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 |   The Good Life. |
I am a professional musician  , worship leader , small business owner , songwriter , aspiring author and freelance nonfiction writer with a chemical engineering degree . But that's just my resume. My profile of qualifications is only one of the ways in which I am unique. Here I chronicle my personal and professional goals and my efforts to achieve them. Occasionally I fail. Mostly, I take daily baby steps toward all my long-term goals. Much like the stories I pen, the songs I compose, and the businesses I run, I am always a work in progress. ![Merit Badge in Music
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To a dear friend whose talent for writing music is sensational. May you have a fabulous New Year, (((Brandi)))!!! *^*Kiss*^*
Big hugs,
Sherri *^*Heart*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/genre-Music-1050.gif) ![Merit Badge in Organization
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I don't know how you do it, but I assume there's magic involved *^*Bigsmile*^* I have really enjoyed this month of planning and preparation for NaNoWriMo and I love how organized it all is. Thank you for hosting a great challenge and for your dedication to helping so many of us prepare with confidence and trepidation for National Novel Writing Month (known to sane folks as 'November' *^*Laugh*^*) at your [Link To Item #1474311]](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Organization-1150.gif) ![Merit Badge in Leadership
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For your hard work, commitment, talent and innovation in running the October NaNoWriMo Preparation each year, which helps many of us get our scattered thoughts together for November's novel-writing. And also because this badge has ducks on it.](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Leadership.gif) |
I had a horrible eating weekend. Ice cream cake, pizza, amaretto sours, Japanese steakhouse, and multiple trips through the McDonald's drive through to name a few.  Damn, this is why I never blog anymore. I started this hours ago  and never got any farther. Now I don't have time to finish... at least I managed to earn my ass-kickings. *waits for the ass-kickings*Meals: 8:00am Fiber bagel with cream cheese (2) and coffee (1) 11:00am Snickers (1.5) 1:00pm Sammich (7) 1:30pm Chips (3) and Snickers (1.5) |
Keith, my other half, is 40 today. Tomorrow, we celebrate at Butter's Bar. Yes, Robert Waltz  , you're invited, if you can handle the Ohio State game playing in the background.Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. but I'm trying to keep this in front of me. I need to create a weekly schedule that includes bank account reconciliation and blogging, probably on Saturday or Sunday afternoons.Business priorities for MTMS : Brainstorm list of projects for volunteers.See below.  Holiday customer appreciation event or activityDelegated to a customer who wanted to volunteer. She came up with the greatest idea: to record a holiday CD of teachers and advanced students performing to mail to all our clients. Then she came up with the second greatest idea, which was to have my photographer take photos of each student with his or her instrument at the recital, and send the photo to the parent along with a holiday/seasonal card. This woman is a genius. Scheduling and retention databasesNot yesterday, but I have been working on this. Chris, our office manager, started working on her own elaborately linked and conditionally-formatted Excel spreadsheet, because she was tired of waiting on me. That's actually fantastic, because I didn't want to do it anyway it's easier to design a database that's been created in Excel and used for awhile. Close October books and update projections and break-evenWe're working on this. Quickbooks is stupid. Its accrual-based reporting assumes that your revenue is earned when the invoice is created. Granted, in most businesses, you pay for the service after you receive it. But I can't possibly be the only tuition-based advance-payment service out there.  