Archive for February 2011
On Presidents’ Day, I always celebrate the term of my favorite President, William Henry Harrison. William Henry Harrison served the shortest presidency in American history. After giving a two hour inaugural address (the longest in American history) in the freezing rain without a hat or coat, he contracted a cold and died after serving only [...]
Weekend Thread: Do You Use Twitter?
I’ve cleaned my Twitter feed and am now following almost no one. Do you use Twitter? Put your Twitter name below and I’ll follow you. If you don’t use Twitter, or have questions about it, leave your question below and I’ll try to answer it. One randomly selected commenter will receive a free copy of [...]
Free Legal Advice In 140 Characters
It’s not often you’ll find free and lawyers in the same sentence, but one firm in the UK is hoping to change that. Nick Jervis has created what is believed to be the first UK legal service that is based on Twitter, according to Insider Media Limited. Nick Jervis, managing director of Bristol-based Loyalty Law, [...]
Business in a Shipping Container Shut Down
Thinking about starting a business in a shipping container? If you’re operating in Oregon, make sure you get the proper permits or the city will shut you down. Oregon Live has more on one such entrepreneur: For a couple of months, Vancouver has been home to a bicycle shop operating in some unconventional digs: a [...]
When the native-born Icelander, Siggi Hilmarsson, came to the U.S. he was repulsed by all the over sweetened foods available. Having been raised on raisins for candy and raw vegetables for snacks, his palate was overloaded with the heavy sugar content in most American food. Missing the food from home, he decided to try to [...]
As any entrepreneur would know, it is not always easy trying to find a person who can do a good job.. That was a lesson that Juliette Brindak soon learned after starting Miss O & Friends as a teenager. Her business launched more than 5 years ago, and it is safe to say that she [...]
A Computer vs. A Puny Human Brain
Last week, Ken Jennings, the player with the longest winning streak on Jeopardy, and Brad Rutter, the biggest all-time money winner on Jeopardy, played two exhibition matches against IBM’s artificial intelligence program Watson). If you haven’t seen the episodes yet, Watson won. Ken Jennings has written an interesting take on the experience: Just as factory [...]
The Rising Success Of Women In Business
Across the country, the number of women that are launching businesses is growing. As that number grows, we are seeing more mompreneurs and mom/daughter teams working together. Ashley Swider always had an interest in fashion. The opportunity to do something about it presented itself in 2006. She partnered with her mom and started Cose Belle, [...]
Starting a Business in 3 Steps
Starting a business doesn’t have to be hard. Business Insider offers these three simple steps: Keep it service-based and simplistic. When starting a business, you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. You must make it as simplistic as possible. Find a niche area. Keep your new business niche. Keep it as niche as possible. Think [...]
Plugging A New Source Of Energy
What will you be doing when you reach 91 years old? For some people, that age means sitting back and enjoying each day. However, Harold Isaacs is using this time to invent. Some years back, Harold was reading a book on engineering and how it applies to an urban ice-making plant. The book included information [...]
Website Helps Entrepreneurial Students Get Their Ideas Off The Ground
A business idea is nothing unless you can get it off the ground. With that thought in mind, there is a new website that helps students do just that. FledgeWing is dedicated to helping entrepreneurial college students receive ideas and feedback that will help them successfully launch their own business. Their service is available to [...]
Beware: Entrepreneurial Employees
If you thought it was the competition that you should worry about, you may be wrong. The exact strengths that helped you leave the rat race may become the controversial factor that causes one of your employees to leave the company and start up their own — within your niche. According to SmartCompany, a new [...]
Fueling Your Car With Plastic Bags
Even though some cities have banned the use of plastic bags, they are far from extinction. These bags are finding their way into our oceans, landfills, and as trash in our yard. However, one inventor has created an effective solution. According to Clean Technica, Akinori Ito, a Japanese inventor, has created an invention that can [...]
Students have something new to look forward to when they write their next essay. Gareth MacLeod recently spoke with Fast Company about his new iPhone app, Quick Cite. It is created for college students by a college student. Once you have installed the app, for a meer $.99, all a student must do is take [...]
Just as broken hearts can inspire some of the most creative art and music, so also can broken hearts inspire successful business ventures. Joshua Opperman, Ellie Scarborough, and David Maname all turned their unluck in love to luck in business. The Wall Street Journal tells more: Mr. Opperman found out the hard way— after his [...]
iPhone Church App for Churches Of Any Size
At Sermon Audio their passion is to help get great teaching and preaching material to a wider listening audience. With that in mind they’re excited to announce their newest offering: We’re excited to announce our newest service exclusively to broadcasters on SermonAudio — the iPhone Church App! A fully-functional, and completely affordable native iPhone app [...]
