Business & Career Archives - Page 8 of 10

Four Steps to Becoming a Professional Speaker

April 17, 2012 | By Rosetta |

Yesterday on the Happy Black Woman Facebook community, someone asked me where I find my speaking engagements. (Speaking at conferences is a low-volume, high-price service that makes up the bulk of my income most months.) My response was that they find me! I’ve been speaking professionally since 2008 (when I got my first paid gig) and most of my clients just come to me through the various marketing channels I’ve cultivated over the years. Now I know that generic answer is not very helpful to you if you want to start getting paid as a speaker, so I’ll break down a few of the steps I think are important to the process.

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Marketing Yourself Takes Courage: What I Didn’t Know in 2007

April 13, 2012 | By Rosetta |

The most surprising thing I’ve learned in my business (so far) is just how incredibly important marketing is. Unfortunately, clients and customers don’t come to you automatically.

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What I Learned from Being on Public TV: Don’t Forget Your Pantyhose

April 7, 2012 | By Rosetta |

Last month, I was in Springfield, Massachusetts to speak at a conference. As part of my trip, the event organizers also arranged for me to be interviewed on WGBY 57, the public TV station for Western New England, about my keynote speech. Below is the full interview.

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My Dream Job is What I’m Doing Now

April 6, 2012 | By Rosetta |

This morning, I came aross a job listing on my Twitter feed that was an amazing fit for my skills, education and experience. Plus, it was with a very reputable nonprofit organization with smart, influential people that I’d get to work with on innovative projects. For a moment, I thought about applying. I already know the person I’d be reporting to, and about half of the staff in general. I was excited to see this particular position because it’s rare to see a role that could tempt me out of self-employment. I’ve had more than a few headhunters contact me for executive-level jobs, but it’s hard to put a price on freedom, baby.

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There’s Nothing Sexy About Working for Yourself

April 5, 2012 | By Rosetta |

A lot of ladies say they want to work for themselves. It sounds so glamorous, so fun, so footloose and fancyfree. No boss! No clocking in at 9:00am! No dressing up for work! No stupid staff meetings! No office politics!

While those are definitely some of the benefits of having your own business, people often forget to acknowledge the reality that you still have to do the work. Freedom is priceless, but it’s not free. You can’t have the freedom of being your own boss if you don’t have any money coming in to support yourself with. And getting that money takes a lot of work. It’s not impossible work, but it is work. And lots of time. Depending on the type of business you have, it can take a long while to even figure out what the work really is.

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Good Enough for Now

March 31, 2012 | By Rosetta |

Last week, I revamped both of my main websites myself using new themes. It took many late night hours, but since I’m not ready to hire a web designer just yet, it was the next best thing. As I was getting the new sites all set up, I kept muttering to myself that the next time I change my blog designs, they will be totally customized and blinged out by a creative professional.

But what I have right now? It’s good enough.

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Writing, Working and Paying Attention: A Day in My Life in Charlottesville

March 27, 2012 | By Rosetta |

This is the room I’m renting in Charlottesville, Virginia. I’ve been here over a week now.

I found it as a sublet on Airbnb (referral link) for the month. This is the second time I’ve used Airbnb to find a really cool place to stay during my little nomadic adventure (without having to sign a lease!). I used it to find the place I stayed at in Baltimore, which was a great experience. You can use the site to find a room to stay in for a night or a week or a month (or more), in pretty much any country it looks like. To me, it’s like a cross between Craigslist and Expedia. I love that the site allows you to see who your hosts are, view photos and details about the room they’re renting out, plus read reviews of guests who have stayed in the room before you. My current host has about a dozen positive reviews, so that helped me with my choice. She is also an artist and I love artists. Her home is beautiful and old and full of original art and flowers and light. The neighborhood is very walkable, lined with trees and plants and situated just a few blocks from the University of Virginia. This is why I didn’t mind paying $800 to stay here for a month. I have full house privileges, so I’ve been able to cook, do laundry and drink bourbon on the porch whenever I want.

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Turn Off the Lights

March 26, 2012 | By Rosetta |

. . . and light a candle . . .

Nah, this post has nothing to do with the Teddy Pendergrass song of the same name. Although, it is one of my favorites.

Turn ’em off!

I’ve been in Charlottesville, Virginia for a little over a week now. (Much more about my new “home” later!) Half the time I’ve spent enjoying the Virginia Festival of the Book. The other half I’ve spent working on revamping both of my main websites. I wanted them both to be mobile-responsive, so people could see my content better on their iPhones, iPads, etc. I wanted my nonprofit-focused site to highlight me more prominently as a speaker. I wanted happyblackwoman.com to look like a cleaner, more personal Tumblr-style site – without having to actually use Tumblr. (You can see the new layout here, if you’re reading this post by email.)

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How to Start a Side Hustle: My Top 10 Posts to Help You Begin Working for Yourself

March 16, 2012 | By Rosetta |

Over the past two years, I’ve written numerous posts about my entrepreneurial journey as well as tips for other ladies who want to start working for themselves. Here are my top 10 posts about how to start a side hustle or a passion-based business doing what you love.

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Don’t Die Not Knowing

March 14, 2012 | By Rosetta |

When I was a little girl, my family used to call me “nosy Rosie.” That was my nickname. They called me that because I was an extremely curious child. I always wanted to know what everyone was doing, how stuff worked, why certain things happened in the world.

I had a beautiful love affair with Encyclopedia Brown and idolized Nancy Drew as if she were a real person.

I wanted to know everything about everything.

When I was about six or so, my grandfather (or uncle, I can’t remember which) gave me a magnifying glass to play with. I thought it was the best gift ever. Now, I thought, I have the key to all the secrets of the world!

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Four Steps to Becoming a Professional Speaker

Marketing Yourself Takes Courage: What I Didn’t Know in 2007

What I Learned from Being on Public TV: Don’t Forget Your Pantyhose

My Dream Job is What I’m Doing Now

There’s Nothing Sexy About Working for Yourself

Good Enough for Now

Writing, Working and Paying Attention: A Day in My Life in Charlottesville

Turn Off the Lights

How to Start a Side Hustle: My Top 10 Posts to Help You Begin Working for Yourself

Don’t Die Not Knowing

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