by Roxanne M. | Jun 30, 2021 | Business
It’s time to get fully dressed!!!!!… For almost two years statistics say that over 56%of people have held jobs that were fully remote or at least twice a week, we’re able to work from home, and have tons of flexibility. In fact, I think most people have become comfortable with this new virtual norm. But….now that most people are getting fully vaccinated, it’s time to head back to the office. I think for me, I’ve become an expert at wearing pajamas paints with professional tops. The question is…. How will companies transition their employees back into the office and continue to offer such a wide array of options and continue to keep their employees motivated?
Employees are considering so many factors, such as safety and being exposed. On the contrary, some employees are happy to get back to the office because the home environment lacks social activities. I mean, we’ve all gone from the kitchen, the bedroom, home office, and the same routine daily, but it also is great when we can have social interactions with others. It’s been tough on all of us. On the flip side, many of us have developed some sort of social anxiety. So…. how do we fully prepare for this transition…. The answer is to make it happen the way that works best for your company & team. Think of innovative ways to help support your team.
Understand that your plan of action may not go according to schedule and be prepared to modify your plan over and over again. Definitely consider enhancing your current business model to address the current trends and needs of your employees. Don’t forget that we as business owners can feel different levels of stress and will have to make personal adjustments as well. Lastly, continue to build relationships with those who make us look good and work hard daily. Always remember, “The Blueprint to Success is You!”
by Roxanne M. | May 19, 2021 | Business
So… Let’s talk about trademark. Why is it that this process is typically the last thing we do for our brand or business? Say what?! Yes… I’m serious. As a business owner, getting a trademark is one of the most important and essential things you need to get right from the start. Now, why are most businesses waiting? Because we think we can’t do it ourselves and it’s going to cost us tons of money… Wrong! Let’s get into it:
What is a Trademark? A trademark can be any word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination of these things that identifies your goods or services. It’s how customers recognize you in the marketplace and distinguish you from your competitors.
Why is a trademark important? Well, a trademark provides an exclusive right to the owner to use such words, logos, and slogans. (It becomes YOUR property).
Where would I file for a trademark? You would go to my.USPTO.gov
How long would the process take? You’d be probably looking at around twelve to thirteen months.
How much will this process cost me? Would I be spending tons of money? No, it would cost you between two hundred seventy-five dollars to three hundred seventy-five. No more than that. Please be sure to check your sources as well. Trust me when I tell you, there are scammers out there ready to steal your brand and all of the hard (SWEAT EQUITY) work that you’ve put into your business.
Would I need an attorney? You can get an attorney, but to save you a few dollars, it’s that simple where you can do it yourself.
Could anyone file the application for me? Unfortunately, they cannot. You would have to file the application yourself. However, you do have a business consultant like myself that can guide you through the process.
If you have any other questions or wish to know more about trademarks you can read more about trademarks HERE.
Always remember… The Blueprint to Success is You! Let’s protect our brand and our business(es).
by Roxanne M. | Apr 20, 2021 | Business
True story…. Got a call from one of my colleagues…. Roxanne!!!!! What do I do? I need your help! I have a client that I did some work for. Absolutely FREE. Now they are trying to sue me alleging that I did not return their item. My response…. Was there a contract in place? A one-minute pause…. Hello? Are you still there? “No, there was no contract in place”. Well… sorry to tell you, but there is nothing that I can do.
I cannot tell you how many calls I get like this. Contracts are ESSENTIAL. Yes! They are a must. Even if you are providing a product or service that is FREE, such as what I call a “Betta client”; which in exchange for a case study or review, you provide a service. Again, a contract is needed. I always share with my clients, if you do not document, it never happened. Here is why:
▪ Contracts will outline the expectations for you and the party you are working with. It gives a clear scope of work to be executed. Trust me… you do not want anyone to claim a misunderstanding down the road.
▪ Contracts in place will protect your brand, your business, and the other party if those expectations, “Aren’t met”. (There are always scouts out there ready to take you out!)
▪ Contracts will “Lock-in” any remittance to be paid for your product or service (if any).