Fill SamplersWe just scheduled our classes for December (6) and January (13). I hope we aren't being overly optimistic. I was thinking holding off on advertising for the month of December (?!?!) beyond our annually-paid campaigns. First, everyone advertises in December, so won't we be lost in the shuffle? Second, we can barely keep up with our growth. Third, I'm interested to see if I'm wasting my money, because a vast majority (probably 90-95%) of our customers drove by and saw the sign or found us online (or both, typically in that order.) As an aside, I find it hysterical that http://www.michelletuesday.com/musicschool has no pagerank to speak of and that its Alexa rank has plummeted from 400k to 740k in the last month or two, and yet I'm getting exponentially more traffic and sales conversions. Drums and soundproofing.In progress. I moved the drums to a different room and tried hanging the soundproofing blankets so they reach the floor. It's not done, but I think it may work. Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. As far as I'm concerned, this is done. Although I guess maybe I should bring black balloons or something. And a cake.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending and unlikely.One load of laundry per day. NO. But it's Keith's birthday. I should do all the laundry. And do the dishes, too.  Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: Meals: 5:00am Ask me in a few hours. I'm thinking of going back to bed now. 9:00am 1/3 cup eggnog (2) 10:30am Coffee (1) 11:00am Baby Snickers (2) 1:30pm Sammich (7) and baby Snickers (2) TOTAL POINTS: 14 (Goal: 25) |
| Several of our teachers are involved in shows that were scheduled before we hired them. You know, operas, concerts, the kinds of things that music teachers might be involved in (praise bands?? community theatres?? local sandwich shops?? I get it.) The good news: We're saving a shitload on payroll. See you tomorrow, and probably a little this weekend. And then maybe not at all next week. Oh, and I ate chips and candy yesterday. Meals: 8:00 Half fiber bagel with cream cheese (2) and coffee (1.5) 11:30 Two Reese's cups (3) and coffee (1) |
| Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Business priorities for MTMS : Brainstorm list of projects I need help withI have volunteers on standby willing to help. I need the time to compile project ideas and train people. *checks over blog list* Nothing really jumps out.  Maybe some kind of easy Sampler advertising activity that takes time rather than a bunch of money. I asked one volunteer if she wanted to write blog articles, but she didn't really jump at the chance. Maybe a customer appreciation activity? Hmm. Scheduling and retention databasesIn progress. I have some ideas. Close October books and update projections and break-evenIn progress. I'm working with Quickbooks to figure out how to get an actual accrual-based report for October. Our business is a bit different than most in that we bill for a service prior to rendering the service, so getting an accurate accrual takes some tweaking. Fill SamplersOMG, it just keeps happening on its own. Drums and soundproofing. Very critical. Low priority items (pending): Update planner - Caught up! Yay. Customer appreciation event or activity - Delegated.Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. Evites sent.  Are you planning a party? A word of advice: Hold it at a bar and order pizza. It'll save you hours and hours of prep time.  Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending.One load of laundry per day. Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: (I'm afraid to check, but I'm definitely fatter.) Meals: 8:00 One egg (2) with toast and butter (2) and coffee (1) 11:00 Coffee (1) and caramel corn (4) TOTAL POINTS: 10 (Goal: 25) |
| Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending and overdue again (still?) I think I had an idea about this. I think I maybe even started a post. Business priorities for MTMS : Reconcile all accounts (every weekend)Done, and the cash flow is looking decent. Scheduling and retention databasesI worked on this in Access all afternoon Saturday. I was stuck on the recurring transactions (i.e., lessons recur every week), but I found some templates and instructions that rock the house. I think it might work. Close October books and update projections and break-even - In progress. I did look at the break-even. I tweaked some of my more simplified assumptions to better reflect reality, and since I always erred on the conservative side in my initial business plannin, the results were pleasing. I still have some validation work to do, but on initial evaluation, it looks like I'm about 2/3 