Written for The Closet Entrepreneur by Sam Carpenter…

Yes, I’ve read David Allen’s fine book Getting Things Done, maybe the most popular version of the concept of Business Process Management (BPM). There are lots of other management systems/philosophies too, most of them created by business consultants.

Good stuff, much of it, GTD, TQM and the like. But I have a bone to pick.

And before I begin this semi-rant, here’s something about me: I’m a small business owner, not a consultant. I’ve had Centratel, for twenty-five years and over the past ten years have been deeply buried in creating my own management methodology. GTD just recently came to my attention, so consider me a credentialed foreigner coming to town with some blank-slate observations. My credentials? In my work and personal life, I’ve found a simple, mechanical way to get everything that I need and want.

Until I changed my thinking ten years ago, my life was horrible. In the first fifteen nightmare years of my business, I was like the guy with the backwards hat, straining to see some distant object against the blinding sun: one hundred hour workweeks, poor health, no friends and no money. Then, literally, late one night I woke up. I stopped churning and grasping and whining and realized the solution to fixing my life was to, figuratively, simply reach up and turn the damn hat around.

Everything I needed to know was right there, metaphorically perched on the top of my head. Starting with that late night mini-enlightenment, repairing things — and getting what I wanted in the forms of free time, money, great relationships and personal health — was easy.

I didn’t fix things by adding complexity. I fixed things by eliminating complexity and thereby becoming tremendously efficient. First, I dug deep and got very specific about what I personally wanted in my business and my life. And second, I gained a better understanding of how the machinery of the world operates (really). Although my motivation to go in a new direction started with a new thought in my head, the execution came from a belief in my guts. There was nothing mystical about the new approach. It was dispassionately mechanical and absolutely believable.

No psychologists, life-coaches or consultants required.

GTD is the darling of Web 2.0 types, bloggers in particular. I understand and agree with many of the points the book makes for getting control of input and tasks through organizing and categorizing. However, the methodology circles above critical fundamentals: desired life style, basic wants and needs and the mechanics of how the world actually functions. Again, for emphasis: These fundamentals lie below any BPM over-lay methodology.

The thrust of GTD and the other BPM strategies is to gain control by becoming more efficient at handling input while keeping the customer’s best interests in mind, but most of the strategies demand hyper-control of details and these efforts are, in themselves, additional tasks.

After setting some solid, simple goals for our work and our lives, can we get unflagging control of input without adding yet another layer of protocol? Can we, instead, go deeper?

Try this “deeper” concept on for size: For the individual, freedom and wealth come from processing a large chunk of input elsewhere, not in personally repackaging it, overly categorizing it or learning how to juggle it.

Here’s my very simple methodology:

1. Decide and then document what you want and how you will get there (one written page will do it)
2. Decide and then document your fundamental guidelines for operating (two pages, maybe three)
3. Systemize things, with attending documentation (here’s the on-going documentation work, the “work the system” part).

Why documentation? So your instructions are made permanent for yourself and for the people who work for you. Verbal instructions are feathers in the wind.

So, to “get things done,” there is no requirement for massive procedural structure and/or for bringing in a consultant, and there is no need for heart-felt philosophic incantations to staff. And, if you’re on your own – a blogger perhaps – there is no need to stop wondering what to do next and where to go, or to become expert in a myriad of BPM strategies. To begin, here is all that’s needed: a mental mind-shift to recognize that your world is a collection of individual systems; It’s not a confused mass of sights, sounds and events. Once this profound mind-tweak occurs (and it happens in a flash of insight in a single moment of time), you will ruthlessly apply the simple rules of efficiency that you have been anemic in implementing in the past: doing it now, eliminating the unnecessary, automating, delegating, deleting and yes, the protocols David Allen put together so well in his book.

Here’s the crux: Once the shift occurs, you will know instinctively what to do in order to get control of the relentless bombardment of input. For the first time, you’ll really see the systems of your life and then you’ll naturally “work them” to produce exactly the results you want. Since your systems will handle the input to produce the results you want, efficiency will ensue and this means more time and money for you.

It starts with a shift in the head. The rest is simple mechanics

So, go deep to identify the fundamentals of what you really want and how the world works. Don’t get caught up in add-on layers of complexity, or buy into the idea you can’t sort things out yourself. Turn your hat around and really see how the systems of your world operate. Get to that place and the next steps will be obvious.

About the Author…

Sam Carpenter is author of Work the System: The Simple Mechanics of Making More and Working less, (publisher, Greenleaf Book Group), available in hardcover at Amazon and book stores, or by download in pdf or audio format at workthesystem.com. In June, Work the System won the award “Best Non-fiction of 2009” at the New York book festival.