▪ Contracts are legally binding and enforceable. If you ever get sued or are taken to court, a contract can literally save you.
As previously stated, make sure that you develop a simple contract even if you are not planning on charging for your product or service. (If you need help, speak with an attorney or give us a call if you need guidance).
In addition to having a contract in place, make sure you schedule a meeting; whether virtual, via call, or in-person to review the contract and ask questions. “Tell me what is your understanding?” Recap your conversations and allow for the other party to tell you what they understood as well. Have the client sign, you sign, and issue them a copy. Always remember, The Blueprint to Success is You! ™
by Roxanne M. | May 13, 2019 | Business
As creative human beings, entrepreneurs and business people, sometimes we get to a place
where we plateau. There are no new contracts, money is kind of stagnant and we become still.
Instantaneously, what tends to cross our mind is, “Did I make the right decision? Am I doing the
right thing? I made a huge mistake! This was not meant to be!”…
Trust me, I have been there before and it sucks! But one thing that we cannot do is begin to
seek approval from others. It’s great to read, educate and have mentors. I highly recommend it.
But when you get to a place that you cannot move forward because you need the validation
and approval of someone else is a HUGE mistake! This type of thinking will get you stuck! I
mean that! You became a business owner, entrepreneur and someone who can create multiple
streams of income for a reason! It’s all in YOU. You have the tenacity, creative mind and ability
to do anything you put your mind to. Forget about the opinions of others and always thrive on
why you started your journey in the first place. Hurtles are there to push us towards a new
venture and opportunity!
Take the time to self-evaluate and conduct a SWOT analysis on yourself. Look at your strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. Then, look back on your business plans, sales funnels
and motivate your damn self!
You’ve got this! Keep going! Press forward! Pick up where you left off and smile! The blueprint
to success is YOU!
There is NO validation needed…
by Roxanne M. | May 13, 2019 | Business
I don’t know if you do… but I scroll through my social media pages on a daily basis. Have you
ever done this then all of a sudden you come across your exact content on someone else’s
feed? You start breathing heavily, your sweating, your eyes are about to pop out of there
socket in disbelief! I’m now fuming! Like how dare this person steal my content? Then, not give
me credit! What in the world?! Have you lost your mind?!… You’ve been there, right? Like… I
put in all this sweat equity to post daily. Then I get the content stealers! Who are you?! Like for
real?!
Creating content is NOT easy. It takes creative thought. Creative process… you really have to be up-to-date on the trends and know who your target market is. Just to catch the attention of
your audience is important. There is just too much work that goes into this… Can you agree?
This would make my blood boil… Like this is mine! I’m here trying to get prospects persuaded to
purchase my products. I’m on my A-game to keep my competitive edge and momentum in
building multiple sales funnels. How dare these content stealers! This is my business you are
messing with….
So now… strategically, what I do is… I comment on their post with, “Hey there…Thanks for
sharing my content. Besides… it’s free marketing”.
Stop the content stealers….
by Roxanne M. | Apr 30, 2019 | Business
Have you ever been so excited for spring? Life is so good… daylight savings has begun.
Family is great, business is booming. You are getting so much exposure. So many sales are happening.
People are approaching you to be mentored and want to know how you have become so
successful. Your family is great. Life is just good. Ugh… such a great feeling.
Well, this is how I started off my spring until one morning, I woke up with this yucky, nasty boils
all over my body! Literally, I wanted to scream. I wanted to lock myself in the room. How could
this be? I asked. What did I do? Am I dying? What is going on? I cannot meet with anyone like
this. What can I wear? I cannot wear a dress. If anyone sees my legs, my neck, my arms… Yikes!
I cannot do any live interviews. What if this gets on my face? It was so painful. Everything
stopped. No networks. No client contacts. Everything just stopped. I was so angry. This will be
the end of my career, I thought! These boils were all over my body. Literally! With the
exception of my face, it was all over. I felt every emotion you can think of. I was so selfish and
did not care about anyone but me. My emotions went from super happy to I want to just go
into a cave. It was horrible.