of the way to break even. At week #6. (That's WEEK, not MONTH. Remember, too, that this is a brick-and-mortar business. No, I'm not bragging. I'm thankful, actually.) Fill Samplers - In progress.Based an idea Chris (office manager) had when we made a scheduling error at our Grand Opening, we now have a Plan B for non-filled Samplers. It's genius, really. Although it doesn't make as much money as a full class or private lessons, it still makes a profit, keeps our teachers scheduled, and makes the client happy, too. Since our Samplers covert more than 90% of students into long-term private lessons, we like to bring them in when they're scheduled and not be cancelling classes on people. So I feel better about offering Samplers when I'm not sure if I can fill them. Which is good, because when they're on the schedule, they seem to fill the majority of the time anyway. Drums and soundproofing.(1) Moved the drums to another room. They're still loud. (2) Is it Thanksgiving yet? We may need to address this sooner. It's not a problem when the school isn't full. But, holy cow, we are getting full! We need to weather-strip the doors. Low priority items (pending):* Update planner * Customer appreciation event or activity Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. Planned and evite prepared. I'm just waiting on a final guest list, which his sister and a good friend of Keith's are helping me compile.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending. I plan to take off sick again today. In the past, I would have tried to sing through a cold. But right now, I can't afford to be away from the school, so I need to take very good care of myself. It's not ideal, because I could use the income, but we're doing okay.One load of laundry per day. Not unless you count helping Keith fold the load the KEITH did. (I don't think he's entirely happy with my general busyness at work.)Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: ? SUNDAY MEALS: Waffles: 7 Coffee: 1 Cookies at church: 10? McDouble: 9 Bowl of homemade white chili: 7? Ice cream: 6 TOTAL POINTS: 40? (Goal: 25) This guessing stuff is not good. Nor were the stupid cookies. MONDAY MEALS: Waffles: 7 Coffee: 2 Chili: 7 TOTAL POINTS: 16 |
| Clean up my port. *thumbdown* No activity, and now that I'm not sick and stuck at home with a sicky brain of mush, I wonder how important this is. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending and overdue.Business priorities * Reconcile all accounts (every weekend) - Done! * Close October books and update projections and break-even - In progress. * Fill Samplers - In progress. * Drums and soundproofing: (1) Need to move drums to an isolated room, (2) Soundproofing work over ThanksgivingLOW PRIORITY: * Update planner: Pending mileage and day scheduling * Scheduling and retention databases: Pending Step (1) Research MySQL at GoDaddy. * Customer appreciation planning: Handwritten Happy Holidays cards. Maybe even religious, if I know the client's religion. Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. In progress.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending, and off sick again today.One load of laundry per day. Yep.Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: Meals: 8:00am Coffee (0.5) TOTAL POINTS: 0.5 (Goal: 25) Judging by the my failure to meet my points goal the last few days, maybe I should set my goal to "Consistently meet daily goal of 25 points per day by 11/13" - baby steps! |
I'm  . I should get hazard pay. I'll talk to my boss about it.NEW GOAL: Clean up my port. *thumbdown* No activity. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending and overdue.Business priorities Compiled and prioritized the list below:1. Take a nap and drink lots of tea 2. Reconcile all accounts (every weekend) 3. Close October books and update projections* and break-even * We compared our November income to our projection and discovered that we were well above - in fact, our actual November income looks more like our projected January income. This wasn't really a surprise since we are so ahead of plan on enrollments, UNTIL WE REALIZED THAT WE HAD ALREADY UPDATED THE PROJECTIONS. We updated them after our Grand Opening a month ago. So, one month later, and we're two months ahead of our REVISED projections. If you're not a business person, I'm sorry if I lost you. If you ARE a business person, please find yourself a bib, because