WANTED: A job at a cool company

My name is Rosemary O’Brien and I am the dream of any employer.

• ·         I am hard working, often working into the wee hours building my small business or working on writing assignments for other small businesses and publications.
• ·         I am creative in my approach to everything whether it be creating the best brochure for a client or my own company, or looking for the best way to get the word out about my projects through social media, radio or someone who knows someone who knows someone else and is willing to introduce me.
• ·         I have written dozens of magazine articles, website pages, speeches not to mention two novels and one non-fiction guide – all published with royalties and everything.
• ·         If I have a question, I speak to someone in my network. If no one in my network has the particular expertise or information for which I am looking, I am not afraid to reach out to the big guys even if I’ve never met them. I meet them by reaching out and introducing myself and have met some pretty cool people this way.
• ·         I apply for everything, from grants that might fit my projects to scholarships for conferences. I have met the best people at conferences. If I find the material or the subject is something I already know pretty well, I listen anyway. You never know what you can learn or whom you can mentor if given the chance.
• ·         I have experience as an administrative assistant as well as a professional actress. Sometimes they work together pretty well!
• ·         And lastly, I have directed and stage managed up to 80 children in children’s theatre. If I can corral that type of situation and make a meaningful project come to life on a stage, I guarantee I can coordinate the printing of your report or gather material for your website.

Add all of this work experience and skill to the fact that I have done much of it while staying home with my children and moving homes where my retired Naval Officer husband’s job has taken us for years. He has retired, we are settled now and I want to use all of this experience in support of a good job with decent pay in a company that is not too stodgy, yet not completely unorganized or it will not be around for me to work. In short, I want to have fun while I work, but I still want to work hard. Is it possible to find a technology company, a news organization or communications department somewhere that can fulfill my dream of working for a paycheck? It’s a simple dream.

If you are in charge of hiring for such a company, one that will embrace my skills and experience while not requiring me to make coffee all day or stock shelves, I would love to talk to you. I am located in Southern Connecticut and am happy to work on site or virtually, but I want to work and I would be an asset to any company that wants a strong, helpful, vibrant and organized communications expert who can take charge when necessary, yet assist when someone else is in charge. Please contact me at writerobrien@gmail.com with the word ‘GOOD JOB’ in the subject line. I promise you, you will not be sorry.

Very Sincerely,

Rosemary O’Brien

Military Spouses Make The Best Employees

Well, they do when they are employed, but what about when you don’t receive a salary? In this difficult job market, some of us cannot get a job in our field and sometimes in any other field. We are over-qualified or do not have a traditional work history. If we want to simply take any job to pay the bills, companies do not want to hire us because they think we are going to get bored and leave, I suppose. Add to this your status as a military spouse, and it gets even more difficult.

This was a huge problem when I lived in Virginia. I was fresh out of college, but I was in my early thirties when I graduated. Many employers said I was over-qualified and they felt I would be dissatisfied with the mundane tasks put before me if they hired me. What?! I wanted a job, a place to begin my career and money in my pocket. They did not get it. I hear others are in the same boat especially with the current economy making employers leery of hiring anyone new.

Here is a newsflash to all of the employers out there who do not want to hire competent, well-trained workers with a great work-ethic who have been working from home for years while moving to new duty stations every few years. You cannot get a better employee. We work hard because we have to. In order to continue getting new business if we own our own, we have to constantly be on the prowl for new clients. When we get a job in which someone else is paying us, we are grateful, so we show up on time, dress professionally and fulfill our responsibilities. We are highly creative for the most part. I am not talking about crafts - though many of us are into making things - I am talking about things like these:

• Creative packing. We have to pack rather quickly which all milspouses know is a serious challenge. You need to figure out what to keep and what to save for that final house after retirement.
• “The Box.” As we near our PCS date, we use up the food in our cupboards, and sometimes come up with the most interesting meals, don’t we? We have to get rid of food by figuring out what is good enough to pass on to another family, what we should toss, and what will be helpful during our first days in housing. Babette Maxwell of Military Spouse Magazine calls it a “Departing Box.”
• Necessary deception. If our children ask a question the answer to which will disturb them, or if we simply do not have a good enough answer yet, we sometimes have to do a tap dance. We come up with something that takes into account their level of maturity and degree to which they need to know, then come up with an appropriate story until it’s time for the truth. It is a way of letting them down easy in case we have bad news later on.
• Finally, as military spouses, we frequently have to single-handedly run the show at home while our active duty family member is away for whatever reason. This is the time I give serious credit to all of the single parents I know. It can be difficult doing everything, but we get really good at it … because we have to.

