There are so many people I admire but if you ask me to list the top 10 people  I admire, I would have to name Randy Pausch as one of them. A young college professor who chronicled his battle with cancel and delivered the kind of lecture that not only make you stop to pay attention but also touch your heart and soul. It is the kind of lecture that makes you ask yourself, if I knew I was going to die and had a chance to sum up every thing that is important to me, what would I say? It’s not a sad lecture; in fact, it is uplifting as it makes you want to think about your dreams and achieving it.

How does it apply to entrepreneurs? We are often so scared to make decisions or take opportunities that is presented to us, fear rules over us. There are also some of us who are in jobs we don’t like, doing work that we know we were not meant to be doing…. but too scared to step away from the familiar habits that we have been in for so long to follow our passion and dream.

“It is not the things we do in life that we regret on our death bed. It is the things we do not. Find your passion and follow it” – Randy Pausch

http://soc.li/OVv93ni

Posted via email from Virtual Assistants | Comment »

The coworking movement is one that has every one rethink how they work. With technology giving us the ability to work wherever and whenever we want to, it then creates a unique situation where we crave for colleagues and social interactions after being cooped up for a long period of time.

“As working from home becomes more and more common for creative professionals – be they freelancers or otherwise – the need for social interaction in the workplace has become increasingly more apparent. While home offices allow the flexibility to do what you want, when you want, it is important to question how our environment affects both state of mind and productivity.”

“By bringing like-minded folks from diverse professions together into one place, you create a very powerful contingent of brain power.”

Read more about: New Workspace

Posted via email from Virtual Assistants | Comment »

After a long rough day, especially a day where it all feels all overwhelming.  I turn up “Dirt off your shoulder” by Jay-Z real loud!  Jay-Z is an inspiration to me, he came from the ghetto to creating an empire and becoming one of the richest man in America.

I hope you will enjoy this song as much as I do!

  Jay-Z‘s most inspiring quote: “I’m not a businessman, I’m a business, man. Let me handle my business, damn!

Posted via email from Virtual Assistants | Comment »

Must be something in the air but at least a dozen young entrepreneurs have asked me, “How can I go about incorporating my business?”

It is a wonderful thing for the economy when someone decides to venture into the world of entrepreneurship but it can also be very overwhelming.  Sole proprietorship or corporation?  What name should I use for my business?  What logo? Should I trademark my logo?  Incorporating federally or provincially?   It all becomes very overwhelming but thankfully there are FREE resources available to help answer those questions.

When The Network Hub was conceived, my two partners and I were students, so, there was no way we could afford lawyers to take care of everything. Although, depending on your business, you should DEFINITELY be talking to a startup/business/incorporation lawyer.

Jay, John and I have had experience working together and we previously incorporated for our other company so we were familiar with the process.  To register your business name, you have the option of going in person to Small Business BC or submitting your business name online with BC Registry Services.  Now here is the odd thing, you would think submitting would be a 24/7 service – nope, not with BC Registry Online.  BC Registry Services operates from 6 am to 10 pm Monday-Saturday and from 1 pm to 10 pm on Sundays.

We opted to go in-person because we wanted to incorporate our business name. Now, when your company is incorporated, the name is checked against a list of registered corporations in BC to ensure there are no duplicates.  We wanted to consider all possibilities of our company name submission, so that it would not rejected because that means $49 gone to waste and we would have to resubmit.  With proprietorship or partnership, business names are not protected so you can have multiple companies with the same names. (Note: if you feel overwhelmed already, get yourself a good lawyer to incorporate for you)

Once we got the approval letter mailed back from the BC Registry Services, we went ahead and started the incorporating process.  You have 56 days from when your business name is approved to decide on a business structure, otherwise, you have to submit AGAIN for approval – another $49 dollars.   If you have no idea which business structure is right for you – go to Small Business BC, Google it.,or consult a lawyer.

Here is the excerpt from Small Business BC:

1. Sole proprietorship. If you plan to operate the business on your own, either under a business name or your own name
2. Partnership. If you plan to operate the business with one or more partners
3. Corporation. If you plan to operate the business as a separate legal entity, separate from yourself and your personal assets
4. Society. If you plan to operate a not-for-profit organization, in which any funds or profits will be used only for the society’s purposes
5. Co-operative. If you plan to operate a business that is owned and democratically controlled by the people who use and benefit from your services

A major difference between a corporation and a sole proprietorship or partnership is that, in a corporation, no individual person is responsible or liable for debt (unless specifically outlined in a contract or legal document for your business). Also, if any members of your business leave or are replaced, it won’t affect the business as a whole and operations can continue, uninterrupted.

For us, we chose to incorporate because of liability protection and tax-benefits.   You have two choices when it comes to incorporating:  self-incorporation online at Corporate Online or consult a lawyer.   While we would have loved to have a lawyer to take care of this process for us, it wasn’t possible with all the expenses of starting up a business. So, we decided to register the business ourselves.

With the help of the Incorporation Guide for British Columbia by Self-Counsel Press for $19.95 and about $350 to incorporate online, we were officially incorporated.  Check out Self-Counsel Press for other forms such as Legal Forms for Incorporated Business.

Please note:  This is NOT legal advice. If you require advice, please consult a lawyer!!

Posted via email from Virtual Assistants | Comment »

The journey of being an entrepreneur has been a learning journey but also a challenging journey.  It is one that constantly bends my faith, tests my characters and challenges me to extend the limits of my tolerance every day.  Some days I am brought down to my knees other days I am lifted like an angel with wings.   Although I am one to believe it is better to look ahead than to look back, I believe therein lies in the past lessons that if I forget, will repeat itself until I have learn them.  As I look back and address my 17 years old self, I am also reminding my present self that with these battle scars, I know better and I will do better.   By no mean this is the complete list of all the things I would say but perhaps the ones that I would say right now if I were able to step in a time warp.

Be curious.
Curiosity allows you to absorb everything that is happening around, it create a sense of excitement that you will always experience something fresh but more importantly it will make you ask the question “Why?” and it is with that particular question you begin to find knowledge.  Keep watching Star Trek; continue to dream of travelling to a distant galaxy and embrace the unknown but investigate by asking “Why?”

Be playful.
Play doesn’t cost money, play doesn’t involve thinking because play is something you feel like you need to do and you can’t somehow justify it without giggling.  Smile often, laugh out loud and be silly.  Decorum and improprieties are for the 1800’s ladies who drink tea and wear corsets.   A wise lady named Laurel Thatcher Ulrich said, “Well-behaved women rarely make history.”

Be courageous.
Bad thing will happen to you.  That is a fact of life; you can feel weak from it but make the decision that the experience will not reduce you.  Tremble but forge ahead with courage.  Let me tell me how geeky girls are hot in the future so bear with teasing and bullying for now.   Keep standing out, shrinking down to be less a person that you are to please others is not.

Be wary of whinning.
If you don’t like something, change it.  It is within your power, you are in control of yourself and your mind.  You are not a victim of your circumstance.  Be proactive, be the change because “We become what we think about all day long” – Ralph Waldo Emerson

Believe.
Be yourself, believe in yourself and be still.  People will say you are too young, not smart enough, wrong time, wrong place, too much of a girl, too ambitious, too emotional – too much of everything wrong and too little of anything worthwhile.   Hush up and believe me, you can be anything you want to be.  A lawyer, a microbiologist or an entrepreneur – whatever that path is, you get to choose and you have life’s permission to change your mind. Be still and hear your own voice, believe it as it will guide you – ignore it at your own perils.

Posted via email from Virtual Assistants | Comment »