you're drooling all over your shirt. ...although, we did have a humility check yesterday. We had a very abrupt withdrawal from a family we liked a lot. They had paid through yesterday's lessons, but had not paid for November. They emailed to say they wouldn't be coming back. They didn't even come for their last lessons that they'd paid for. We were very sad, hurt, and confused. The children were delightful and the parents really nice. They were obviously unhappy about something, but we have no idea what it was.  4. Fill Samplers: (1) Advertised at Google and (2) strongly suggested to several walk-ins and callers, emphasizing deadlines 5. Drums and soundproofing: (1) Need to move drums to an isolated room, (2) Soundproofing work over Thanksgiving LOW PRIORITY: 1. Update planner: Pending mileage and day scheduling 2. Scheduling and retention databases: Pending Step (1) Research MySQL at GoDaddy. 3. Customer appreciation planning: Handwritten Happy Holidays cards. Maybe even religious, if I know the client's religion. Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. In progress. Still bouncing ideas.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending, but it might not happen this week, because I'm off sick today and probably tomorrow.One load of laundry per day. and doing another today.Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: I'm just too damn lazy to get up off the couch and go stand on the scale. And, before you ask, being too damn lazy to get up off the couch has NOTHING to do with this goal. Meals: No coffee today. Plain tea. 7:30 Bagel with cheese (3.5) 8:00 Abby's leftover oatmeal (3) ...thank goodness I insisted on getting the fiber kind 10:00 Cauliflower with cheesy sauce (3) 11:30 Soup (2) and pretzel pieces (6) 12:30 Nerds! (1) 5:00 Caramel corn (4) 6:30 Spaghetti (6) with veggies (2) and buttered toast (2) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR TODAY: 32.5 (Goal: 25) |
| I had two separate reminders recently that the key to success is establishment of, monitoring of, and gradual progress toward long-term goals. I already knew this (have you read my blog header? ) but forgot for a minute. So without further ado, we return to our regularly-scheduled long-term goals. Except that they've changed since the last time I did this (did I mention that goals are dynamic? W00t, nothing like a moving target to help you define "success.") Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending and overdue.Business priorities I'm not even sure what these are. So today's goal is to compile and prioritize a list by the time I blog tomorrow. Here is a brainstormed list to get me started, but it will definitely change: 1. Update mileage record in my planner. 2. Find a better way to track mileage than in my planner. 3. Something to do with scheduling and retention tracking databases. 4. Update the business plan with new projections based on skyrocketing sales volume. 5. Schedule my days to maximize productivity. I'm a bit scattered. 6. Plan customer appreciation activity for the holidays. 7. Fill Samplers (this may take strategic advertising.) 8. Close the books for October and assess the damage. In particular, revisit break-even analysis. 9. Address drums and soundproofing issues. 10. Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. Oh, wait. That goes somewhere else. Temporary goal: Plan Keith's 40th birthday party. In progress. I'm brainstorming with his sister and friend from work. OH! I also need to get a present ordered, sheesh.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending. I also need to update my Potbelly folder.One load of laundry per day. Not yesterday, but I am in progress today and look forward to a tomorrow.Achieve a weight of 150 by 12/31/2010 Weight: Meals: 7:00 Coffee (1) and 90-cal granola bar (2) 9:00 Coffee (1) 11:00 Half fiber bagel with cheese (3.5) 1:00 Jelly bellies (3) 2:00 Two cups of "light" caramel corn (7.5) - I can't imagine what the regular looks like 2:30 More jellybeans - "Honey Lovers" variety (2) - what??? I just don't get any dinner. 5:00 ZonePerfect bar (4) 9:00 Peanuts (2) and caramel corn (2) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR TODAY: 28 (Goal: 25) |