So next time you think twice about hiring someone who has been at home for a while or is a military spouse, don’t think, just hire. We are a great asset to any business.

Notes:

The 2009 Defense Authorization Act is now law, and includes a 3.9 percent across-the-board raise in military basic pay, effective on January 1, 2009. That means military members will see the raise in their January 15 paychecks.

http://usmilitary.about.com/od/fy2009paycharts/a/bpayenlless.htm

Pipe Dreams

Do you know what’s cool? I can actually see the day when my first book, FIRST SATURDAY, is optioned as a screenplay. Some people would say this is a pipe dream, but this is actually my job! I am paid to write for people and I love it. I love that I can create people and events from my head for people to read about and enjoy.

This topic came up when a friend and I were talking about choices. We were discussing how when I was an actress in New York. People who were not in the business thought it was so glamorous to get on stage and accept the applause. I have news. Nothing is easy. It was hard work keeping my body and my voice in shape, prepare for auditions and get acting jobs. It was satisfying and fulfilling work because I loved doing it all, but work nonetheless.

That is the key to achieving your pipe dreams: work. You can choose to be successful or you can choose to just take a job. Those who just take any job without direction think things like optioning a screenplay or publishing novels are pipe dreams. Those who choose a path they enjoy and work hard, those people, my friend, are the people who achieve their dreams.

Go for it. Work at what you love and achieve your dreams.

A Few Freelancer Secrets To Saving Money

If you are a freelance anything, you carry all the costs of doing business. From paper clips to dues for professional organizations, it is all on you. You are your own IT Department, Accounts Payable (and Receivable :) ), and the person who makes the coffee in the morning or evening, whenever you start work.

So how do you cut some corners and save a little money even if you are not paying the expenses of a daily commute? I have a few suggestions. Some of the items may be obvious to you, but not so to the newbies. If you have any I have not thought of, send me some comments. I am always interested in cutting my freelancing costs.

• Re-use whatever you can. Mary Lewis re-uses bubble envelopes, and Sharon Wren uses a big ceramic planter as a garbage can. Sharon also uses a box that once held Harry & David chocolates as a place to store her Post-Its. (I think she would rather have the chocolate!)

• Bundle your services. I am saving about $1000 this year by bundling my phone, cable TV. and internet service for one year. Yvette Deluca Davis suggests using freebie versions of document creation software such as Open Office. She says they provide quality as good as MS Word. She also suggests some of Google’s applications. I have recently been using Google Documents (look in Applications) for documents I am collaborating on with others. You can all work on the same document virtually. So far, it has been working well.

• Craig's List is a great place for freebies, too. The chair I am sitting on came from a group I discovered on Craigslist, and so did my webmaster, Zack Rosen. How cool is that? (Shameless plug: Check out my webmaster's work at http://www.rosemaryob.com/.) Incidentally, Craig's List is also a good place to find the odd writing or design assignment.

• Sometimes you have to spend money to save money or your valuable time. Take Norma Murray of Able Assistants, my new virtual assistant. I met her through a women’s networking group (Wild Women Entrepreneurs) and hired her to update my expense report. I dread inputting all of my receipts for the accountant, and frequently put off this task while the receipts pile up. Well, Norma took care of the pile and charged a reasonable amount to do so. A writer friend who hates typing now uses her for his transcribing. Yay, Norma!

• If you work from home, you may ignore all of the household chores in order to complete assignments. Dig out the old Crockpot, Google some recipes, and get dinner going. When you use it, cook enough for two meals and then freeze the leftovers for another busy day. Or check out my new favorite service, Emealz. The two sisters create seven dinner menus along with a shopping list. If you live near them, you get the added benefit of a shopping list tailored to the grocery store in which you shop. This is my first week with them and my family LOVES dinnertime (and I love the number at the bottom of the grocery receipt!). I saved approximately $80 on my grocery bill this week and got two meals out of their recipes a couple of times. For a modest cost, you save some time and money.