After multiple doctors’ visits, specialists, biopsies, medications, treatments; you name it, I was
diagnosed with Psoriatic Erythroderma. It’s a very rare, but dangerous form of psoriasis. Boy did
I cry. What caused this and when would it go away were my only thoughts. It shut me down
completely. I was so sad, depressed and scared. The motivation was gone. The momentum to
do anything was out the window! It surely affected me. Have you ever experienced any life
change or occurrence that completed immobilizes you? Boy was this a tuff time and I truly let
my emotions get the best of me, which could have essentially cost me my business and
career. Thankfully, I am getting better. Not fully recovered yet, but making progress. There is no
cure to this disease, but it can be controlled and may flare up again.
Thankfully I came to my senses, and realized, it is not the end of the world. I should not have
allowed this to affect me as it did. But… I am human and humans sometimes become
vulnerable when life happens. It’s how we react to things. Glad to say, I have gotten back to
that excitement and momentum of springing forward and continuing to meet my deadlines.
Sometimes when life throws you a left hook or you have a setback; you may lose your job, a
family member becomes ill, you face legal matters, environments change, divorce, etc.… Always
remember that there is someone that may be going through worse. It’s okay to get sad or
process things, but never give up and continue to spring forward…The blueprint to success is
you!
by Roxanne M. | Feb 21, 2019 | Business
Have you ever been the person with the huge humanitarian attitude especially with your family? Yup… that was me. I was the huge gatekeeper. Every problem would end up either at my front door or on the other end of my cell phone. I could never say, “No”… “I can’t help”. It was to the point where I started neglecting myself, my family, my finances and even my aspirations. I started noticing that I was devaluing myself in every area of my life because I was divulging in everyone else’s. It became so bad that it was to the point where I had developed an “approval addition”. Meaning…that if I was not helping anyone; especially for FREE, I did not feel complete; true story.
This gatekeeper; approval addiction kind of attitude, lasted until I realized if the shoe was on the other foot or I needed the support and the help, all doors were closed. No one was available. When I reached out, there was no one to lend a hand. Talk about a wakeup call! After a while, I knew that my mindset had to shift. I had to realize that it was all about developing a balance. If I wanted to help someone, it had to be when I could and I no longer needed the approval of anyone to do so. I had to retrain my brain to say, “No”… “Sorry I can’t”. This was especially when I began to notice that people were actually enabled by my help. For some, it became negative, when I could not help. For example, I would hear feedback like, “The Roxanne I knew changed”. “She’s nasty”. “She’s not the person I knew”. “You’re different”. It wasn’t that I had changed or became different. It was all about learning and starting to “love ME”. I had to set priorities. I had to set boundaries. I had to prioritize what was important to me. I had to make sure it did not negatively impact my family.
Sometimes in life, we start to allow our environment, circumstances, family and friends to negatively influence what we truly want in our lives. It becomes our identity and how we feel secure of ourselves. In some cases, this can lead to a life of feeling insecure. Some even become ill because of the stress level as a result of the inability to help everyone, by not simply saying, “No”. Let’s practice… stop reading for a minute and shout with me… “No… I can’t help you”. Don’t even put a sorry in the context. Now tell me how good this felt.
I can remember having such a need to hearing everyone say, “Thank you for helping me Roxanne”. “You did it again Roxanne” and so forth and so on. But… deep down inside, I was miserable. This was because I felt as if everyone’s hierarchy of needs were being met, except for mine. Although that was not the case, this is what I started to believe because I was not taking care of me first. Thankfully, with the support of some special people and friends, my mindset change.
I recommend that you write down your priorities, your visions, your wants. Then, have a list where you can refer back to in order to hold yourself accountable too. That way when you choose to do some humanitarian or philanthropic work, you are not jeopardizing your list of things to do for you. Learn to set boundaries. Who cares if you have critiques or negative feedback from others? Get off your butt and do something for you! Learn to invest in you!