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

Photo by Sam Carpenter

It’s obvious that things have slowed down on The Closet Entrepreneur and the reason is simple — I’m part of the organizing committee that is working on bringing TEDxPhoenix to the Phoenix-metro communities.

What is TEDxPhoenix?

If you’re not familiar with the TED Conference, it’s an annual event where the world’s brightest thinkers and doers come together to share amazing ideas worth spreading. Sounds interesting right… but wait there’s more!

TED is now enabling TED fanatics to organize their own local and independent TED-like events. TED provides free tools, promotion on their site, connections to other organizers, and a little piece of the TED brand in the form of the TEDx label. Organizers provide everything else including finding a venue, speakers, sponsors, and volunteers.

If You’re in the Phoenix-Metro Area…

I would love to have you join us for the event which is scheduled to take place on Friday, November 6th at the Mesa Arts Center — you can get your TEDxPhoenix tickets here. I would even encourage you to join us if you’re in the Tucson, Sedona, and Flagstaff areas as well.

The event is going to feature some of Arizona’s leading experts in the fields of education, sustainability, entrepreneurship, and science. In addition, you’ll be joined by like-minded individuals who are interested in leveraging ideas, education, design, and technology to help create a better future for the Valley and beyond.

If this sounds like something you would be interested in, then please join us on the…

• TEDxPhoenix Facebook Page
• TEDxPhoenix Twitter Page
• TEDxPhoenix Blog

If You’re Not in the Phoenix-Metro Area…

The first thing I would recommend is checking out the TEDx event page to see if there’s a TEDx event going on in your neck of the woods. If there isn’t, then I would highly recommend hosting a TEDx event in your local community.

I’m not going to lie to you, but putting on a TEDx event with more than 100 attendees is a lot of work. Not only are you in charge of every event detail, but you’ll have to find some genuine TEDsters that have been to a TED Conference in the last 24 months to help organize the event, and that’s not always a possibility. Also, you will have to sign up, get permission, and adhere to the rules set forth by the TED organization.

My advice is to start small with an event less than 100 people. you still have to sign up and get permission to host the event, but all you need to do is find a large meeting room or classroom with a projector then add a few of your closest friends and you’re set. If enough interest is stirred up, then I would recommend thinking about organizing a bigger event.

Still Don’t See What the Big Deal is About TEDx?

It’s hard to explain what TEDx is if you’ve never seen a TEDTalk, so we’ve setup a TEDx in Plain English page on the TEDxPhoenix website that showcases some of our favorite TEDTalks and I highly recommend checking them out. I’ve embedded one of my favorite talks by Hans Rosling below, but there are a ton of great talks for you to choose from.

[Feed and email subscribers, please visit the blog post if the video does not show.]

In Conclusion…

In the end, TEDx is about inspiring, enlightening, and entertaining via ideas worth sharing — TEDx is also about creating a better future in your local community and beyond.

In addition to that, organizing an event is a tremendous way to learn how to create and organize a team, secure funding, and brand and market an event. Sound like something a budding entrepreneur may have to do at some point? … it should because it is.

Although I’m knee deep in TEDxPhoenix activities, I would still be happy to answer any questions you may have about the event. Also, I would love to know what your favorite TEDTalk is, so feel free to share it in the comments below if you have one!

Last but not least, I hope to see all the Phoenix locals who read this blog on the TEDxPhoenix Facebook page and at the event!

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

If you have ever struggled to swap business cards without coming across as a complete networking n00b, then this hack is for you!

I accidentally stumbled upon this hack at a conference; my pockets were full so I clipped my MOO MiniCard Holder to my lanyard.

Someone spotted the holder and asked what it was, so I flipped it open to reveal the MOO MiniCards inside; they got a kick out of it and asked if they could take a card—pretty slick don’t you think?

Why it Works…

The MOO MiniCards networking hack is pretty simple yet effective for two reasons:

• First, the holder is discreet yet unique enough to make someone take notice and hopefully wonder what it is.
• Second, the MOO MiniCards themselves are extremely unique; I have yet to see someone react negatively or indifferent towards them.

Obviously, not everyone asks about the holder, yet people still find amusement in seeing you reveal the unique cards that hide inside.

Also, there’s no substitute for old-fashioned networking and mingling—MOO MiniCards will help you make an impression but they won’t do all the work for you.

Designing Your Own…

Thankfully, MOO provides a myriad of ways to design your own MOO MiniCards; currently you can upload a custom design, you can select from a set of ready made designs, or you can import photos from Flickr and a slew of other social networking sites.