• Cancel any subscriptions you do not read such as women’s magazines, hobby and craft magazines, etc. While I love getting my scrapbooking magazines, I found them piling up while I felt guilty about not getting to them. Life is short. Look it up on the internet! It will save money, some paper, and you will not have to look at the pile you are not reading.

Give some of these ideas a try. You will definitely save money, and remember that time is money, too. Then leave a comment for me and let me know how it worked out.

Six Flags Military Appreciation Day

Saturday, August 9
Price is $37 per person and includes admission to both parks (Six Flags andHurricane Harbor), free parking and an all-you-can-eat buffet from noon to 2p.m. The menu includes: a quarter grilled chicken, char-broiledquarter-pound sirloin hamburgers or cheeseburgers, all beef hot dogs, fixingsbar, potato chips, ice cream novelties, tossed salad, pasta salad and aselection of soft drinks in the pavilion.

Tickets may be purchased at the ITT office (Newport Naval Station) or call841-3116/841-3137 for more details.

AAFES Offers Aspiring Young Writers Opportunity for Great Prizes

http://www.aafes.com/

DALLAS - School may be out for the summer, but the Army & Air Force Exchange Service (AAFES) has one more assignment for military dependents. The"Back-To-School Essay Contest" will give students in grades first through twelfth the opportunity to submit an essay of 200 words or less on "WhatAAFES means to me and my family."

Diversify Your Writing Business

I was sitting in a grant writing seminar today, thinking about how far I have come in the past year since I got serious about my business. I now do much more than write novels and articles for print. I have expanded to corporate writing, writing for the web, blogging – you name it. If it involves writing, I am probably doing it.

My adventures away from latest novel began when a) I needed to earn in order to write my next novel, and b) I attended a workshop all about making money as a freelance writer. The key is diversification. Now, I know some writers who will do many other things within the confines of their freelance writing business, such as running errands, but I find it taxing enough to stay within the realm of writing as a business.

Don’t get me wrong, I am always finding ways to diversify, but if I keep it to writing and anything to do with writing – teaching writing, reviewing other people’s manuscripts, press releases and such – then I find myself with more than enough to do with never enough time to do it all. That is not a complaint by any means! I love being busy and I love to write. The combination is perfect.

Why not diversify? I started with some of those low-paying freelance bidding sites such as Elance.com, proposing courses to my local continuing education departments, and finding an area on which to concentrate. Since I am a military spouse, this community made sense to me. I learned more about it by surfing the internet, attending spouse-related events such as SpouseBUZZ, and developing my blog with information that related to the needs of the military spouse. As more people visit, word gets around that I may just know a little about being a milspouse, and then the writing gigs come.

Another trick that has helped me has been job search sites such as Career Builder where I frequently responded to ads for writers as a freelancer. I figured if the company is looking for a writer, they might be able to use a freelance writer (ME!) in the interim. I have also learned a lot from the articles on Military.com’s Military Spouse Career Center . Here I read about how to package myself, my skills and my business as a military spouse. It is a discriminatory practice, but some companies do not want to hire the milspouse because they think you are going to leave all too soon. I also learned that we are a trustworthy, hardworking bunch and are assets to any company smart enough to hire us.

The moral of this story is to diversify your business. Write articles, but rather than just writing for print, write for the web or for corporations. If you write novels, why not teach one night each semester for a local library or adult education department? Teaching clarifies your view of whatever you teach because you need to boil it down for those who do not do what you do. Capisce?

Above all, enjoy whichever path you follow.

