Last week we discussed creators, podcasters, and cool people we like keeping up with.  In no particular order, here are things we find awesome and some notes mostly cribbed from their respective websites:

Podcasts:

99% Invisible a sound-rich, narrative podcast hosted by Roman Mars about all the thought that goes into the things we don’t think about — the unnoticed architecture and design that shape our world.

You Are Not So Smart David McRaney of the book by the same name hosts a fun exploration of the ways you and everyone else tend to develop an undeserved confidence in human perception, motivation, and behavior.

The Shawn Ryan Show, former Navy SEAL hosts guests to tell the stories that matter to them.  They chat about ups and downs, wins and losses, successes and struggles, and the good and bad in a respectful but candid way. 

Jocko Willink a retired Navy SEAL, author, and speaker discusses leadership methodologies he learned in the Navy and how to apply them to your business and personal life.

The Returning Warrior Podcast life coach Adam Gornall interviews people about their “calls to adventure” and the trials and rewards of that call.

The Sasquatch Odyssey hosted by Brian from Paranormal World Productions is a recalling of tales about Cryptids, and Bigfoot in particular.  

The Escape Artists crew of podcasts, including Escape Pod, PodCastle, and PsudoPod is a free fiction catalog of professionally written and narrated short stories. All creatives involved are paid. The podcasts have been released regularly since 2005.

The Daily Stoic is a podcast hosted by Ryan Holiday, self-identified Stoic, author, and public-relations strategist.  Each episode has a 2-3 minute meditation inspired by Stoicism. 

Tiktok Creators:

Dylan Hollis, author of Baking Yesteryear, shares some great and not so great recipes from 1900 - 1980.

Corbette Pasko a writer, performer, and “professional sweater,” talks about current events through the lens of a Gen Xer.

Lynae Vanee, a poet and performer from Atlanta Georgia discusses race, feminism, politics, and inclusivity.

Tanara “Everybody’s So Creative” Mallory the comedian behind Double Chocolate Productions, makes jokes about recipe mishaps and cooking tutorials.

Alexis Nikole Nelson, an American forager from Ohio and winner of a James Beard Award, posts videos of her foraging finds along with cooking techniques and historical information. (Bonus, here’s her NPR interview.)

YouTube:

Matty McTech shares life hacks and computer/tech tips.

Websites:

Gaia a member-supported online media resource of over 8,000 films, shows, classes and more covering discussions on the metaphysical and spiritual to yoga and meditation guides.

Mr. Money Mustache is a blog started in 2011 about financial literacy and living frugally.

1440 is a daily email newsletter that reports recent news “as unbiased as humanly possible.”

Al Jazeera is the first independent news channel in the Arab world.  It produces in-depth journalism about regional and international affairs with a focus on human-centric narratives.

Add your favorites to the comments below!

Keeping up with social media can be a total drag.  This week we pooled our collective knowledge of all things social and tried to create some inspiration for topics.  

Of course, in true Cobblers style, the topic meandered a bit, so we also covered some plain ole good advice for your social media.

• First, before posting, ask yourself, “Is it entertaining, helpful, or showcasing your work?”  This came from a podcast from Marc Scott that one of our Cobblers, Vanessa from Vanessa Jones Voices heard over the weekend.  (Give it a listen while you’re folding laundry or hitting the treadmill, it’s worth the time.)

• We also kept coming back to the idea of being genuine.  The more human you are, the more engagement you’ll get from your followers (and the better the algorithm will treat you.)  But also, if a post isn’t really your style or is recycled without input from you, it comes off as insincere.  You don’t have to post, but you really shouldn’t just post by rote.

• Try to include a photo for better algorithmic ranking or, better yet, post a video.

• Know your limits!  Social media can be a time-consuming always, hungry monster.  Feed it when you can, but don’t do so at the expense of your health, time, and client work.  

• Consider a theme for the year or the month.  Even better, if you do a word for the year (as some of our Cobblers do) try tying it to your posts.

• Tune into the zeitgeist.  Are more people thinking about hot chocolate this time of year rather than lemonade?  In January, there is a collective song about fresh starts; tap into that.  Is there a meme that “slaps” that you could apply to your business in a unique way.

• And when you tune into the zeitgeist, look around and see if there is a reason you might want to hold a post till a more appropriate time. Don’t post a photo of you full-on Scrooge McDucking in a gold-filled pool just after a company makes major layoffs or the unemployment rates tank.  Always read the room before posting.

• You can always ask for engagement, but don’t wear out your social capital.  A good rule of thumb is the 80/20 rule.  Only ask for engagement 20% of the time, and you’re unlikely to wear out your followers.

• Don’t be afraid to delete posts or unfollow/block fans.  You are human and can make mistakes, and you do not have to have negative or mean people on your platforms.  

• Know your audience and your tone.  Don’t post to LinkedIn what would be better on Facebook.  

And now here are some prompts from our conversation that can help you come up with posts.  Don’t forget you can use these more than once!  

