entrepreneur.

Brief Summary of your Start Up: Baby Emi Jewelry launched in 2006 just a few weeks before my second daughter was born.  Thank goodness!  My online home business is named after my first daughter Emi.  Baby Emi Jewelry celebrates the love of motherhood and family through our Jingle Bells Jewelry.

Company Website? www.babyemijewelry.com

What inspired you? The birth of my daughter Emi and my Cambodian culture of jewelry gifting inspired me to start a business that honors a tradition that has been passed on for generations within my family.

How long have you been in business? 3 years.

How did you fund it? We funded our business with personal money.  Thanks honey!

Do you have a Fairy Godmother (or Mentor)? Yes, so many and I wish I could name them all!  The two that stand out to me and that I admire greatly and know will be there for me at any given moment are Kelly Anderson and Heather Ledeboer at www.mom4life.com

Do you belong to any Business Organization or Networking Groups? Yes, Startup Princess Orange County Chapter.  I do enjoy networking and wished I had time for me.  Networking within Facebook and Twitter has proved to be beneficial as well (especially for stay at home moms like me who are often in their PJs!).

Current Business Challenge? Wow, I could go on forever!  My two are finances and lack of time.

What are you doing about it? I am praying!  This is what I do in times of challenge and blessing.  I am praying to be inspired to get new ideas, contacts, and leads to increase my sales.  In addition, I am praying and actively searching for a virtual assistant to help me with social media/marketing.  I have fantastic things happening with Baby Emi Jewelry (celeb/press for example) but lack the time and skill set to adequately promote and share the sweet successes.

Favorite motivational quote: “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually, who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; it’s in everyone. And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.” -Marianne Williamson

Family? Husband, Albert of 7 years and going strong, Emi who just turned 6 on Christmas day and Chloe who is 3 ½ years old.

If so, how do you balance family and business? It is not really balancing for me.  I look at it a different way and it works for me.  I have tried to “balance” that and failed miserably.  When I evaluated my role as mother, wife and business woman, and started to frame my life around those priorities coupled with prayer, I find that I am much happier and at peace.  It’s a good thing!

Favorite book? Umm…It is the Twilight series!

What do you do to relax? Exercise and watch kids shows with the girls snuggling on our couch.

What do you want to change most about your world? Honestly, it is me.  Don’t misunderstand me this is not a self-hate thing but an empowering proactive realization that my world becomes a better place through me first.  I want to be a more loving, patient, easy going mother to my girls and a more cheerful, helpful, kind wife.  I find that if I want to see change in the world – I need to start with me.

What are you most proud of? Just recently, we have been invited to participate in Park City TV’s Celebrity Swag Bag for the Sundance Film Festival 2010 and we are so excited!  It was stressful to figure out how Baby Emi Jewelry would gift 300 celebrities but we figured out a method and I’m so proud of the result. Thank you Start Up Princess for the connection! Also, my relationship with my sweet husband and our beautiful daughters are the things I am so proud of.  I am so blessed!

What advice would you like to offer other Start Up Princesses? Believe in Yourself.  Never Give Up. Surround Yourself with exceptional people.

Favorite Magic Wand (tool/resource)? My mentors and my support network.

If you could design a tiara, what precious stones would you use? Lots and lots of diamonds!

Visit Baby Emi Jewelry and use coupon code SUP15 to save 15% on your purchases when you checkout!

Thank you Debbie for the wonderful interview!

You’re Invited! Startup Princess Salt Lake City, Utah Chapter Event- Jan 28th

We’re thrilled to announce our first event of the year for the Startup Princess Salt Lake City, Utah Chapter! Please join us January 28th from 7pm-9pm at Betaloft (357 W 200 S SLC), for an evening of inspiration, networking, and fun featuring the successful life coach,  Ann Webb.  Ann’s presentation will be “The Power of Clear Intention” Learn more about Ann and her business at http://www.ideallifevision.com

The cost of the event is $15 for pre-paid attendees (by January 27th) or $20 at the door. First time guests are free. To pre-pay please use the Paypal button below. Thank you!

Introducing our 2010 SLC Chapter Sponsor:

Many Thanks to our Location Sponsor, Betaloft

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