Each and every day, when you wake up, repeat these words… “I LOVE ME”!
by Roxanne M. | Jan 30, 2019 | Business
It’s mid-January. I have a list of about ten items that I am sure I am going to accomplish before the end of the year. Eat healthier, lose weight, build my savings, increase my revenue and etcetera. I am so pumped up. I am sharing it with my family, closest friends and posting it on all social media outlets. I am ready. My drive is on level one hundred. “I know this is going to be a great year! I feel it! I am doing things differently this year! I am ready. Not going to make the same procrastination as I did last year! Nope…not I”.
Halfway through the year… I’ve only accomplished maybe two to three items on the list. Now my drive isn’t where it was back in January. Now I am thinking “Maybe I set too many goals and they’re not as important as I thought they were. I am young. I can make them a part of my short-term goals. I have all the time in the world. I probably won’t be able to get them done before the end of the year. I have too much on my plate and this will just have to wait”. Sound familiar? Yup… that was me.
On the flip side, it was driving me nuts because I knew I had to change my mindset. My bad habits were not going to work for me any longer. I refused to procrastinate. What did you change, you ask? I created DEADLINES… Yes… I did. I began to create a timeline of dates when I would get things done. January 26th, my list of emails for marketing had to be completed. Want to write an autobiography, chapter one had to be completed by February 15th. Want to save? By March 2nd; I had to have at least ten percent of my income in my savings account. So forth and so on.
Resolutions no longer worked for me. I wanted changes in my personal life, career, family, and finances. I gave myself deadlines. Guess what? It worked for me. I started to see results. I felt empowered. My social media outlets increased. My network increased. My family noticed the difference. I pushed myself, worked under pressure. Things got done. I was happier. Now, I am not criticizing anyone who completes resolutions or has goals. This method worked for me. In my opinion, a resolution is something you want to happen or something you want to stop from happening (Could be a good or bad habit). A goal is like a plan you set for something you hope to get done. But a deadline is scheduling a date that you will get something done. It holds you accountable. You become your personal project manager.
For me, I was determined. I did not want to have another unaccomplished list or just try and make things happen. I no longer wanted just to have goals. I was exhausted physically, mentally and emotionally of continuously making false promises to myself, my company or to my family. I wanted a timeline of deadlines with a list of dates I was determined to get things done.
So Mr. Resolution…I’m giving you notice! I want a divorce!
THE BLUEPRINT TO SUCCESS IS YOU!
by Roxanne M. | Jul 30, 2018 | Business
I can remember when I sat and wrote my first business plan. I was so excited to become a minority business owner. I could just see my dreams come to life on paper. No, it was not edited nor prepared to be presented to any investors…but it was surely perfect in my wandering mind. I just knew I was ready to be financially free. My thoughts were all over the place. I felt butterflies in my stomach as I envisioned myself and my family finally leaving the projects. No more paycheck to paycheck, I thought! This was it! I was ready to travel and promote what I had learned through many life experiences. I was ready to share my expertise. The feeling of excitement was like eating molten chocolate. Like winning the lottery.
All of a sudden, those feeling of excitement, motivation and drive quickly turned into FEAR and DOUBT. How was I going to do it? Who would believe in me? Would someone really want to invest? What if I lose out on my small savings? What if I am not ready or capable? Is this the right move? What if this is all wrong? What if this business plan fails? What then?
I immediately placed the business plan on my home office desk and said… “Tomorrow is another day”. But tomorrow quickly turned into, “Next week”, “Next month”, “Next year”, “Soon” and finally… “Someday”. Can you relate?
It was not until many, many years later that I cleaned off the dust from my business plan. The fear had not vanished… but I was determined to make things happen. I knew that all of the FREE work I did to help others using my skill set, was not in vain. On the other hand, I was operating a business without generating any income. I know, I know…. Huge mistake! Just being transparent.
I soon realized that the one who was keeping me from becoming a successful entrepreneur was ME. Was it hard? Yes. Did it take long hours of sweat and tears? Of course. Did I still invest hundreds of hours into my business with no return? Absolutely! I made a determination and had the drive that the blueprint for my success was and still is ME.
So… I have a question for you…If not now, then when?
THE BLUEPRINT TO SUCCESS IS YOU!