For example you can take a trip around town and visit some cool local businesses, then share how much you like them.  Do this once a month, and that’s 12 posts in the bag!  (Do remember to do this authentically.  Posting about a business that may or may not want to be tied to your brand can eliminate your social capital in real life, as well as online.)

1. Share a podcast, playlist, or youtube video you like

2. Show the “Human side” of your work - like bloopers or IRL situations of you going about your work.  What does it take to do the work you do?

3. Share a quote from people you actually know, or situations you have been in.  Do avoid recycling famous quotes unless they truly, truly, truly speak to you.

4. Holiday-based posts, thankful at Thanksgiving. Earth day post? Here are some ideas to get you started.

5. Have you cleaned out your inbox/project backlog/schedule or finished a big project - share it!

6. New gear, new tech, or unboxing review

7. Show how you run your day or your workflow

8. Anecdotes from clients or stories from your work 

9. Tell a story that impacted you or your work (like your first client)

10. Is there a book your clients or other people in your industry should read?

11. What’s the biggest misconception about what you do?

12. What’s a counterintuitive thing about your business?

13. Share three facts about what you do.

14. What’s your mission?  How do you support it through your work?

15. New habit/skill you are bringing to your business

16. What do you predict your business will be doing in 12 months?

17. How do you give your clients hope?

18. What’s a big audacious goal you have for your business?

19. What are common misconceptions about what you do?

20. What are the biggest reasons clients don’t get the results they want?

21. Tell about a moment that deeply affected your business and how your business changed.

22. How do you deal with being stuck?

23. What’s something you’ve done that you’re really proud of this year?

24. What’s your business cycle?  Bookkeepers and accountants have a predictable cycle, but it’s a good bet you do too.

25. Shout out to your business friends and other small businesses in your community.

26. What are some easy things clients or potential clients can do to increase their success?  Use your personal expertise.  What bookkeeping they could do, what’s a design thing, what’s a safety thing.  Share your knowledge.

27. Who do you admire, professionally or personally?

28. Do you have a personal motto? (If not, you can post about why not!)

29. What’s a question you wish people would ask you?

30. What’s something your industry could do better?

31. What’s the project you’ve worked on that made you laugh the most?

32. What makes a great customer/client for you?

33. Tell a story about someone you helped in the past month or two.

34. Do you have a passion project?  Share it!

35. Where do you volunteer time or money locally?

36. If you win an award, you should share it.  (This is great on LinkedIn, particularly.)

37. What’s a fun fact about your business

38. What did you want to be when you grew up?  How does it tie to your work?

39. What’s your favorite office lunch or snack?

40. What technology is essential to your business?

41. Share your Spotify playlist for focus mode or creative work (it’s not cheating if you have to curate it a little bit.)

42. What makes you say no to a potential client?

43. Why do you keep the office hours you do?

44. Who in your circle is doing something cool you could share?

45. Do you have a kick-ass vendor?

I’m sure we could develop more, but 45 seems like a great place to start!

It’s almost the end of the year. As one Cobbler put it, “Time to sh#t or get off the pot.”

Early November is the perfect time to review your year, wrap up any goals or projects that need to be done before the end of Q4, and take a look at what’s happening in your company.

In service of that, we compiled a partial list of things we think you should do before we turn the calendar over to another year.

Accounting
First, if you do not have an accountant/CPA or want to make a change, now is the time to do it. Come January CPAs are swamped. It’s also helpful to have a professional talk with you about what your business needs to prepare for the end of the year.

• Talk to your accountant

• Review outstanding payables and receivables

• Get W9’s and insurance info from your subcontractors if you don’t have it already (anyone you paid more than $600 will need a W9, like your rent, lawyer, or another service counts.)

• Review your cash flow and profits. Is it a good time to purchase equipment or small tools?

• Review all your financial statements

• Download your payroll reports

• Review and account for your inventory and other property

• Look for outstanding checks and clear those up

• Add in out-of-pocket expenses

• Compile your mileage

• Reconcile bank and credit card statements

Management

• Back up your information, including your cell phone, and create or find a system to do this routinely

• Prep your files for longer-term storage

• Create new files and system tags for next year

• Audit your website, is it time for an update?

• Create a list of your accomplishments for the year

• Plan your end-of-year gifts and cards

• Review your subscriptions and memberships

• Get ready for Small Business Saturday

Planning

• Create a budget for next year

• Review your annual goals and set new ones

• Review your clients and projects for the year, what predictions can you make for next year?

We’ll update this list as we come up with more ideas, but feel free to chime in in the comments if you think we missed anything!

Check this cycling video out. The whole time it reminds us of what it’s like to be an entrepreneur. (Our play by play commentary is below!)

He opens with a monologue about being inspired by rock climbers, and how it inspired him to see what he can do. That's like the entrepreneurial dream. You get inspired by something or someone or an idea and think I can do that!

In the beginning, the riding looks pretty cool and I certainly couldn't do it, but it doesn't look impossible. The first part of building your dream can be like that, scary sure but you've got some skills and some resources, you can do this.