Personally, I went with a simple retro look based on Fruit Stripe gum; although I’ve seen some really neat designs like Jeff Moriarty’s MOO MiniCards.

The striped design was created in Adobe Illustrator, although you could easily do something like this using any image editing software like Photoshop—you could even try using PowerPoint or Keynote if your resources are limited.

Design Tips

If you’re a DIY kind of person, then here are some important things to note:

MOO provides a PhotoShop MiniCard Template for you to use. The template dimensions are 7.4cm by 3.2cm, but I would recommend creating your image 10 times larger at 74cm by 32cm and uploading the larger design.

The reasoning behind this is due to finding that a 74cm by 32cm generated image appeared sharper than the 7.4cm by 3.2cm image when reduced to the size of a MOO MiniCard and printed.

Of course, this is just a wacky theory of mine so feel free to tweak (or not tweak) your design’s dimensions.

Design Resources

It wouldn’t be The Closet Entrepreneur blog if I didn’t have some freebies to give, so here you go:

• MOO MiniCard PhotoShop CS Template – okay, maybe this isn’t truly a freebie since it’s provided by MOO.
• MOO MiniCard Adobe Illustrator CS3 Template – this is the standard MOO MiniCard template I created for Illustrator – that counts as a freebie right?
• Retro Fruit Stripe Gum Style Template – this is the actual MOO MiniCard design I created in Adobe Illustrator CS3—simply color in the stripes to your liking and replace my name with yours.

NOTE: The retro Fruit Stripe style template is being provided free under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 3.0 License. Basically what that means is:

• You’re free to copy, distribute, and remix the template.
• If you do alter, transform, or build upon the template, then please distribute the resulting work under the same or similar Creative Commons license.
• You may not use the template for commercial purposes.
• Lastly, give me some props by attributing the template to ‘The Closet Entrepreneur’ and provide a link back to this blog post on your blog/site.

Design Ideas

There are hundreds of business card galleries out there, but here are some of the latest ones I’ve come across:

• Card Observer is a gallery of great business card designs.
• Dailypoetics’ Business Cards Set on Flickr is a must see.
• The MOO MiniCards Pool on Flickr has a variety of designs specific to MOO.
• The SXSW Business Card Collective has some unique designs that were created just for the event.
• You can find more examples via my delicious business card bookmark.

In Conclusion…

I’m a huge MOO MiniCard fan, although I wish MOO would let us create MiniCards using their 100% post-consumer chlorine-free recycled paper. Regardless, the MiniCards are printed on elemental chlorine free (ECF) paper sourced from sustainable forests so I’ll remain patient for now.

So have you had any success with a unique business card design, or do you have any networking hacks that you’ve employed successfully? If so, then feel free to share your thoughts in the comments!

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

I’m about to admit a dark secret that I’ve kept for many years; I’ve used a computer mic to record phone conversations!

Before you erase me from your contacts, just know that the person being interviewed had full knowledge of what I was doing.

Now, if you’ve ever tried to record a phone conversation using a computer mic, you know that the sound quality can be horrible!

Thankfully, the geniuses at drop.io have provided a free and easy way to digitally record your phone conversations for free—keep on reading to see how…

Before You Begin…

The minimum requirements are:

• A cellphone or regular phone with 3-way calling
• A drop.io account, or drop as the cool kids call it

If you don’t have a drop.io account, simply head over to the site and create a drop by typing a name in the Drop name field and clicking the big drop it button.

In the next screen, you’ll have the option of adding an admin password and recovery email address—it’s not necessary but recommended.

‘Drop’ in on a Call

Once you’ve logged into your drop.io account, locate your voicemail number and the five digit extension—write this number down, you’ll need it.

Next, call your drop.io voicemail and 3-way or conference in your other line and begin your conversation.

The recording will stop as soon as you hang up, and your voicemail will be converted to an MP3 and stored in your drop—easy peasy wiretapeasy don’t you think?

FYI: It is illegal to record a phone call without the other party’s consent! Some states require only one party consent, while other states require all party’s consent—do the research and stay out of trouble.

Disclaimer a.k.a. Don’t Blame Me if Something Goes Wrong!

Drop.io is great, but here are some things to keep in mind:

• The free account comes with 100mb of storage, which translates to approximately 400 minutes (6 hrs & 40 min) of talk time. Kiss the whole message goodbye if you go over.
• There is no warning if you enter the wrong drop extension; the call will go on but your file won’t be saved.
• Drop.io doesn’t charge for calling their 646 number (NYC), but your phone company might. Check your plan if in doubt.

By the way, lengthy conversation will take a few minutes before showing up in your drop, so don’t freak out if you don’t see your recording after you hang up.