NEWS OF NOTE:

Bill Signed For Military Children
http://www.military.com/spouse/fs/0,,fs_MilitaryChildrenBill,00.html?ESRC=family.nl

Mom Salaries - We're worth $138,000 a year!

http://salary.com/aboutus/layoutscripts/abtl_default.asp?tab=abt&cat=cat012&ser=ser041&part=Par639&isdefault=0

Happy Pictures of Work-At-Home Moms

So many websites for WAHM’s show pictures of women holding babies, or with babies near their feet, while typing on their computer … with a smile on their faces. Get real! I am a WAHM with a successful freelance writing business and I have yet to smile while trying to meet a deadline with children underfoot. This has been especially true when the kids were young enough to hold in my arms. I remember trying to configure those puzzle-like babygates so as to keep my toddler occupied while I tried to write. He spent the entire time trying to figure out how to knock them down or climb over them. As a result, I wrote when he napped or after he went to bed.

When my second son was born, it was a bit easier. He has been into trains and cars since the moment he could sit up. As a result, he plays with his Thomas the Tank Engine set for hours on end. It was a bit easier, but I still never held him in my arms while trying to use my brain and write or research. In fact, the only time I held either of them while on the computer was while breastfeeding and then I typed with only one hand, which really does not work.

So when you see those photos of smiling working moms holding babies while sitting at their computer, just know that they are either online shopping, checking their horoscope or reading the message boards to keep sane while their writing waited for later when everyone was fast asleep. Any WAHM who tells you different is totally lying.

Do you underestimate yourself?

I went for a job interview the other day and finally felt good about my performance! Even though I am the consummate professional at these occasional interviews, there is always that insecure feeling deep down inside. I wonder if I look professional enough or if my “mommy-ness” is evident. I mean I am a gal who works from home all day. I really do wear sweats and frequently hide my unmade-up face behind sunglasses when I pick up the kids from school. When it comes time to get gussied up for a professional meeting, even if it is just networking with other freelancers, I find myself feeling a bit inadequate.

Then there is the actual part of the meeting during which I have to answer questions with intelligent, well-thought answers. Did I sound intelligent? Did my answer sound as if I thought about this interview or the position enough? When you “speak” via the keyboard all day, and speak to children the rest of the time, it can sometimes make you sound like a blithering idiot. This does not even begin to consider my laid back, casual attitude hard won by the trials and tribulations that have occurred in my life. Do not get me wrong. Life is good, but it has not always been this way for me.

Therefore, the other day, all of this walked into the interview with me, but I finally accepted it. I accepted who I am and realized the considerable skill and insight I would bring to this particular job. All of my experiences have converged to put me in the right place at the perfect time for me.

What I want to know is this: has this ever happened to you? Did you have a moment when you realized who you are and celebrated that person and all of her talents as well as the flaws?

In the meantime, do not underestimate yourself, whether you have “off-ramped” to raise your children or to support your husband’s career, or whether you are gunning for a better job. You have to believe in yourself or no one else will. I do! Even if I do not get this job, I know I nailed that interview.

My Day With Alex

There are several topics to write about today. I could write about how aggravating it is to have two seconds to squeeze in some work – in between the time when dinner is ready and the potty-training “incident” – and having another computer problem. Or I could always talk about the fact that I woke up around 3:30am and could not get back to sleep, so ended up having a pretty useless day. I decided to stick to the positive, though, because it makes me happy to think about and, therefore, to write about it.

My youngest son, Alex, and I spent a rare day together this past week. It was rare because I work from home and have two different age groups to work with by having an 8-year-old and a 3-year-old. I do not usually have time to spend with my younger son the way I did with Nicholas. Nicholas was essentially an only child for 4 ½ years. I took him everywhere and did not even have the option of any sort of preschool until he was almost 4. He went grocery shopping with me, had several Mommy and Me-type of activities, and I enjoyed hanging out with him. He was also more attentive and patient when it came to crafts and tangible activities such as cooking. His brother, on the other hand, is a very different child. I occasionally take him out on short outings to the grocery store or on other errands, but he always wants to be wherever his brother is. I think that is a good thing overall, but I regret not having time to spend with him alone.

So when he had a day off while his brother was at school, I hung out with him and did absolutely no work at all. (Don’t tell my editors!) We grabbed a donut at Dunkin’, went to the store and visited Nonni at work. I even helped him make a pillow fort and then climbed into it at his request! It was a tight squeeze, but totally worth the back pain when he said, “I like hanging out with you, Mommy,” his face beaming with his smile.