Then about 1:50, it starts to get really real. Is that just a cliff dude is going down? Are you really going to just leave the security of the job you have to go work for yourself? Cash-out your savings? Go into debt? Yes, it's time to leap!

At 2:05 elegant little endos here and there much like the maneuvering you have to do with all the entities to get your dream going. Dealing with the government, and the landlords, and the vendors, and the customers. Giving everyone what they need while keeping your momentum. Sometimes it seems like barely controlled chaos to keep all those plates in the air and those wheels spinning.

3:00 Sometimes it is about the brakes, knowing when to hold 'em and to fold 'em is a huge part of this entrepreneurial process.

3:07 Dany MacAskill has an amazing camera/production team. His videos are beautiful and the music is perfect. Right as he is in this long shot of him against the mountain the refrain "Between the click of the light and the start of the dream". You realize that dude is all alone. His team is there but he is the one doing it. Same as the entrepreneur, you might have an amazing team but it all comes down to you.

3:43 Riding that fine line between pumping the brakes and giving it some gas. Then it gets really scary and you realize how easy it was at the start!

4:57 Then you're in a better space and it's beautiful and you signed your first big contract or have your first-anniversary party or whatever milestone that makes it real for you and it's a bit unbelievable that you did it! You look back at that path you just went down and know it may have seemed crazy but it was what you HAD to do and it was worth it.

How do you feed the Google Monster™?

This morning we discussed how content creation on blogs, social networks, and on your website can play a role in your marketing (for better or worse.)  It seems that we’re all feeling like we should be doing “more,” but aren’t sure what that “more” looks like.

We talked about how to find your voice when it comes to your business pages.  (Think about what’d you would say to a potential client if you ran into them on the street.  You have information that might find interesting, and they can take it or leave it.) We weighed in on the benefits of video vs. written posts (it all depends on your audience’s needs, and chances are you need a hybrid of both.)  And even helped each other brainstorm a few topics that would be helpful. (There, their, they’re!)

This conversation inspired a Cobblers Challenge, #gettingitwrite.  The goal (for anyone who wants to participate, and we really mean ANYONE) is to write one piece to publish before our February 25 meeting.

Head over to the Cobblers Slack, where we have a special channel (#gettingitwrite) just for the challenge.  There you can post suggestions for other people to write about, ask for help brainstorming topics for your business, and post links to your published pieces.  We’ll go check them out and leave constructive criticism in the slack channel.

Next week we’re going to have a “like me” party where we all like each other’s business social media and brainstorm topics for all of us to post about.  You can join us Thursday mornings at 8:30 a.m. via Zoom at bit.ly/cobblerscollective

It’s time to get to typing Cobblers!

This morning we talked with Boss Lady and Numbers Ninja Jenn Haynes of A-One Mobile Bookkeeping and Tax Expert Valerie Horner of V. Horner Accounting about getting your financial ducks in a row for year-end.

We covered some good stuff for everyone to know so we thought we'd share it here.

First, Jenn made a list of things to do. You can find it here on Instagram. There are three images.

Next, we talked about getting w-9s from every independent contractor you work with. If they're not a corporation you're probably gonna need to send them a 1099 form. You can find a printable/fillable w-9 form on the irs.gov page. The link is here, heads up its a .pdf link.

Valerie shared this planning document with us. (It's another .pdf link.)

Once a quarter we ask, “What is the best tech, tool, or app you’ve discovered?”

Because we were on Zoom this quarter we were able to put links to our favorite things in the chat!  Here’s what we got!

Content Creators, Arts Programs, & Stock Aft

• Canva - Design templates for digital content

• Adobe Spark - Adobe’s version of Canva, has video too.  Free.

• Unsplash - Free Stock Photos

• Pexels - Free Stock Photos

• Facebook Creator Studio - You can use it to create content for your facebook pages, including video.  

Project/Task/Todolist Managers

• Dubsado - Business/projects management system.

• Asana - Business/projects management system.  (https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLd7bRjT5AStbWWBGVi9L4y868Wl7pYH62 for tutorials.)

• Todoist - a todo list manager

• Loom - Screen sharing and recording

• Evernote - Note taking and collection

Other great inventions

• Boomerang for Gmail - makes Gmail smarter.  Delay send, return to inbox, and more.

• Otter - Audio transcription.

• MileIQ - tracks your milage using your phone.

Old School

• Paper/Notebook and Pen - We always end up back here! Paper and pen is the best. One of us just uses plain printer paper, another likes these cheap sketch notebooks.

• Bullet Journal

• Minimalist Journaling

• Getting Things Done by David Allen

• Productivity Planner

• 5 Minute Journal (also from Intelligent Change)

• Best Self Journal (You can get a free .pdf sample here.)

This is not an exhaustive list, but this is what we covered in an hour.

We met via Zoom this morning with Mindy from Abundance Organizing.  She led the meeting with the sentiment that right now the “official” rules for professional organizing need to be set aside.  Doing what you can to keep yourself working and healthy is what you need to focus on.

