The LAST Word

  The 2020 Olympics opened in Tokyo last week. While a lot of controversy have surrounded this year's Olympics, the spirit of the Olympics remains the same. It also is a symbol of what business owners should do when they run a company or write for a living . Persistence Olympic stars do not pick up a sport and within days are the best in the world. They usually start when they are young, five or six, and continue practicing their sport until they can win the trials that get them into the Olympics. Then, they have to compete against others in their sports to win the gold and be the best in their sport. They show great persistence to become the best. Often, they fall or lose competitions. They keep at the sport. They keep at their passion until they start winning. They are persistent. To be a best-selling author or the best in your business, you have to be persistent. You have to not let setbacks stop you from being the best. You have to keep marketing your business and

   Every business owner and employee knows that to avoid burn-out and stress , you need to take a break. You could take a short trip within your state, a staycation or you could spend the money to take a longer trip. My husband and I are celebrating a big event -- our 30th wedding anniversary, so we decided that this was going to be the year we traveled to Alaska, see our natural resources and the midnight sun. We were gone for a week in June. Many people were telling us that we wouldn't want to travel that distance or that it might be cold. We went anyway. It was not cold (80 degrees most days in Fairbanks), and the plane ride was long but nothing unbearable. We wanted to do this, so we did. The point is if you work nonstop, you will quickly become stressed. You will be uninspired, and you will not want to do your job any more. Everyone needs time away from their writing and marketing. Although staycations can be helpful for some, I find that they are tempting to go back to my w

  Recently, politicians have attacked our freedoms and rights in the name of public health. The most recent was the removal of the intellectual property on the vaccines against the coronavirus disease. The idea is that it is available to all, but already, the vaccine is given freely to Americans, but pharmaceutical companies should be allowed to protect their formula so they could license it to other countries or companies. It was removed to protect health, but it sets a dangerous precedent and authors should be outraged. If pharmaceutical companies could lose their intellectual property, authors could too, namely their copyrights on books or cookbooks .  The Constitution guarantees Americans the right to pursue property. Intellectual property is still property. Patents, trademarks, copyrights, software coding, music, art, formulas and much more are protected and should be allowed to be retained. In Sept. 11, 2001, we started losing rights in the name of security. Now, we are losing

  This week, I the value in using all my resources. I recently joined P.O.W.E.R., an organization for women of excellence. As a member, I have the ability to target these women business owners with e-mails and to connect with them on a one-to-one basis. This feature has proven a good benefit of my membership. I can read profiles and find women that I believe I could help or women who could help my clients. I can get to know them. In addition, I am making important connections. Here are some tips for you to use your resources. Tap Associations – Go to the memberships and build relationships. These people could lead you to profitable marketing opportunities . Even if they can't be your target client, they might know people who can be your target market. Building relationships with people in groups you already join will help you continue to build your sphere of influence and eventually increase your profitability and name recognition. Go for Broke – Business consultants

  As a journalist and author , I am concerned about the precedent set by taking Dr. Seuss from schools and libraries. Banning books is the first step toward having a government telling us what we are allowed to read, what we are allowed to think and what we are allowed to say. His books might offend some people, but they have a right be available. He is allowed to have his say. And, the replacements might offend more people. When does it stop? Huckleberry Finn will be next or To Kill a Mockingbird will be found offensive, but at the times they were written, that was what common. You can't impose 2021 political correctness on 1960s or older books. Goes Against Constitution We have a Constitution and first amendment that guarantees free speech, which includes printed books, electronic books, information on the Internet and newspapers. While the publisher is within its rights to remove books from print and not sell certain books, the libraries are not allowed the same permi

  You might be surprised to know that I write romance novels but hate Valentine's Day. This might seem odd. I write about love, but I don't like the day dedicated to love. In novels, the romance and love you write is a permanent love, one that lasts forever, not just one day. However, you don't have to like Valentine's Day to write about it. Here are some tips to include Valentine's Day in your writing, regardless of the type of author you are. Have Something Happen – In The 1776 Musket , a bombing takes place on Valentine's Day. Although it seems like I did it because I don't like the day, that wasn't my motivation. I needed a date that involved a lot of people who go out on dates. My novel was set in winter, so Valentine's Day made sense. Now, I see that my unconscious mind might have been a influential piece in this case. For you, if you are a science-fiction author or a fantasy author, you could have a spaceship land on Earth on Val