When it snowed later in the day, and my choir rehearsal was cancelled, he was in Heaven. He got to romp in the snow with his brother after dinner. This was a good call on my part since it poured rain overnight and the snow was gone by morning. We made snow angels, built a little fort for his dump truck, and drank hot tea with honey after we came in for the night.

Time is passing and Alex will grow up all too soon. His brother is already eight! He will be busy with school and friends, and there will be no time for his old mom. My work will always (hopefully!) be there, so I think I’ll have to schedule a few of these days off from now on. I do not think his college boards will be affected if he misses a day of preschool, do you?

Productivity and This Mom

Sometimes adding more to your pile of responsibilities makes you a more productive writer. It’s true! I just read a blog entry on Copy Blogger http://www.copyblogger.com/increase-writing-productivity/ that spoke about how having a baby can make you more productive. I agree.

When I had my first son, I had the length of his nap to work. I then continued after my husband came home, then after dinner if needed. I scheduled any calls to the West Coast in the early evening so I could interview people later in the day when they were open to kicking back at their desks and talking on the phone. When my second son arrived, I was able to work while he played at my feet (the first NEVER wanted to do that!), but I still scheduled most of my work while he napped.

Now that the little guy is in preschool, I am back on my daytime schedule, but am much more productive than I was before my sons came into the picture. I sit at my desk at 9:30 each morning, submit my work ahead of time if my sources cooperate, and make the most of the hours when everyone is out of the house being productive in their own right.

No, the dishes don’t get washed, nor the laundry folded until later in the day, but the checks arrive because I get the work done. While I don’t advise having a baby simply to make you more productive, it certainly helped me!


LINKS OF NOTE:

Cell Phones for Soldiers
http://cellphonesforsoldiers.com

Hero Salute
http://www.herosalute.com/states/index.html

Scrapbooking Freak Here

I am going scrapbooking tomorrow. Some of you will sympathize with me when I tell you I need a break. A break from my freelance writing business, a break from my children’s needs and demands, and a break from my current novel-in-progress. That break, for me, means spending the entire day scrapbooking.

Someone once said scrapbooking was like being in third grade art class all over again with all of that paper and glue. He was right. It IS like third grade art class. It’s fun, messy, relaxing just like third grade art class and I love it.

The difference in playing with paper and glue as an adult is that my family will be able to enjoy their photographs and memories, both now and in the future. They will be able to read my memories of the events, too, because I journal absolutely everything. I use acid-free products, too, so this stuff will last as long as cockroaches (or at least 100 years according to all of the product literature).

Hi. My name is Rosemary and I am a scrapbooker.

Do you scrapbook?

Tell me about it and share the love.

The Benefits of Outsourcing (even just a little bit)

It is January again, but this year is different. This year I am not spending hours entering receipts onto a spreadsheet. Yes, I have a few to insert, but not the seemingly hundreds of bits and pieces of paper I have had every January since I started freelancing in the mid-90’s. What’s different this year? The difference is Norma.

Norma Murray is a virtual assistant and owner of Able Assistants . I met Norma while attending a networking event, also virtual, called Wild Women Entrepreneurs. I had no idea what to expect when I signed up for the 3-day online networking event this past September. All I knew was that it was an opportunity to network with other women who are building up their businesses. Three days later and I had over 20 new business associates, one of which was the invaluable Norma.

Virtual assistants are part of a growing trend of services available by virtue of the internet. When I need to hire some help, I didn’t have to put an ad in the newspaper, interview a bunch of people and then commit to a set number of hours and tasks per week or month. All I did was discuss Norma’s services via e-mail a few times in order to get an idea of what she offered. Her price was right, and I figured I would have more time for actual work if I had her enter all of my receipts for the year. I sent my envelope full of receipts, insured and registered in case it went astray, and the next thing I knew, I had an expense report with only a few current items missing. The missing items had not existed when I sent my envelope off to Norma or you can bet they would have been in there!

My advice is to outsource some of the more Able Assistants saved me so much time that I would have otherwise spent NOT writing and DEFINITELY dragging myself to complete the task. Virtual assistants don't just enter data onto spreadsheets. They can answer your phones, type documents, even do your mailings. Do an online search to find yours.

Have you ever used a V.A.?