With the pandemic, making sure “Basic Needs” (the bottom two rows, physical needs and safety) from Maslow’s Pyramid are met is the priority.  Only once those are met, can you start addressing more of the pyramid.  

Once your basic needs are met, you can focus on these to improve your ability to work:

• Physical Space

• Time

• State of Mind

Physical Space

There are a lot of ways you can improve the space you’re working in.  If you have one place you like to go to every day, great! But it’s ok if you like to roam about your house that’s ok too.  Mindy suggests to really pay attention to your lighting. Seeking out or setting up good light can make a significant difference.  “If there’s something not quite right but you can’t put your finger on it, it’s probably your lighting.”

Another thing is visual clutter.  “If you have to put it in a box, put that behind you out of your line of sight, then do it.”  She joked that this is not what she would normally recommend as an organizer.  

Clutter impacts your mental health in many ways.  It can raise your cortisol (the stress hormone) levels and increase anxiety.  There is a growing body of research on its negative effects, especially among women.  This New York Times article talks about it.

Also, the effect of eliminating clutter to help you work might be due to the Zeigarnik Effect: the human tendency to remember interrupted or incomplete tasks or events more easily than tasks that have been completed. The more you can avoid being reminded by uncompleted tasks the more you’ll be able to focus on what you need to be doing.  

One cobbler was in the middle of a renovation and was ordering furniture when Covid-19 stay at home orders happened.  Mindy suggested that if she still wants to move forward with the renovation, Havenly would be a great resource. They have interior designers on staff that you tell what you like and what you need, and they design your room for you including picking out the furniture. If you’re spending a ton of time at home (like we all are now) and have the resources, it might be worthwhile to check it out.

Time

Mindy strongly suggests setting a schedule with your family daily.  It’s a great chance to discuss your goals and encourages domestic harmony.  She likes working in blocks and setting timers. When you set a timer, you no longer have to keep an eye on the clock.  It frees up your brain to focus on what’s in front of you, rather than what time it is.  

Having a schedule you set up that morning or the night before with your family serves a similar purpose.  Your brain can let go of the “what should I be doing now” and focus on what you actually want to work on. Or, if its a dreaded job, you know you only have to do it till that work block is over.

State of Mind

This is a biggie.  First find a way to wash yourself every day, even if it’s only your face.  Self-care isn’t (always) massages and pedicures - it’s actually caring for yourself.  Bathing can trigger other good self-care routines which will improve your mental and physical well being.  

Show yourself some grace.  If you’ve got a friend who’s picked up 4 new hobbies and is learning a new language, great for them!  But if it’s all you can do to put pants on, then celebrate that! This isn’t a staycation, it’s quarantine.  

We’ve been thrown into this new world.  Nicholas Bloom, an economics professor from Stanford, says “It’s like you join the army, then on day three you’re told you’re going to be parachute-jumping at lunchtime, and you’re given a parachute and thrown out of the plane. No training, no preparation.”  Even if you were used to working from home, you weren’t used to it with the kids home, the stores closed, the inability to meet anyone in person. (You can read more from Nicholas on Vox here.) 

While we can’t meet anyone in person, it’s been wonderful to stay connected to our fellow Cobblers via Zoom each week.  Everyone is contributing to the conversation, helping us all to stay saner, and if nothing else, at least we know there are other people who are in the same boat we are.  Even if we don’t wear real pants in that boat.

We’ll meet again next Thursday at 8:30 a.m. via Zoom at bit.ly/cobblerscollective.

The first quarter of the year has been a doozy! Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cobblers have been moving forward on our 2020 goals! Like the scrappy individuals we are, we've adapted our goals, pivoted with the current circumstances, and made some room for grace with oursevles.

As a group, we are super supportive of each other, but we all tend to be our own harshest critic. That changed this morning for one of our Cobblers.

One member is notoriously hard on themselves, but this morning when they were grading their goal progress, they gave themselves a fair and good grade. And we all cheered!

Many of the members reached their goals, without necessarily even noticing. Even the fiscal goals.

Things are hard right now, and there is no way we could have known that we'd be working and living in a very dull but terrifying sci-fi novel. But collectively, the Cobblers are weathering the storm reasonably well and continuing to run their businesses under these new conditions. I think it's because we're here together.

If you've wanted to attend one of our meetings, please now is the right moment. We're online, at least till June 10 - we don't care if you're in your pajamas, and we're here to cheer you on! Thursday mornings at 8:30 a.m. at bit.ly/cobblerscollective We hope to see you soon.

This morning we talked about destressing rituals.  Whether it’s planning your day before launching into it, ringing chimes at the end of the day to leave work where it belongs, or listening to a special playlist to calm down at night.  Rituals are useful tools, that can be especially impactful when the lines between Home and Work are so blurry.

The truth is right now things are stressful and scary, and many of us are greaving for what was once our “normal.”  There are things we can control and things we can’t, and trying to remember that helps, but also taking time to be ok with the fact that these are trying times and it is alright to be upset.  Life right now is hard.