Tips for Success!

If you don’t want to go through the hassle of entering your drop.io voicemail number and extension every time, then add it to your address book/speed dial.

Simply perform a Google search for pause for an extension and include your phone in the search—I can already tell you that iPhone and BlackBerry users are in luck.

Another tip is to perform a trial run; give your friend a call and make sure everything works. Also, delete any unwanted files from your drop when you’re done.

Last but not least, drop.io gives you a number for conference calls. In theory, you can 3-way your drop.io voicemail and conference call.

According to drop.io’s support staff, a conference call can handle an unlimited amount of people but they have only tested it with 20 people so far.

In Conclusion…

I used drop.io’s voicemail service to record my interview with Rich Sloan and it worked just fine.

Yet before you leave a note in the comments that Service X and Service Y works better, keep in mind that this is a free service with 400 minutes of recording time.

Of course, you can also use drop.io’s voicemail service to:

• record a podcast
• record an interview, speech, or lecture
• get rid of the My Lil’ Reminder that everyone teases you about
• record a conversation with your girlfriend to prove that she really exists

I’m hoping you can put this info to good use; and as always, feel free to leave a comment with any questions, ideas, or advice!

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

Written for The Closet Entrepreneur by Suzanne Turnbull…

Working from home may seem like a luxury, but your home office setup can actually get in the way of your productivity and performance.

The Benefits Of Being Organized…

Most people prefer an organized workspace to piles of papers and office tools, yet it’s easy to fall into a cluttered routine while working hard to get the job done. To avoid clutter from accumulating on your desk, take simple steps like…

• Organizing documents by investing in a filing cabinet, folders, labels, storage bins, and tab divided desk drawers
• Writing out a to-do list to determine your workload and prioritize the tasks at hand

The Benefits Of Being Comfortable…

If you’re going to be spending the majority of your day sitting, your office chair is what you want to focus on most. The chair you choose can have a large impact on your comfort, safety, and work performance throughout the day depending on its ergonomic design and lumbar support.

The Benefits Of Décor…

Your home office should also include inspirational décor and office accessories to ease the home office working rut. When searching for desk or wall accessories, keep a balance a mind.

Elaborate items may prove to be more of a distraction, whereas something as simple as framed photography or a plant next to your computer can create a welcoming environment each time you enter your home office.

Ultimately, your home office is not a place for clutter. The time spent digging through documents and Post-It notes is unproductive and can steal your attention away from the important tasks; so take the necessary time to invest in an organized and comfortable workspace.

About The Author…

This post was written for The Closet Entrepreneur by Suzanne Turnbull, an SEM Specialist at CSN Stores.

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

Written for The Closet Entrepreneur by Steve Sildon…

From small businesses to large corporations, it is vital that each one efficiently track their expenses and responsibly manage their finances. Whether it is for tax purposes or expense reporting, a business must be able to account for all expenditures. For an entrepreneur operating a home-based business, failing to keep business expenses separate from personal purchases can be particularly problematic, leading to bookkeeping and accounting challenges that will inevitably lead to money management issues. Even though small businesses are one of the largest contributors to our nation’s economy, at a time of fiscal crisis and declining economic activity, this is a responsibility that no company can afford to neglect. Fortunately for entrepreneurs, a business credit card is a readily accessible tool that can go a long way in assisting business owners with this particular problem.

There are many advantages to using a business credit card to manage expenses more effectively for both small and large businesses. For tracking purposes, many of the most popular cards provide a detailed monthly statement, breaking down each expense individually in line-item fashion as well as breaking out the expenses into specific categories. Having the expenses categorized in this manner provides a much clearer vantage point of potentially problematic spending areas. Even easier still, if the company utilizes business accounting software, such as Quickbooks, the credit card statements can easily be downloaded into the software, simplifying the process and making the reconciliation of your monthly and yearly statements much more palatable for business owners and their bookkeepers. You can even setup Quickbooks to download the information automatically at a set time to simplify the process even more. Automating some of the accounting process for small business owners can save a substantial amount of time, and that reason alone might justify the proposition of having a business credit card entirely. Less time reconciling expenses might mean more time for developing new products and increasing your sales. This type of automated reporting capability can also make the task of producing financial statements at a moment’s notice for investors or lenders considerably easier, ensuring a much higher level of accuracy.