Tell us about your experience with this excellent new possibility for freelance workers and those who work from home. In the meantime, have a happy and prosperous 2008!

Rosemary

Military Spouses Face Unique Challenges

I live in an area that is about an hour from base. Needless to say, people here are not familiar with the military subculture and do not know much about our unique challenges and advantages. Many of my experiences have been good, but there are many things we deal with every day that are completely foreign to those not part of the military community.

For instance, there is the job arena. Since marrying my sailor, I set myself up as a freelancer because I knew my life would not be lived in one place. Yes, I tried to get a job, but everywhere I applied, I was over-qualified (employer-ese for “You’re not going to be around here too long, so why hire you?”) It is illegal to say that, but we have all been through it. Unless you work in a job that is of a temporary nature, or are in a health profession which is starving for people in some places, you have a hard time finding a job that is worth your energy.

So many people are doing what I did and taking their work home. This is where the sub-culture comes in. We LOVE home parties. As a result, you can’t swing a cat and not find someone who owns one of those cottage industries that sells kitchen or scrapbooking products. But how does this fly with the civilians? It does not. If you are having a makeup party, they don’t want to come because they don’t “need anything right now,” or they just buy a lipstick. If you have a kitchen party, they don’t come because they “have enough Tupperware.” They do not understand that to the military spouse, a home party is not simply a demonstration, and you will not be pressured to purchase the products shown. It is a way to socialize when Hubby is deployed. It is a way to get in touch with your girlfriends and get out for a night without the kids, though sometimes the kids are in tow, and that’s fine, too. I have not been to a home party where the host has not made some provision for the children. It always happens. The demonstrator does not always expect many purchases because she is usually a military spouse, too. It is a way for her to get out of the house, too.

We are different as military spouses. The workforce is only one of the many areas in which we face challenges and different triumphs than the rest of the population. We need to educate the public a bit if we live far from our military spouse buddies. Then again, why not have a party?

What challenges do you think we face that are different than the civilian world? Yes, some are obvious, but what makes our experience unique?

I am off to SpouseBUZZ this weekend to share experiences with my fellow military spouses. If any of my readers are there, please jump out of the crowd and introduce yourself. You may be featured in an article or two. I am always looking for people to interview for the many magazines and websites for which I write. Maybe you will be one of my features!

As always, to the military spouses out there, thank you for your service.
Rosemary

My Business Has A Name

Thank you to everyone who participated in helping me name my business. Unfortunately, the person who came up with the perfect name already has one of my books. In fact, it’s dedicated to him! My husband, Alan, came up with the name when I asked him if he was thinking about it. When he told me he could not read my blog because it was blocked at work, I filled him in. He said, “How about A Word Or Two,” and I jumped. I loved it and thought it was the perfect name for a writing business.

So, that is the new name: A Word Or Two. I will get to work on my collateral materials, send out a press release, and what I have been doing for years will no longer be a sole proprietorship, but an LLC.

While waiting for my tax number, I had to start scheduling next semester’s round of adult education classes. I teach The Business of Freelance Writing, and Write Your Novel. The first is about the mechanics of making a living as a freelance writer such as the things you need to have in place, the way to get jobs, etc. The Novel class is the way I personally organize things when I write a novel. I am very good at researching using the internet and many other writing-related skills.

What other courses might be of interest to my students?

If you have any ideas, I would love to hear them. It is always rewarding meeting new writers and helping them along their journey to publication. I would love to know if there is anything I am missing.

While I wait for your wisdom, here are a few tidbits for you.

When you are making out your Holiday card list this year, please include the following:

Cards for our American service members. (Remember, they are not all soldiers, but other service members as well.)

A Recovering American Armed Service Member
c/o Walter Reed Army Medical Center
6900 Georgia Avenue,NW
Washington,D.C. 20307-5001

Aqua Dot Recallhttp://www.canada.com/theprovince/news/story.html?id=4f76018a-9856-485c-962f-8ffb2bd67ca4

It seems the little "dots" can turn into a deadly substance if kids put them in their mouths. Mine will remain hidden until they figure this one out.

National Novel Writers Month
http://www.nanowrimo.org/

I signed up, but have no written a word of my book yet. It is SO not going to happen, but I thought I would let readers know about it. Perhaps you can consider it for next year.