There are plenty of great articles out there, like this one from Medium and this one from inc about how and why to create rituals to leave work where it belongs.

Routines (rituals under a more secular name) can help us with that.  They can keep us from ruminating. They help us set boundaries between our work and our home lives.  They can help us get into a flow state faster and work more productively. They can give us a moment of peace or help us leave things we can’t control alone.

Many of our cobblers are adding walks to their routines to destress.  Going outside and getting some air (from a socially responsible distance) can help you recenter.  We talked about tetris, and another game called blendoku which can help give us a break when things get too rough.  Most of us are trying to limit our news intake and using apps like RescueTime to keep us from constantly scrolling through Facebook, Twitter, etc to get the latest updates.

As a sidebar, one cobbler likened the news to food.  Be careful how much you consume, know where it comes from, and avoid too many additives.  We thought this was pretty sound advice.

Another bit of sound advice is to get dressed even when working from home.  Not taking care of yourself can foster depression. It’s easy to say “f*ck it” and sleep in, eat straight from the fridge, and live in four-day-old sweats, but please don’t do it!  If you get up and get dressed (even if it’s in stretchy pants) you can help physically set your intention for the day. One cobbler is aspirationally wearing workout gear, another is dressing in yoga pants on the bottom and work clothes on the top.  Comfortable and still camera ready!  

We also noticed that while we’re all getting through our days, it’s getting harder to tell a Thursday from a Monday or a Saturday.  One cobbler is looking for ways to create liminal landmarks in the days to help her family distinguish one day from the next. Taco Tuesdays, Science Wednesdays, Cobblers’ Collective Thursdays!

This morning was a reminder that while things are crazy in this moment, one day we will have a new normal.  We will adapt. And in the meantime, we’re all here to support each other.

There’s a story about a carpenter who had a rough day.  When he got back home he touched a tree by his front door with both hands.  When asked about it, he says “That’s my trouble tree, I hang my troubles here every night before I go inside, and when I come out in the morning to pick them up, there aren’t nearly as many as I remember hanging up the night before.”

Having a group of people to help you hang your troubles up is one of the reasons cobblers exists.  And this morning, we’re grateful for it.  

Jenn listened to a webnar today from the Virginia Small Business Administration about the SBA loans. Here are her take-a-ways. You can find more complete information and other resources here: virginiasbdc.org/covid

• Max unsecured loan is $25,000

• Max secured loan is 6 months of operating expenses up to $2M

• Loans are 30 year loans, with no interest or payments for the first year, but interest starts accruing from the date of disbursement.

• 3.75% fixed interest rate.

• Types of collateral to secure the loan include: personal home, equipment, machinery, leasehold improvements.

• Only small businesses with less than 100 employes and less than $50M in revenue are eligible.

• There is no cost to apply and no obligation to take the loan.

• You will need to upload your 2019 tax return or your end of year financials.

• SBA phone number is 800-659-2955, and website is disasterloan.sba.gov/ela

• From the time of your application it can take 21 days to get the decision. Then they mail your docs, you sign, and mail back, then a few days for disbursement.  So total of 30-45 days from time of app to time of disbursement.

• The loan amount is based on operating costs so include payroll and other non-debt expenses in free form section.  The loan officer will work with you directly to determine the amount of your loan.

• They don't know what the reporting for the use of loan will look like yet.

• Don't know how funds are being prioritized re: SWAM, etc.

• No minimum amount of time in business.

• Not laying off employees is not a requirement.

• Don't expect forgiveness of this loan.

• Don't know about prepayment penalty.

• You cannot apply through a commercial bank, you must go through the website.

The webinar will be listed on irginiasbdc.org/covid-19/  The webinars are the same but the questions will probably be different in each one so may want to skip to that point to see if your specific question is answered.  They are also trying to update the FAQ on this page from the questions in the webinar.

irginiasbdc.org/eidl/?fbclid=IwAR0At3xkVc9_Wi2JQKx8dClI1hgWVf1FCh1kj5YAwofF-VLV16pZNrmsNd4      

We had a great virtual meeting this morning. If you want to join us next week, you can find us at bit.ly/cobblerscollective to hook up with the Zoom meeting. It's on Thursday at 8:30 am.

Gretchen created a Virtual Mistakes Jar just for this event. We were going to do the jar had we met in person, but this worked out well too. The jar will be left open as a space for anyone to submit their fears, concerns, mistakes, worries, hopes, dreams while we weather Covid-19. You can find the Google form here: bit.ly/mistakesjar. It's totally anonymous, so feel free to use it as a stress release valve. And share it with other business owners, solopreneurs, freelancers, and our ilk.

Right out of the gate, there was a theme of how do we plan for the unexpected? Many of us seem to have found our previous procrastination, which would have had very mild consequences if things were normal, really messed us up with the sudden shutdowns. We're all trying to move our business as virtual as we can, manage pets/kids/spouses affecting our work at home, and maintain our sanity.