The average business might only have a few select employees who are authorized to make company purchases, but there are other organizations whose employees must make company purchases on a daily basis. For those companies, these statements can significantly reduce wasted company time by employees filling out an expense report that may not even reveal all the details of their purchases. Would you rather have your highly paid sales people filling out detailed expense reports or selling your products? Obviously, it should still be mandatory that hard copies of all receipts be submitted for record keeping purposes but also to document any and all employee expenses for tax authorities should that be necessary (knock on wood). Additionally, when an employee is required to use a credit card for business expenses, knowing their supervisor and the owner will see each and every purchased item is a constant reminder to keep their purchase activity on the up and up. By having each category clearly outlined, this also enables the business owner to target areas of overspending or non-essential spending.

Before choosing a business credit card, it’s imperative to do research. Online comparisons and reviews of most major credit cards as well as an outline of their vast array of options and special offers is readily available. These websites clearly explain and outline the details to look for low or no annual fees, low interest rates, special discounts, credit limits, and hidden fees such as late-pay penalties, set-up fees or finance charges. Some major credit card companies offer special discounts offered only to businesses, such as air miles and hotel discounts for frequent travel. One popular offer is credit towards a business’s favorite office supply store, accumulated from purchases made with the card. By taking advantage of a frequent flier program, a company could reduce their travel expenses for out-of-town conferences or training seminars. This type of program can trim the cost for companies with Pharmaceutical Sales Representatives, Regional Sales Directors, Insurance Producers, and those whose employment consists of daily or frequent long-distance travel.

If you are concerned about the thought of giving your employees credit cards, you are in good company. As the primary cardholder on the account, small business owners have the ability to set much smaller credit limits on any of the individual company cards used by employees in order to minimize the risk of abuse. You will not have to lose sleep with the thought of employees running around with credit cards on your dime. You can assign credit limits to your card holders based on need, but you also have the flexibility to make the monthly credit limits as small as you want to increase your comfort level.

Nevertheless, many small business owners are hesitant to use any type of credit card in their business. However, the bottom line is this: a business credit card can be an incredibly useful, cost-effective, time-saving tool, if used properly. By putting in place smaller credit limits on individual cards, establishing clear guidelines for card use and properly reconciling all expenses made on the cards each and every month, many of the potential pitfalls and concerns that small business owners have about the prospect of utilizing credit cards in their business can be effectively minimized.

About The Author…

Steve Sildon is a featured writer for CreditCardAssist.com and frequent contributor in the personal financial community on business finance topics such as small business loans, credit cards and alternative financing.

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

Written for The Closet Entrepreneur by Down to Business Editor, Richard Stefan Deeran…

American society values the can-do spirit of start-up companies and as an entrepreneur, you have probably received your fair share of praise for your efforts to generate wealth. But just because you are a bootstrapper doesn’t mean you can expect special treatment from your customers, colleagues, investors and employees. Here are a few tips to help bootstrappers avoid the pitfalls, which send eager employees out the door.

1-Do Not Forget That Talent Is Your Real Competitive Advantage

You have thought long and hard about your unique selling proposition and invested in a marketing strategy to prove your new product or service fixes a problem in a new way or beats your competitors on price, quality or service. But no matter what your start-up sells, established competitors could conceivably muscle you out of the market. If you can’t win a patent for your product, your success may ultimately depend on outworking and outmaneuvering everyone in your way. This means your true competitive advantage is ultimately the talent you can attract and keep. Don’t take the attitude that your employees are lucky to work for you since your new product is such a winner; make sure your employees know how grateful you are that they are willing to go to battle for you. Invest in employee training, create a tolerable work environment, pay for a few perks and compensate your employees as well as you can.

2-Properly Incentivize Employees

If you are a bootstrapping start-up, chances are everyone is working for less pay and benefits than they would receive at a more established company. Your employees are willing to make a sacrifice in compensation now with the expectation that their hard work will be rewarded once the company grows. Small business owners should provide clear, concrete cash incentives to keep salaried employees who are ready to put in those extra hours. “We will take care of you once Potential Investor X or Prospective Client Y” is on board won’t cut it. Neither will selling how great the “experience” of working for a start-up is. Prestige and work experiences are important but ultimately people work to make money. Either provide equity or regular performance bonuses or your best employees will be out the door in less than a year.

3-Respect the Work-Life Balance of Your Employees

As the owner of your dream company, you will inevitably burn the candle at both ends. Much has already been written about the need for small business owners to create a balance between their work demands and family life. But as a bootstrapper, you must also respect the work-life balance of your salaried employees. Most small firms don’t have an official vacation, time-off or sick-day policy, and the expectation is generally that salaried employees will have less time off at a start-up than their peers at established companies. Nevertheless, do not snap at employees who ask for the occasional day off by complaining about how you have had to sacrifice free days. Your salaried employees are probably already working for more hours than they are getting paid to do and the company is ultimately your dream, not theirs, especially if they don’t have any equity. Respect your employees’ needs and they will have an easier time stomaching those late nights.