Have a happy and productive week!

Are there gremlins in my house?

As I waded through the toys and bits in my living room this morning, I began wondering if clutter reproduces itself. Does the missing Lego under the couch wink at the yellow dump truck across the room and make a date? Does the Harry Potter dvd invite the fake ketchup in the miniature kitchen up to the t.v. stand for coffee?

Delegation is definitely the key, especially when you work from home. How to actually do this is still a mystery to me. No, I’m not a control freak and have absolutely no desire to clean it all up by myself, but the half-job that is done when I order everyone to pick up the junk is annoying.

So it sits. (Ask my mother.) One day I will make enough to hire Merry Maids like I did when I was pregnant with my second child, but for now, I get to scream with pain daily as I step on another Matchbox car.

Is your house neat and tidy or does it look as if a gremlin ran through with 20 of his best buddies?

The main thing is to enjoy the family while they are here, for all too soon, my sons will be out in the world on their own. The house will be clean, but quiet, and I will long for the days of Matchbox cars and Legos under my couch.

Help for Small Business

I spent yesterday morning attending a workshop presented by S.C.O.R.E. (Service Corps Of Retired Executives). Their presenters gave their time to help those of us starting businesses to get it right. Taxes, business plans, marketing strategies – all of this and many more topics were covered in the 4-hour workshop at the local community college.

If you plan on starting a freelance writing business, I would highly advise scheduling a 1-hour consultation with one of their consultants. It is free and can get you going in the right direction in order to open a profitable business. Now that I am serious about building my business, I plan on paying their consultants a visit every now and then to make sure I am on the right track.

The people at SCORE are doing a great service to those of us who are creative, but need some help with the practical side of business. Give it a try if you are serious about becoming a freelance writer while you support your military spouse.

As a result of the workshop, I have a different-type of poll this week. I need help naming my business and who better to ask than military spouses? Since the word “mom” is in my blog, I am frequently asked if I have a son or daughter in the military. I like the name, Writing Military Mom, but I want to make sure those who need my services can find me more easily. I would like to keep the word military in there somehow. On the other hand, the name evokes the question, “Do you have a son or daughter in the military?” which then starts the conversation in which I can explain that I am a proud military spouse. Help me come up with the perfect name by answering the question:

What should I name my copywriting business?

Here are some ideas:

Writing Military Mom
Writing Military Spouse
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Flu Hits

The phone rings and Caller I.D. tells me it’s the school nurse. My 7-year-old has a fever…again. My 2-year-old has already come home from daycare on one of my two work days, but he is asleep. He went down hard as soon as I took his shoes off at the front door. I call my husband who, SURPRISE!, is on his way home, too. But, why is he on is way home? HE also has a fever. I have to count my blessings, even if they are little ones. My husband can pick up my eldest son from school on his way home to his own sick bed.

Normally, I would not have such a chip on my shoulder about all of this illness, but this has been going on for weeks now. I had it last week and am now feeling sick again after only two days of feeling like my old self, more or less. It is as if I can see the germs hiding, waiting for their chance to jump on one of us and wreak havoc with our immune systems. I picture them as one of those mucus characters on a TV. commercial. Disgusting.

So, do I clean again or just wait until everyone’s well and fumigate the house? Do I just call everyone in sick tomorrow thereby losing another day of work to the illusive virus going through my house? Do I just call all of my editors and tell them I cannot make any of my deadlines this week? (THAT’S not going to happen.)

I decide to put on another pot of soup, lentil this time, and worry about tomorrow in the morning. I’ll do what I have been doing. I will sneak into their rooms and rest a hand on their foreheads, and hope they will not be startled awake. If they stay home, I will be grateful I am home working rather than having to deal with a boss at an office somewhere else. After all, this is why I work at home, to be here for my family. The rewards definitely outweigh the drawbacks.

To learn more about the flu, go to FluFacts. There you can answer a few questions to help determine if you, or your child, has the flu or just a bad cold. Then, after everyone recovers, go to What To Expect.com where you will learn how to kill all of the germs so, hopefully, the bug will not come back to bite you anytime soon.