FRESHviews
RHONDA ABRAMS: STRATEGIES
first started your business, were you challenged,
engaged, excited? Now do you feel like you’re just
going through the motions? If so, look for new
opportunities, new challenges (without jeopardiz-
ing your core business) that can once again excite
you. In your personal life, look for new adventures,
travel and hobbies, and explore new ideas
Replenish. With all our responsibilities, it’s easy
for our reserves of energy and motivation to run
low. We have to be a source of refilling our own
tanks. How? Seek new sources of inspiration: Read
books and magazines, take classes, go to network-
ing events and trade shows, and meet new people.
Recreate. Ever think about the word
“recreation”? Play is part of re-creating yourself,
restoring your body, reenergizing your soul. Have
fun! Go outside and play.
Repeat and repair. Let’s be honest. Many
things in our lives and our businesses are going
well. Let’s not throw those out in a desire to
restart our batteries. Take a good customer or an
old friend out to lunch. Other things just need
fixing—relationships, a bookkeeping system or a
Web site. Spring is a great time for mending as
well as planting.
Revive. Revive means “to bring to life again.”
Examine the ways that you can bring yourself to
a full life once again. What are the things and
people you love? What excites you? What are
your goals, hopes, dreams? Allow those to live
again. After all, it’s spring! C
Rhonda Abrams
is president of The
Planning Shop, a
publisher of books for
entrepreneurs (www.
PlanningShop.com).
Refresh, renew,
replenish
PHOTO ALTO
BUDS BURST; seeds sprout; trees begin to flower.
Spring is when the earth comes alive—and you
and your business can come alive again too. Have
you fallen into a rut? Climb out. Has your business
stagnated? Get it moving. Spring’s the perfect time
to recharge your batteries, revive your spirit and
reexamine your bottom line.
Many words with the prefix “re” apply to spring.
That’s because, according to the dictionary, “re”
means again or anew. Spring is a time to begin
anew, and I firmly believe in taking every chance for
a fresh start—in our personal and our business lives.
This page is called “Fresh Views.” So, let’s talk
about how to refresh ourselves and our businesses and make the most of spring.
Reawaken. Much of our lives is dominated by
routine, often lulling us into boredom. When you
More events
for small biz
Take five
PEOPLE TEND to think that desk 2. Reduce eye strain and neck
jockeys—those who work at a tension by adjusting your moni-desk—have it easy. Nice cushy tor to eye level, arm’s-length dis-office. Comfy chair. Playing on the tance, and look away from your
computer all day. But those of us screen every 20 minutes.
who ply our trade that way know
it can take its toll, physically.
Costco member Sherry Zak
Morris, a registered yoga teacher
and owner of the Yoga Vista
Studio in Vista, California, created the Take5Moment Program
“to meet the needs of the overworked and over-stressed who
are limited on time and resources
to get the exercise or mental
break they need.”
Zak Morris offers these tips
“to help desk workers reduce
stress and be more productive
at work.”
1. Improve concentration
and focus by deep breathing,
stretching and twisting, which
increase oxygen and blood flow
to the brain.
RUBBERBALL/DYNAMIC GRAPHIC S
3. Increase productivity by
eating foods fit for your job tasks.
For creative tasks, eat light foods
such as leafy greens, fruit and
nuts. For detailed, focused work,
eat dense food such as carrots,
beans, fish and poultry.
4. Rekindle passion for your
job by approaching smaller tasks
with a sense of fun and accomplishment.
5. Avoid an afternoon crash
by eating whole grains, and no
caffeine or sugars, at midday to
sustain energy levels.
6. Diminish co-worker tension and competition by periodically complimenting your
adversaries. Like mom says, you
attract more bees with honey
than vinegar.
7. The Take5Moment Web
site (
www.take5moment.com) features five-minute video breaks to
help users relax, recharge and de-stress. Diffuse burnout with five-minute breaks—laugh, breathe,
walk, move, meditate. C
THE NATIONAL Women’s
Business Council (NWBC)
will be hosting Town
Hall Meetings for Women
Entrepreneurs in Houston,
Texas, on April 3, and in
Boca Raton, Florida, on
May 14.
NWBC’s town halls
are free half-day events
promoting dialogue among
the women’s business community and local, state and
federal policy makers on the
issues and challenges faced
by women business owners.
Topics to be covered include
access to capital, affordable
health care, and government
and corporate procurement.
Insights gathered during the
meetings, which began in
2007, will be compiled in a
comprehensive report that
will contribute to NWBC
policy recommendations
to the president, Congress
and the Small Business
Administration.
For more information,
visit the NWBC Web site at
www.nwbc.gov.
THE U.S. SMALL Business
Administration’s national
ombudsman acts as an
advocate for small-business
owners. In January, a series
of regional meetings were
kicked off to address small-business regulatory fairness.
To find a meeting near you,
and more information, visit
the National Small Business
Association Web site at
www.nsba.biz/content/1649.
shtml. C