| Look at me, blogging two days in a row! If you're keeping up, I reported yesterday that Michelle Tuesday Music School had signed up its 61st student. Today, I report that we signed up #67 last night. Chris (our office manager) and I are having SO MUCH FUN. We're playing in Excel now, trying to find ways to improve our scheduling process, because it's getting complicated. I see us moving to Access in the very, very near future. I've been threatening to database the process for months, but have had no time. Then I discovered that Chris digs this Excel stuff, so I'm pretty sure she'll dig Access, too. I figure we can work on that together and turn it into a training session, so she can design and modify on her own at any time. It's easier to find time for things when you have a buddy, because you hold each other accountable.It's crossed my mind not to give away all my secrets when I blog, since I imagine Google might lead research-savvy competitors to the MTMS link above . But then I remember that I have an engineering degree, ten years of experience as a corporate manager, corporate-paid training on everything from leadership to Excel and Access to employment law, and a nerdy inclination to teach myself normally expensive services like web design and server setup. So if my secrets prompt my competitors to run out, get an engineering degree, find a good corporate management job for a decade, and spend a hundred hours researching HTML and CSS code, so be it. They deserve the success that will follow.  By the way, that's only half of my secret. The other half is our office manager Chris, who brings eight years of experience scheduling and billing clients in this exact same business. She knows her shit, and the former employer who let her go should be kicking herself. But honestly, I don't think she gave Chris the creative license I give her, which serves to both make her happier and help my business grow. So the former employer was missing out even while Chris was on her payroll. Trust your employees and utilize their skill sets to their fullest potentials, people. That's how you create a successful business. Points: 8:00am Coffee (1) 8:30am Fiber granola bar (2), so far, so good... 10:00am Peanuts (1) 11:15am Peanuts (1) 1:00 pm Roast beef sandwich (7) 4:00pm Peanuts (1) 6:00pm Chips with salsa (3) and cheese dip (1), beef crispy taco (5), beef enchilada (6), and Mexican rice (5) 10:00pm Jelly bellies, but only like maybe ten (1) (I FOLDED, OMG) TOTAL POINTS: 35 I'm targeting a goal of 25 per day. Thursday will be a better day. |
It seems blogging has turned into a weekly activity. But because my weight has ballooned, it shall be daily once again. And I'm embarrassed to say that I already started my morning off with a "Block O"  sugar cookie, which was probably four or five points, and it's only 6:00 in the morning. And with a studio full of leftover chips, pretzels, and candy from our highly successful Halloween Party, today is sure to be a test of my Willpower. Except that my name's not Will, it's Michelle, so maybe that's what I've been getting wrong all this time. HOLD ME ACCOUNTABLE, PEOPLE. I picked a doozy of a time to start a business. First of all, it's clearly the apocolype. (yes, the 2012'ers among you already knew this, but I'm a slow learner.) Second of all, we're in an economic recession here in Ohio, which is always a good time quit a steady, high-paying, benefits-providing corporate job and spend a bunch of (mostly borrowed) money in hopes of "eventually" making a profit. Third, and DUH, it's National Novel Writing Month , so I should be writing, not  working .On the other hand, I  my job; I've provided employment to eight people; and for some inexplicable reason, I PICKED THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME. I analyzed this a little when I selected my location, but this town has rendered my wildest dreams the saddest little fairy tales. We are in the midst of a business explosion. Yesterday, we signed up our 61st private student (in case you're not keeping up, we enrolled our 50th student a week ago  ). If I keep up this pace for the next month or two, we'll be making a profit before the snow melts, and my wallet will start to get fat again.Which is good, because it needs to keep up with my hips and belly. MEALS: 6:00 am "Block O" sugar cookie (5) and coffee (1) 8:00 am Half bagel with cheese (3.5) 11:00 am Jelly bellies (3) and two mini snickers (3) 1:45 pm Roast beef sammich (7) 2:30 pm Jelly bellies (1) All evening: Jelly bellies (2) and another two mini snickers (3) Late after work: Broccoli (3) and a bunch of Snyder's pretzel things (4?) TOTAL POINTS: 36-ish Shame on me. |