We've talked about having a plan in place if you (the business owner) is unable to work for some reason - the "hit by a bus" scenario - in previous meetings. But, there was no reason for us to have a global pandemic plan in our back pockets. It isn't like a hurricane or snowstorm; this is going to last weeks. What we need to do is review our other contingency/emergency plans and adapt them as best we can.

Which is what we're all doing, adapting as best we can. There is some information coming in from the government at the state and the national level. As we hear about things relevant to our group, we'll post it to the Facebook page. Please go, share how you're handling this adventure, give us the tips you have, or the stories you've heard about how other businesses are managing. Share a joke. It's our space to say, "Yes, I'm still here, and I'm glad you are too!"

Our community is still here - and meeting this morning proved that we are stronger together (not physically though!) and more stubborn than this virus. The Cobblers will cobble through, and do it in our unique way.

For the foreseeable future, we'll be hosting our Thursday morning meeting via Zoom at 8:30 a.m.  The Zoom link is: http://bit.ly/cobblerscollective We’ll be there every Thursday morning, with our coffee in hand, to chat with you as we navigate this together.

As of this publishing, our scheduled meeting is the Mistakes Jar. We've set up a virtual one to anonymously submit our mistakes.  You can go here: http://bit.ly/mistakesjar   and submit a mistake or two.  Since this is such a crazy time, we’re going to leave the jar live, so we can submit anytime you’ve got something you want to share with the group.

We're here to help, so if you can think of anything that might make this situation better, please let us know!

In true Cobbler form, it turns out that all dozen of us that were at the meeting this morning, don't usually manage to take weekends.

One Cobbler fights the never-ending lure of her phone by making sure it's put away at home every night after 5 pm. She also talked about training her clients/family/friends that she doesn't check her phone or email after hours. They don't push back at her, because this is the way it's always been, she set the culture. But trying to do this for the average person is like asking someone who's never run to try an ultramarathon blindfolded. (Also, she's quick to admit she's still overwhelmed so this isn't a cure-all.)

Another Cobbler suggests that rather than take two days off, that one of the perks you get from working for yourself is that you can take afternoons for some downtime. Or to switch off taking Mondays off and working on Saturdays. (Collectively, we agree that Saturdays and Sundays were the WORST days to take off. The lines at the grocery are terrible!)

It was suggested that we try putting blocks in our calendars and setting appointments with ourselves. (Which despite everyone's good intentions are the easiest appointments to reschedule or ignore when someone else needs something.)

Finally, someone spoke up to say that when you are enjoying what you're doing, it doesn't seem like work. There is recuperation in the joy.  

Sounds an awful lot like Flow State doesn't it? And she's right; there is evidence that people who spend time in a flow state tend to be happier and feel more fulfilled.  

To get into a flow state, you need to work toward mastery. And that's where the Cobblers are unique. Compared to our counterparts in a traditional job, we guessed that in all things, we seek mastery more often. This is why our hobbies, which were supposed to relax us, end up becoming another source of revenue. Why we're always trying to come up with a new/better/faster way to do something or help each other do the same. We're seeking mastery and the flow state because it brings us joy.

We all know we have to be deliberate in our time and where we focus our energies. And this work/life balance problem comes up so frequently, that it's clear we're trying to work through something, but what is it?

Are we feeling overwhelmed, or are we feeling guilty about the ways we're spending our energies?  

Perhaps that's a topic for another meeting.

We did agree that when and where we could, we should advocate for people taking time for themselves and their families. That everyone should strike a balance that works for them. We decided we should push back against the "Always On" culture that permeates modern working America. We should do it for our friends, the people who work for us, and for the organizations, we work with. It's not healthy to be in this constant state of reactive alert.  

Maybe that's why we feel guilty.  

Because while we're hustling, as a group, we're also defining our work/life balance. We're deciding what gets our attention and our energy. Unlike our friends who report to someone else, we ultimately get to choose how we live and work.  That despite the strange schedules and other trade-offs of owning our own businesses, we have autonomy over our attention. And that makes us happy.

This morning we tackled burnout.

Burnout happens when you've been under stress for too long. When you've been flooded with those hormones some time, your body and mind become apathetic in self-defense.  

But, stress isn't all bad! We need some stress to keep the mental knife sharp, to help us face challenges, boost our memory, and generally turn the volume up on life.

Like attending a punk concert, your ears (mind) need a break, or you go deaf. Think of burnout like concert-ear if the concert were stress and the silence/ringing/dampening from your stressed-out ears is burnout.

This morning one of our Cobblers talked about how the military addresses stress. The Operational Stress Continuum is a tool used to help identify the right amount of stress for the moment. You start pretty chill just latently aware of the things around you, and as you move through the continuum, there's a mid-point where you're situationally aware and alert. This is ideal stress. You are alert and making good choices. After this, you move ever into reactionary stages where you're not making good decisions or thinking of the team. You can learn more about it here, and just because it's for the Navy doesn't mean it can't apply to civilian life.  

