It’s Saturday, I’m in Starbucks with a wonderful cup of coffee, the June edition of Entrepreneur magazine and a new post for you.
I love to discover podcasts, books and other tools that help grow me and my business. Here are my top 13 resources for 2013- the ones I’ve discovered so far.
I’ve included links where they are indicated. (by the way, I do get a small affiliate commission from the some of links. I identify the affiliate links where appropriate).
Grab a cup of coffee and enjoy.
And….if you treasure a particular podcast, website or book, please let me know in the comment section.
- The Lifestyle Business Podcast
Ran by a couple of guys who have been business partners since 2008, the Lifestyle Business Podcast covers their mistakes, discoveries, most valuable lessons and…their wise guy, sometimes corny humor.
Maybe it’s because I have two brothers I absolutely adore, but I love the blend of humor and real down-to-earth information for anyone who wants to run their own business and do it from anywhere in the world.
They’ve done everything from start a cat furniture business (yes, cat furniture), developed membership sites, invested in manufacturing deals and trained other people to run their businesses from anywhere in the world.
- The Icarus Deception by Seth Godin
Less practical application and more of the “why” behind working hard in the direction of your skills and dreams vs. the general idea of getting a job for the next 40 years. (affiliate link below)
If you ever had an idea of how to fix something, help someone, start an itty-biz but were stopped by your fears, you gotta read this book.
- Natalie Sisson and The Suitcase Entrepreneur
Natalie is a fun, traveling the world while running her business gal.
I love her because she is a female location-independent writer & entrepreneur who is very pro helping other women succeed. I’m not on her blog consistently but I get her email newsletters and I listen to her podcast. Good stuff and interesting guests on the show.
- Pat Flynn and Smart Passive Income Blog and Podcast
The idea of income as “passive” has gotten a bad rap over the years. It takes a whole lot of work to figure what to create, how to create it, market the product and then finally- sell it. Not. Passive. At. All.
However, once it is done, the maintenance to keep the product going is fairly low. That is the where the beauty of passive comes in. Pat shows how he has created websites, products and niche sites and created a small Pat Flynn empire. Pat has a passion for helping other people do what he has done.
His podcast brings on many, many different guests with a wide variety to skills, interests and backgrounds.
Pat does a great job explaining his view on passive income and how it works on on a page he wrote about passive income
- StudioPress
Gone are the days where one needed a web designer and 1K to build a site. Yay!
You basically need two things to in order to get a really beautiful and widget friendly site going: the engine of the website and the framework.
The brilliant folks over at Studio Press do a lot better job at explaining all this tech stuff than mwa. Go over to their site to read their brilliant explanation of their services and products.
Now with the right tools and an extra cup of coffee, the html naïve among us can create our own home on the web. Check out my previous post here about why I think 2013 is the year all of us non technical people are able to get up and launch our businesses with minimal html know how.
I bought the framework for my latest itty business site through Studio Press. I'm having a lot of fun with it.
- ProBlogger
- Smart Creative Women blog and videos
- Sean Ogle and Location 180
- Lila Rogers “I Just Want to Make Things”
- Chris Guillebeau “The $100 Startup”
- Baking Illustrated by the editors of Cook’s Illustrated
- Amazon Prime and free Instant Movie Downloads
- 48 Days Podcast and 48 Days Community
Once upon a time Darren Rowse wanted to share his love of photography with other people. So he started a website, put up incredibly good content, opened up the comments for discussion and soon had thousands of people coming to the site.
Then he created ProBlogger, where he and other talented people write about the art and science of blogging.
I refer to it as my blogging classroom. And I cannot keep up with the great content they produce.
Love, love, love Monica Lee and the way she is building Smart Creative Women.
If you've read this blog for any length of time you have heard me talk about Monica Lee.
The interviews are fabulous and fun. I honestly thought my dreams of being an artist were totally that: a dream. Thanks to Monica and Dan Miller and Deby Dearman (from the 48 days community) I think there might be a sliver of hope after all.
A lot of us dream of quitting our jobs and building a location-independent lifestyle.
Sean actually did it. Check out his site about what he has learned. This year's posts have been excellent. I've been using his post on
how to build a niche site as a template for building my own site. Check it out here. A word of warning: there is four years’ worth of posts- watch the clock as you read throgh.
O.k. so I don’t have this book yet but I drool over it everytime I see a review or hear someone talk about the book. It’s in my June budget. I can’t wait and I know I’m going to love it. (affiliate link below)
I heard Lila Rogers on a panel board in 2011 “Creative Connection” conference in St. Paul, Minnesota. Then I heard Monica Lee interview her last December in Smart Creative Women. Fabulous interview. I love her heart for women, artists and her belief that, “people buy your joy.”
The book came out in 2012 and I read it then. And I’m reading it now. It’s that good. It is a combination of real people who started businesses (some of them accidentally) for less than $100. Chris looks at the trend of microbusiness and answers a lot of questions about the reality of starting a business, the theme of passion and practicality, how long it takes to make a profit, etc. The stories are very varied and unique. Check it out. (affiliate link)
This really has nothing to do with resources for starting your own business but I had to add this book in. Baker’s Illustrated is winning my “Bake Book of the Year Award.” I love to bake. This is a wonderful book that has a bazillion great recipes. (affiliate link) Plus the way Cook’s test bakers and editors reached their conclusion on how they got to their final recipe is included with every single recipe. I don’t always agree with everything but I use Cook’s Illustrated as the standing authority on baking and cooking today. Cuz sometimes you need a mental break and turn a movie or something while the hair defrizzes and the brain defrosts. I click on my favorite French detective and pretend I’m his assistant (a bit brighter than Hastings though). Let’s solve a mystery, mon amie. A shot of encouragement blended with a wallop of practicality. Check out Dan Miller’s Well, my coffee is gone but Entrepreneur is still waiting for me! I hope you have a fabulous Saturday whether you are working on your dream job or getting some R&R in the sunshine- enjoy the beautiful day.
This is a great list. I listen to Pat Flynn like you. I also love these podcasts: Dan Miller 48 Days, Michael Hyatt, and entrepreneur on Fire. Can't wait to try out some of the resources you listed. Thanks!
Thanks Lisa! I love Dan Miller's podcast
I haven't listened to Michael Hyatt's lately but he needs to go back on my playlist.