| "Uncle!" In all seriousness, a new small business owner who cannot keep up with her blog can only mean one of two things: 1. Business is so bad that she is working the streets to find the money to pay the bills. 2. Business is so good and ahead of plan that she can barely keep up with the workload. Yep. It means one of those two things. |
| *waves at blog* I remember you! Here's the problem: Michelle Tuesday Music School was so bombarded with business that we exceed our November goals before Oct. 1st. Don't misunderstand: That's a good thing. But the unexpected extra business is keeping me and our Office Manager hopping. I barely have time to figure out when I can afford to hire us some help, which is something of a self-perpetuating problem. We also moved all the furniture from my house to the school, and in the process, moved a bunch of furniture from my house to Keith's house, essentially vacating my house. We have been rearranging and moving bedrooms around at Keith's, which is more time-consuming than it sounds. (Yes, I realize it sounds time-consuming. It's more.) Speaking of my house, I dropped my price again this past week, and did not get a single nibble. Meanwhile, "October Novel Prep Challenge" [13+] sneaked up on me. Where did September go? |
| Michelle Tuesday Music School had its Grand Opening. It was amazing! We met our November goals, and it's not even October yet. Maybe Robert Waltz can tell you more about the actual event... right now, I'm swamped catching up and enrolling all these new students, and I have "October Novel Prep Challenge" [13+] to prepare for on top of everything. Blogging drops to the bottom of the list. Thanks to Merry Mumsy  for the champagne! Your delivery boy came through, and how very appropriate, because we have much to  celebrate ! |
| No entry since Monday? SLACKER!!!! Well, except for all the hard work. Today, I mourn the loss of my old job. I am devastated to be missing all the audits, corrective actions, and extra hours I could be experiencing: http://www.fda.gov/Safety/Recalls/ucm226885.htm?sms_ss=facebook I knew I would regret my career choice. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. I'm deliberately holding off until after the Grand Opening, which is what I'll blog about next.Advertising PRIORITIES:  Grand Opening window signage: STUPID PRINTERS. School Fliers: DENIED. I don't want to talk about it. But I do need to print fliers for the music teachers and principal's offices. Wii Rock Band Competition Sign-up Poster: Oh, yeah. I forgot about this. Email List: DAMN. I forgot about this, too. I need to send that email out TODAY announcing the Grand Opening on Sunday. Google "Grand Opening" campaign: LAUNCHED and getting hits.LOWER PRIORITIES OR COMPLETED: Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home. SEO: No idea, but we're enrolling students like crazy, so that's good. Band boosters: PENDING. Columbus Radio Group ads: DONE. Promotional products: ORDERED shirts, tote bags, maracas, picks Gahanna and New Albany local papers: DONE. High school athletic calendar: STILL NO AD. SENT *ANOTHER* EMAILBusiness start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Computers: Ordered and arrived. Today I will set up my computer lab. Lesson books and software: STILL HOT and on today's agenda. Database: On hold. Hiring: On hold.Food/Exercise/Weight Watcher Points/Whatever: 161.6 today, and hovering around 161-162 for a couple weeks. I'm trying to pay attention, and although I've had some slip-ups, I'm not pigging out like I was. Therefore, holding steady and no longer gaining. I'll concentrate on *losing* in October ("October Novel Prep Challenge" [13+]) and studio Halloween party) November (NaNoWriMo) December (the Holidays)... January, it is. One goal at a time, Baby.Peace out. |