Another Cobbler is reading the Burnout book. In the book, they talk about the Stress Cycle. Stress isn't just in your mind. It is a physiological response to a trigger. This means that you can't just talk your way out of stress - you need to move it through your body to complete the cycle. You can move, be that dancing to Beyonce in your living room or going for a run. Your body wants to run away, let it! If that doesn't work for you, a 20-second hug might do the trick. It needs to be an active hug, not one where you hang on the other person. And don't count the seconds. When the stress breaks, you will feel it. Here's a quick video that covers how to complete the cycle and some other tidbits from the book.  

And we did talk about the four burners theory. The biggest culprit of stress and burnout is doing too much. Entrepreneurs, small business owners, and just people, in general, are stereotypically famous for continually hustling. But the hustle is hurting us. There's a theory out there that has some different origin to the story, but here's the gist:

Imagine that your life is represented by a stove with four burners on it. Each burner symbolizes one major quadrant of your life.

• The first burner represents your family.

• The second burner is your friends.

• The third burner is your health.

• The fourth burner is your work.

The Four Burners Theory says that "in order to be successful you have to cut off one of your burners. And in order to be really successful, you have to cut off two."

And that's the worst.  

No one wants to cut off a burner, let alone two. The first thing that goes is our health, even when we know "If you don't have your health, you haven't got anything." The next is our friends or family. The relationships closest to you are easiest to take for granted. Every Cobbler argues with this theory, saying "somethings could simmer." "I could keep all four burners going."

But you really can't.

James Clear has some ideas on how to deal with the fact that life is a series of tradeoffs. You have to choose between excelling at one quadrant and letting the others go, or try to balance them all out but never really reach your full potential.

Lastly, there's another little factor - that glass of wine/whiskey at the end of the day may be adding to your stress. Hanxiety is a real thing. When you drink you stimulate the Gaba receptors in your brain, making you chill out. However, your brain registers the imbalance when you sleep and turns the glutamate up and trys to bring the Gaba down. The result is you have unnaturally low Gaba function and a spike in glutamate – a situation that leads to anxiety. And it takes a day or two for your brain to return to normal!

So in short, try not to drink, exercise more, get your rest, say no to too many commitments, and while you're at it, you might as well eat that kale salad. I wouldn't hurt.

We had a well-attended meeting this morning, where we discussed potential rewards and pitfalls of referral partners.

The group included seasoned small business veterans, non-profits, some freelancing n00bs (newbies in internet speak), and more. Some of us have not found formal referral partners or leads groups all that helpful, while others used them to grow their business from scratch.

Here are our takeaways:

If you are in a service/consulting business, a formal leads group like BNI is probably not going to work well for you. There aren't going to be that many referrals for marketing strategy or security audits. At least in the Williamsburg area. However, if you're a bookkeeper or trade smith like a plumber, a leads group will most likely generate a ton of leads for you.

Informal referral partners, just folks who you like and like you back, are common. Having a formal arrangement might not be the right social move if you want to keep this relationship happy.

Sometimes you need to be creative when you think about who would be a good referral partner for you. Hairdressers are an under-tapped referral source for MANY industries; folks tell their hairdresser all sorts of things. Look to unusual and underserved communities; one Cobbler is making a name for herself in the RV/Vanlife sphere.

If you'd like to dig a bit deeper into this, there is an excellent checklist from Hubspot on this topic. And there’s an interesting take on training and helping referral partners from Unstoppable CEO.

We took a look at three different websites this morning and had a ton of great feedback for our fellow Cobblers, which we offered enthusiastically. As one Cobbler said, "Its like catnip for Cobblers."

Yes, telling other people how to fix things is our catnip. But we do try to be kind when we do it. One member jokingly mentioned we should have a safeword, "whiskey" but if you aren't familiar with the Cobblers Collective, there are three rules:

1. What happens in the Cobblers Collective, stays in the Cobblers Collective.

2. Explain your jargon and acronyms.

3. Be kind, to each other and ourselves.

We also discovered that no one likes hamburger menus, and not everyone knows what a hamburger menu is. (It's that three lines up at the top of a page, usually when viewed on your phone.) Here's an excellent guide to the hamburger via UX Planet. The Ultimate Guide to the Hamburger Menu and Alternatives.

Image Source

For those of you who were at the meeting and want to dig a bit deeper into how Google works, these videos (especially the second one) are very informative without being too technical. Google Webmaster Guidelines

If you want to learn more about SEO, Hubspot has a great step-by-step guide in getting your website more search engine friendly. The Complete SEO Starter Pack

Next week we'll be talking about referral partners, what they are, and who is a good fit for your business. And, upcoming on March 5th, we've got the Board of Advisors meeting. This meeting is a chance for you to present a challenge you've had with your business, and have your fellow Cobblers mastermind the poo-poo out of it.

If you'd like to keep up with all things Cobblers' Collective, consider signing up for our newsletter here or following our Facebook page by giving it a "like."