4-Don’t Diss Your First Customers

Small business owners cannot get too comfortable and ignore or even put-down their first customers. When sales are going well, it is natural to put your best resources towards catching bigger fish. However it is surprisingly common for amateur small business owners to tell their employees to ignore the phone calls of smaller clients when everyone is working on winning a big contract. Even if your smaller customers never find out that you don’t really value their business as much as you once did, your internal morale will take a major hit. Furthermore, your employees won’t have much faith in company leadership if the owners have to start chasing those devalued smaller customers again after the big contract falls through.

5-Protect Your Cash Flow by Any Means Necessary

Cash flow is king, especially now that credit is drying up. Today’s customers may not even be in business three months from now. Nothing hinders company growth or saps morale and energy than when everyone is wasting time on accounts payable calls. As much as possible, small business owners should require that first time customers pay up front and establish a credit record with your business before you start sending invoices off into the ether. Be upfront and kindly explain that as a small business, you’ve had to establish the policy because other customers were late with their payments. If you use tact, many customers will understand.

6-Don’t Sell Hype

An entrepreneur has to sell the vision of their company to their friends, family, colleagues, customers and even themselves. Endless optimism for your new firm will be contagious and may help seal a few deals. While it is essential to keep a positive attitude to overcome the challenges of a start-up, don’t become blind to reality and start selling hype. There is a subtle difference between promoting your company and selling hype and you need to learn it. You will look like a joke to your customers and employees if Potential Investor X or Prospective Client Y is still in “just about to sign” status eight months after you started bragging about them.

About The Author…

Down to Business is a no-holds-barred interview show and website experience that cuts through all the jargon to give fresh insight into the world of business. Serial entrepreneur and business personality Pat Croce hosts, profiling an entertaining mix of industry leaders and innovators. Check it out at www.DowntoBusiness.com.

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

I hate cable clutter, but what does one do with stray cables that can’t be hidden behind a desk or concealed in wire loom?

Thankfully electricians, climbers, and roadies have been dealing with cable clutter for years, and they’ve utilized a nice technique that we can take advantage of!

The Chain Sinnet Cable Wrapping Method

The chain sinnet (aka chain braid, daisy chain, or monkey braid) is a cable shortening and storing method that can be used to make stray cables a little more pleasing to the eye.

You creating a chain sinnet by making a loop at the base of your cord, then pull the remaining cord into each new loop. Be sure to keep your loops loose to avoid damaging the cord.

Ultimately, you should end up with something that looks like this:

The sinnet process can be confusing, so here’s an uber cheesy video that shows you how to create one; just note that the starting loop is different in the video.

In Conclusion…

I wouldn’t recommended using the chain sinnet technique on all the cords in your home and office, but it’s something to consider when tidying up extension, speaker, power, and headphone cords that lie in plain view.

Anyway, leave a comment if you’re aware of any other methods to deal with cords that can’t be hidden!

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

I’m not an occupational therapist, but I play one on this blog. Actually, my previous employer was fanatical about proper ergonomics so I can definitely pass the lessons on to you. Plus, now you’ll have a reason to run out and share your new found learning with that special someone you’ve been stalking on Facebook.

By the way, this guide is mainly geared towards laptop users but desktop users should still find the tips useful.

Tip #1) Ditch your laptop keyboard!

Your laptop keyboard would be perfect if you had the bone structure of a three-year-old, but for general purposes it’s less than ideal. For starters, the crammed key layout forces you to contort your hands into an unnatural typing position. Also, there’s a good chance that you are resting your palms on your laptop which is a great way to make your fingers numb and tingly.

Instead head over to eBay, Craigslist, or find bargains in your sleep and get an external keyboard on the cheap. I bought Microsoft’s Natural Ergonomic Keyboard 4000 on eBay for $20; it’s bulky and ugly and funky yet it places your hands and wrists in a natural typing position and has a ton of shortcut keys to satisfy the lazy arse in all of us.

Tip #2) Get a wireless mouse!

Actually I have no idea why my previous employer was so adamant about using a wireless mouse, but I will say that you no longer struggle with a retched chord and a wireless mouse usually ends up in an easy-to-reach spot. I nabbed a Logitech V200 wireless mouse for $20 after mail-in-rebate on Slickdeals but I know you can do better.

Tip #3) Raise your laptop screen!

From what I remember, your eyes should be level with the first line of text on your laptop screen for the most comfortable viewing angle because 1) it places important information in the area where your eyes naturally tend to rest and 2) it helps keeps your neck and back straight.