| OMG, I have been ill with anxiety over my Grand Opening, and a bit snippy with the people who love me and are volunteering to help me be successful. But my Grand Opening is going to freaking rock. I love the lineup of activities I have going. Meanwhile, I took a blow to my ego this afternoon. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending.Advertising PRIORITIES: Google "Grand Opening" campaign: PENDING AND HOT! Grand Opening window signage: PENDING AND HOT! School Fliers: PENDING AND HOT! Wii Rock Band Competition Sign-up Poster: PENDING AND HOT!LOWER PRIORITIES OR COMPLETED: Band boosters: PENDING. Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home: PRINTED. TO DELIVER TODAY. (STILL.) SEO: ALEXA FALLING. Email List: I HAVE A LIST OF ADDYS FOR EMAIL-ONLY PROMOS. MUST COMPOSE GRAND OPENING ANNOUNCEMENT AND SEND. Columbus Radio Group ads: DONE. Promotional products: ORDERED shirts, tote bags, maracas, picks Gahanna and New Albany local papers: DONE. High school athletic calendar: STILL NO AD. SENT *ANOTHER* EMAILBusiness start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Computers: HOT! To purchase today. Lesson books and software: HOT! To purchase today. Database: On hold. Hiring: On hold.That's about all I can keep up with at the moment. Back to your regularly scheduled goals next week. |
| I'm still debating about renewing my Premium so I can manage "October NaNo Prep: 2009 Entry Log" [E] from my Writing.com account. My portfolio is at 246/1000 (which, at Upgraded, would be 246/250), but I could easily clean it up. It seems a waste to renew Premium just for one Prep item, and I could renew for just two months (10/15-12/15), when I need to keep track, which would be much cheaper than a whole year. But I'm in better shape to do it than I thought I would be. First, the donations have been pouring in, so I won't have to contribute any pocket pennies toward prizes and contest sponsorship this year. Second, I might actually have some pocket pennies to rub together anyway. My new business is already ahead of plan, and I haven't even held my Grand Opening yet, where I expect to enroll more students and get even more ahead. The sooner I hit my break even and start making money instead of spending it, the sooner I'll have more pocket pennies to spend on fun stuff like Writing.com. Even better, I'll be able to hire more office help and teachers, which will free me up for gigs, where I can make big bucks and simultaneously promote the biz even more. W00t! Small business is fun when you dream big. (I haven't had a reality check yet - but it helps when lots of people want to volunteer just because they want to see you succeed, OMG.) On to the goals: Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending.Advertising PRIORITIES: Google "Grand Opening" campaign: PENDING. Band boosters: PENDING. Promotional products: I THINK I ORDERED SHIRTS, MARACAS, AND PICKS. TOTE BAGS PENDING. Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home: PRINTED. TO DELIVER TODAY. (STILL.) SEO: ALEXA FALLING. Email List: I HAVE A LIST OF ADDYS FOR EMAIL-ONLY PROMOS. MUST COMPOSE GRAND OPENING ANNOUNCEMENT AND SEND. Columbus Radio Group ads: DONE. Gahanna and New Albany local papers: DONE. High school athletic calendar: STILL NO AD.Business start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Database: HM... Hiring: BACKGROUND CHECKS.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Now it can wait until next Monday, when I'm back in the Gahanna Potbelly. Yay! I have a weekend.Perform one household chore per day. Nope.Read a book in print 15 minutes every day. Nope.Achieve a weight of 145.0 by 9/1/10. Weight: *shrug* No idea. Meals: Coffee (2) and fiber English muffin with turkey and cheese (3) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR TODAY: 5 (Goal: 25) Wednesday post-breakfast: Roast beef sammich (7) and Chipotle steak tacos with chips & guac Thursday post-breakfast: Roast beef sammich (7), crackers & cheese (4), three Canes chicken strips with fries (maybe 1/2 cup), cole slaw (like 2 oz), and a piece of their deadly Texas toast. |
| October NaNo Prep Challenge is looming. How did I manage to schedule that so close to my Grand Opening? Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending.Advertising PRIORITIES: Google "Grand Opening" campaign: PENDING. NEW STUDENT LAST NIGHT MARKED "GOOGLE SEARCH" AS HOW FOUND! OMG. Columbus Radio Group ads: APPROVED GRAND OPENING COPY. Gahanna and New Albany local papers: QUOTED AND ART SUBMITTED. Band boosters: PENDING. Promotional products: I THINK I ORDERED SHIRTS, MARACAS, AND PICKS. TOTE BAGS PENDING. Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home: PRINTED. TO DELIVER TODAY. SEO: LIKE 609K AND STILL FALLING, BUT WHO CARES? GOT A PAYING CUSTOMER VIA GOOGLE SEARCH. Email List: I HAVE A LIST OF ADDYS FOR EMAIL-ONLY PROMOS. MUST COMPOSE GRAND OPENING ANNOUNCEMENT AND SEND. High school athletic calendar: STILL NO AD. FOR THE CURIOUS, IT SHOULD BE HERE:GahannaLincolnSports.Com My ad should be one of the big ones down the right-hand side like Midwest College Planning, James Hutta DDS, and Papa Johns. By the time they publish it, not only will my Grand Opening be over, but so will the sports seasons. All of them. Town Moneysaver: FIRST MONTH A SUCCESS, NEXT MONTH IN PROGRESS.Business start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Database: EH... Hiring: BACKGROUND CHECKS.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Now it can wait until next Monday, when I'm back in the Gahanna Potbelly. Yay! I have a weekend.Perform one household chore per day. Nope.Read a book in print 15 minutes every day. Nope.Achieve a weight of 145.0 by 9/1/10. Weight: *shrug* No idea. Meals: Coffee (1) and fiber English muffin with turkey and cheese (3) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR: 4 (Goal: 25) Off to the dentist, y'all. |
And Alexa keeps falling.  Bottom of my radar right now, anyway. I do need to look up my Google stats and see if my radio ad is driving traffic to the site.On the bright side, the cleaners are tackling the studio as we speak, and final inspections and carpet cleaning are scheduled tomorrow. On the dark side, my contractor still hasn't fixed my wall with the sloppy drywall joint. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending.Advertising PRIORITIES: Google "Grand Opening" campaign: PENDING. Columbus Radio Group ads: APPROVED GRAND OPENING COPY. Gahanna and New Albany local papers: QUOTED AND ART SUBMITTED. Band boosters: PENDING. Promotional products: ARTWORK DEADLINE IS TODAY. FRANTICALLY SUBMITTING ORDERS. Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home: CAN'T GET THE STUPID FLIER SAMPLE TO PRINT. SEO: ALEXA RANKING IS FALLING. High school athletic calendar: WHERE THE HELL IS MY AD? GRR. Town Moneysaver: DISCUSSED NEXT MONTH'S AD.Business start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Database: GAH. Hiring: BACKGROUND CHECKS.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. I need a Rascal Flatts song.Perform one household chore per day. Unless you count polishing off several margaritas.Read a book in print 15 minutes every day. Nope.Achieve a weight of 145.0 by 9/1/10. Weight: 162, which is surprising after all the manual labor. Meals: Last night was Mexican and margaritas, which is not good. On the other hand, the after-effects are helping my control my food consumption today. 10:30 Coffee (1) and English muffin with cheese and turkey (3) 1:45 Skinny roast beef sandwich (7) 6:30 Chipotle steak tacos with cheese and chips/guacamole (?) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR: 11+? (Goal: 25) |
| D'oh. So much for my Alexa experiment. Yesterday, I forgot to make my link an actual LINK. I did have the one at the top of the to-do list, though. Post at MichelleTuesday.com at least once per week. Pending.Advertising PRIORITIES: Google "Grand Opening" campaign: Needs to be funded and revised. Columbus Radio Group ads: LAUNCHED! Meeting today to discuss Grand Opening week copy. Gahanna and New Albany local papers: PENDING. I did talk to a woman from a Quarterly ad circular. Band boosters: Need the info. Shirts, picks, maracas, tote bags: Working closely with the vendor to meet deadlines and submit artwork. Get with Gahanna schools admin office about sending fliers home: Tweaking the flier. SEO: Alexa is still at 580k, but it may not have updated yet today. High school athletic calendar: Promises, promises! I paid a month ago, and still no ad. Town Moneysaver: Ad published, with results. Scheduled for two more months.Business start-up activities. PRIORITIES: Database: Can't. No time. Later. Hiring: Background checks.Launch one new performance repertoire song per week. Pending. I had a request yesterday for Rascal Flatts, and I'm taking suggestions.Perform one household chore per day. I am desperately trying to catch up on this. Today I washed and dried a load of laundry, folded the one I found in the dryer , folded the basket that has been overflowing with clean whites for at least a week, and ran the dishwasher.Read a book in print 15 minutes every day. Can't. No time.Achieve a weight of 145.0 by 9/1/10. Weight: 162-ish. Meals: Coffee (1) TOTAL POINTS SO FAR: 1 (Goal: 25) - 21 points yesterday! |
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Aw, thanks, 