This morning at the Cobblers’ Collective meeting we talked about hiring and firing employees and contractors.

First, you have to know if you’re hiring a contractor or an employee. Thankfully the IRS has a handy guide that can be found right here on their website.

Keep in mind too that California just amended its state laws, so if you’re hiring someone from CA, check to make sure you’re in compliance with the new legislation.

Once you know if you have an employee or contractor, the group consensus is that there should be some written documentation in place to help outline the scope of the job and how compensation works. If they’re an employee, you should have an employee handbook that gets reviewed and read - and a good job description. Both help outline the shape of the gig and keep everyone’s expectations in line. One Cobbler even goes so far as to have an operations manual so that the job is done the same way each and every time.

Employees and contractors who are interfacing with people outside of your office while representing you should be familiar with your company’s brand. They don’t have to “drink the Koolaid” but they should know the expectations for exterior communications, how they present themselves, and even (if they’re an employee) how they’re expected to dress.

In general, the Cobblers felt it might be good to talk to your lawyer (Drew Larsen is our favorite local go-to) to have a Non-Disclosure Agreement in place if the employee or contractor might be handling sensitive or proprietary information. Honestly, it wouldn’t hurt to have your lawyer look over anything you think of as a contract no matter who it’s between.

When it came to finding talent, we mostly went with word of mouth. Finding someone who’s a good fit can be tricky, and getting a referral from someone who knows you and your company will keep you from having to screen too many resumes out.

Once you have the employee, regular reviews lead to a happy and productive workplace. And reviews go both ways!

If you’ve come to the conclusion that it’s time to terminate a relationship - first go over the contract you have in place. Is there a termination/cancelation clause if they’re a contractor, what are your local laws if they’re an employee. When you do let them go, revoke their access to company property and information at the same time. Most people are good, but in the heat of the moment, it’s possible the terminated person could do some damage out of anger or hurt.

Ultimately when it comes time to fire someone - do it. Don’t beat around the bush, make sure it’s written down, and don’t string them along. Remember back in High School that couple? She didn’t want to hurt his feelings, so she thought she broke up with him, but he thought they were still together? Do be that girl. A clean break is the best break.

We’d love to hear about your experiences with employees and contractors. Feel free to drop by any Thursday morning at 8:15 A.M. at Work Nimbly for our weekly meeting.

We had a great Cobblers' Collective meeting this morning to set our goals. Using the worksheet Rebecca Reimers Cristol shared with us last week as a base, we all took a moment to set our goals for 2020. Here’s the worksheet if you don’t have it.

Jenn wrote them down in her handy bullet journal, and we'll check back in at the start of the next quarter to see how everyone is doing.

Accountability is a great tool to help you achieve your goals. When someone holds you accountable, you're more likely to move forward. In fact, researchers at Johns Hopkins University found that the pressure of others seems to make people achieve more. It was a small study, here's an abstract, but there have been others that point in the same direction.

If you've got some goals you'd like us to hold you accountable for, email us at cobblerscollective@gmail.com, and we'll add them to the list. The list is private and off-line, so you don't have to worry about the whole world knowing you want to increase your revenue by 25%. And not all the goals we set are business goals.

Many of us find that our work fills our days, and what's left over goes to our other commitments. As a result, our health is put on the back burner and neglected. Since for most of us, we ARE the business; we need to make sure we're taking care of the "meat sack," as Gretchen says. And if you really don't want to share, but want the accountability anyway, you can always give it a code word. Then we'll check back in and see how "watermelon" is doing.

Next week’s morning meeting was inspired by Gretchen saying, “I want to lead the horse to water, but not bait the troll under the bridge to eat the horse.” How do you educate the public about what you do while leaving yourself protected from the folks who would create discord, particularly in social media?

We had a fantastic meeting this morning, where most of the Cobblers graded themselves well on achieving their goals for 2019. Many of the goals were bold ones, so this is exceptionally wonderful.

Some of us learned that the goal we set was more significant than we imagined; there were some hidden pot-holes in our knowledge that we didn't discover until we got in deep. But we still pushed forward and amended our goals and kept driving.

Once we reviewed the year, we took our goals that needed to be left behind and set them on fire! For some of us, it was a goal that didn't fit, and some wanted to release last year's goal to make room for this year's. The whole process is incredibly cathartic! (And fire is fun. Some of us may have just burned some paper just because.)

Next week we'll be setting our goals for 2020. Rebecca Reimers Cristol created a worksheet for us to kick-start the process. You can find it here!

Whether you've been to a goals meeting or not, the next seven days are a great time to reflect on 2019 and set your intentions for 2020. Having a group to keep you accountable will help you push yourself to make your business hopes and dreams a reality.

If you can't make the next meeting, but would like to be in the accountability circle, email us at cobblerscollective@gmail.com and we'll add you to the roster.

And don't worry if it's a personal goal or one you're not comfortable sharing, give it a code word that only you know, and we'll follow up about how "watermelon" is doing.