There are plenty of ways to raise your laptop screen to a comfortable viewing angle and it all depends on how much you’re willing to spend:

• A cardboard box or pizza boxes (super cheap)
• A stack of books (cheap)
• A hacked IKEA Benjamin stool (somewhat cheap and contemporary)
• A Griffin Elevator (not as cheap but good looking)
• An Mstand by Rain Design (not as cheap but ridiculously good looking)
• An Ergotron desk-mount notebook arm (not cheap, looks menacing, yet uber-adjustable)

If you have money to spare, then consider buying an external monitor because it will make your computing experience so much better. First, you can easily find an affordable external monitor that offers more real estate than your laptop screen. Second, an external monitor is usually easier to adjust and position. Last but not least, an external monitor can be used in conjunction with your laptop screen for twice the viewing fun.

Tip #4) Learn to mouse with your left hand!

I know it sounds strange but placing your mouse to the left of your keyboard actually puts everything within easy reach, especially if you have a keyboard with a built-in 10-key pad. Also, learning to mouse with your left hand will come in handy whenever you want to give your right hand a break or you’re trying to impress that special someone with some mad mousing skills.

If mousing with your left hand isn’t an option, then you may want to look into a compact keyboard like the Apple Wireless Keyboard which omits the 10-key altogether.

Tip #5) Use an adjustable office chair!

I know this sounds expensive but a decent adjustable office chair is priceless. If you’re worried about spending money, then look for a used chair on Craigslist, eBay, or Freecycle. Of course, you should attempt to try before you buy just to make sure that you feel comfortable when sitting in the chair. Also, be sure to get an office chair that allows you to adjust the chair height AND has a set of adjustable arm rests AND provides decent lower back support. You’ll see why these items are important when we…

Put all the pieces in place!

So here comes the fun part, putting all the pieces in place to create an ergolicious home office.

First and foremost, you want your keyboard to be as close to the top of your knees as possible. In the photo below, you can see that the top of my keyboard is approximately level to the top of my “thumbs up”; refer to the photo if this sounds a bit nutty.

Second, adjust your chair’s armrests so they’re level with the top of your work surface or keyboard. Ultimately, you want your armrests to support your forearms while allowing your hands and wrists to hover slightly above your keyboard while typing. Also, try to keep your wrists from resting on your keyboard or desk. By the way, the same criteria applies when using your mouse.

The combination of a low keyboard position and work-surface-level armrests should allow your arms and shoulders to rest as naturally as possible while typing (i.e. typing without your shoulders being pushed up).

If you don’t have an adjustable chair, then one option is to bring your work surface down a few inches by trimming down your desk’s legs. If that sounds a bit crazy, then you can try raising your seat by using a thick chair cushion or throwing your chair up on some books (or cinder blocks if that’s how you roll). Ultimately, you want your arms and shoulders to rest as naturally as possible while typing.

The last thing you’ll want to do is adjust your screen height and distance. As I mentioned before, the height of your laptop screen or external monitor should place the top line of text at or slightly below eye level. Also, your monitor should be within an arms length to prevent squinting and hunching/leaning forward in your seat.

Additional tips for staying safe and healthy…

• A good rule of thumb is to take 30 second stretch breaks every 30 minutes of continuous computing.
• While you’re stretching, focus your eyes on objects that are at different distances from your eyes than your monitor, this helps give your eyes a break from staring at your screen.
• Be aware of any hunching or leaning forward in your seat and try to maintain a good posture as much as possible.
• Get up and walk around at least two to three times a day to give your butt and back a rest, your arse will thank you for it!

If you see anything I missed or want to contribute your own home office ergo tips, then leave a message in the comments and contribute to the discussion!

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur

Post Scriptum: If you want to be uber-ergonomic, then make sure your feet are resting flat on the floor, your thighs are parallel with the ground, and make sure you can fit your fist between the front of your chair and the back of your calf (this may not be possible with all office chairs).

*If you’re not living in Phoenix, keep in mind that green initiatives and green businesses are beginning to gain traction throughout the US so chances are these 10 green business ideas may apply in your neck of the woods.

10 Green Business Ideas For Phoenix Entrepreneurs…

I was fortunate enough to present at the inaugural Ignite Phoenix event on August 12th, 2008 where I gave a presentation entitled 10 Green Business Ideas For Phoenix Entrepreneurs!. If you’re unfamiliar with Ignite, it’s a free and open information exchange about anything and everything with the aim of igniting and inspiring your city’s creative community. Presenters get five minutes and 20 slides to talk about their ideas and experiences, and as you can see from the other Ignite Phoenix presentations, anything goes.

Here’s the five-minute video of my presentation along with the slide show I created; feel free to visit the blog post if the video or slides fail to show up in your email or feed reader.

Updated Wednesday, July 29th, 2009
 
Unfortunately, I created the slideshow before I understood the importance of respecting people’s copyrights. I’m a big proponent of proper use of people’s copyrighted images and work, and thus am removing all links to the slideshow and videos until I can create new ones that feature Creative Commons licensed works.
 
My apologies for any inconvenience this may cause.

By the way, a huge thank you goes out to Clintus McGintus for the great video footage, and much thanks goes out to all the great Flickr users whose photos I’ve linked to on the last page of the slide show.

Additional Notes…

Presenting 10 green business ideas in five minutes was brutal and didn’t leave much room for specifics (big lesson learned), so here is some additional information for your reading pleasure.

Idea #1) Selling Carbon Offsets

I contacted several regional green bloggers and ASU School of Sustainability faculty members only to find that no one was aware of carbon offset providers that directly benefited local Phoenix-metro initiatives.

Idea #2) Green Dry Cleaning

Initially, the only local eco-friendly dry cleaner I could find was Delia’s Cleaners who use a wet-clean process. A few days after Ignite Phoenix, I stumbled upon another dry cleaner using a wet-clean process, Chaparral Cleaners in Scottsdale. By the way, I didn’t include any dry cleaners using siloxane D5 or liquid silicone since it’s a fairly new process that just recently received the thumbs up by the International Fabricare Institute.

Idea #3) Rainwater Harvesting Systems

Phoenix averages around eight inches of rain per year and assuming an average home lot is 5000 sq ft, then you end up with almost 25,000 gallons of rainwater per home per year according to this annual rainfall calculator. Please keep in mind that this is a rough approximation.

Idea #4) Biodiesel Brewers and Biodiesel Transportation

The free biodiesel brewing e-book mentioned in the video is Biodiesel 101 by Hans Huth. As far as actual local brewers go, AZ BioDiesel is the top brewer in terms of media attention; good luck on finding the others.

Idea #5) Green Home Builder

The Philadelphia project mentioned in the presentation is the 100K HOUSE. What’s great about this project is that they’re actually creating a finished product as opposed to just offering a green building and design service. If you’re truly interesting in pursuing this idea, then check out their website for all the specifics. You can also check out the City of Scottsdale’s Green Building Program for additional tips and resources.

Idea #6) Green Business Consulting

A few days prior to Ignite, I stumbled upon the Phoenix-metro Green Drinks get together which I’m planning to attend in the coming months. I’m also planning on grilling any local green consultants about their non-existent SEO. Interestingly enough, the Sustainable Arizona website has a small blurb at the top of the page about greening your business, yet details are lacking.

Idea #7) Green Landscaping

If there are any eco-conscious landscapers in the Phoenix-metro area, then good luck trying to find them.

Idea #8) Electric Scooters and Electric Bicycles

The closest electric bicycle dealer to Phoenix is Spooky Tooth Cycles. They were located in Tucson then moved to Bisbee; this turns any visit into a 6 hour round-trip trek. Interestingly enough, NPR recently ran an op-ed talking about the difficulty of finding electric bicycles anywhere; click here to listen. As for electric scooter dealers in Phoenix, forget about it.

Idea #9) Paperless Services

I have already covered OfficeDrop.com on this blog, and I definitely think they have a great idea that’s going to be successful. The only reason I bring up the idea of a local version of Pixily is because people are somewhat hesitant to ship important documents out of state, so there is potential for a no-frills document scanning business to try and address the concerns of small businesses and homeowners with a more personalized local service.

As for junk-mail elimination, the tools are out there for homeowners and business owners to get rid of their junk-mail yet most don’t want to spend the time doing it, so bundling such a service with the aforementioned document scanning service could definitely be something worth exploring.

Idea #10) Green Remodeling and Demolition

Not much else to say other than finding a local green demo and remodeling service for residential homes is next to impossible, although a.k.a green appears to be gaining some major eco-cred when it comes to green building supplies.

In Conclusion…

As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, some of these green business ideas are slowly starting to gain traction throughout the US so I would definitely recommend that you take the time to research them for yourself. Also, be sure to check out Green LA Girl who also keeps busy at the LA Times’ Emerald City Blog and AzSustainability.com for more green ideas and tips. I should mention that these two blogs were a major resource for my presentation, so a big thank you goes out to Siel and James for all the informative posts.

Last but not least, be sure to check out Ignite Phoenix if you’re interested in attending or presenting at a future event; lots of credit goes to Jeff Moriarty for making the event a reality.

Sincerely,
The Closet Entrepreneur