In kilograms, this chart depicts the amount of coffee consumed per person according to the country. To convert to pounds from kilograms, multiply by 2.2. The key in pounds, with representative a country, is: Less than 1.76 lbs (India) 1.76 – 5.28 lbs (Mexico) 5.28 – 9.9 lbs (United States) 9.9 – 14.96 lbs (Canada) [...]
Today in Entrepreneurial History: February 16
1852 – Studebaker Brothers wagon company, precursor of the automobile manufacturer, is established. 1937 – Wallace H. Carothers receives a United States patent for nylon. 1968 – In Haleyville, Alabama, the first 9-1-1 emergency telephone system goes into service. 1978 – The first computer bulletin board system is created (CBBS in Chicago, Illinois).
Whether in the home or at work, ambiance matters. It can make the difference in concentration, productivity, and comfort. Often a focus wall can make the difference. Many home and business owners will choose a bright color or a scenic picture to make a certain wall “pop”. Now there is another option. Springwise.com recently featured [...]
Wireless + Duplex Printing + Cheap = $79 Laser Printer!
I’m in the market for a new laser printer. A HP LaserJet P2015 has served my home office faithfully for years, but now that little hands have grown long enough to reach up and open the paper tray for paper to color on, things are starting to break. First it was the paper feed mechanism. [...]
Ever wonder why some mornings you wake up with a skip in your step, ready to take on the day, while other mornings, it’s all you can do to drag yourself out of bed? There is a personal sleep coach that may help you find these answers. It sits right at your bedside and watches [...]
Niche Invention: Jogging Cruise Control
As any good jogger knows, keeping pace is important. That may be possible on a treadmill, but until now there were no options for joggers. Two scientists from Simon Fraser University hope to solve that problem, reports The Vancouver Sun. Their device is a little like cruise control on a car. It allows joggers to [...]
Metal Fabricator Makes iPhone Covers
Bier Designs, a metal fabrication shop in a nondescript industrial park in Fresno, California started making aluminum iPhone covers six months ago just to keep their employees and machines busy. Now, the business is taking off. The Fresno Bee has more: But the covers have become much more than that, attracting hundreds of orders a [...]
Windshield Repair Business Opportunity
It doesn’t matter if you drive the newest car available or an old heap, chips and cracks can happen to any windshield. When they happen, it is important to take the necessary measures to fix the problem before it can get any worse. Where you have a need, there is an opportunity not far behind. [...]
Finding The Divapreneur Within
Jennifer Rundall wanted something different, but she was unsure on what she needed to do to get it. As a single mom, she kept telling herself that she could not leave the rat race. However, that is exactly what she did in 2009. After starting a successful virtual assistant business, she decided it was time [...]
Small Business Ad Trends: Social, Search Marketing
Small businesses that are facing tight budgets are trying to make the most of their advertising dollar. According to Direct Marketing News, a new survey by MerchantCircle shows that entrepreneurs are doing this by using Facebook and search engine advertising strategies. Asked to name the top three most effective marketing methods they use or have [...]
Retractable Leash: The Fantastic Made Ordinary
In the January 1941 edition of Popular Science a fantastical invention was profiled: A leash attached to a spring-operated reel is a new wrinkle for dog owners. Encased in a light but sturdy aluminum housing, the reel carries twelve feet of waterproofed leash strong enough to hold a great Dane yet light enough for use [...]
This looks promising. What looks like the world’s first smoothie vending machine, Juva Juice, made its debut on Mississippi State University’s campus in January. MSU alumnus Justin Mitchener began working six years ago on a machine that would offer a healthier drink alternative for students on-the-go. The first and only machine on the market was [...]
Glassware That Combines Fashionable And Fancy
Have you ever wondered why fancy glasses and goblets were so, well, plain? Kristy Peters couldn’t help but ask herself the same question. She decided to tap into her artistic talents and created Lani Designs. It is time to take the plain out of the glasses you use in your home and add a little [...]
Manitoba Business Boot Camp Is Back
The Brandon, Manitoba, Canada boot camp has come back for another year. According to The Daily Graphic, participants will be taught how to perfect their sales pitch, and they will pitch their ideas to a panel of judges. The top three presenters are awarded prize packages valued at up to $2,000 in cash and business [...]
When Shane Stedman sold his Ugg boot invention 28 years ago, he made a whole £10,000. Today his invention is worth $799m a year. However, if you think he regrets his decision to sell then you would be mistaken reports news.com.au. Ugg boots have come a long way since their 1973 creation – designed to [...]
Smaller, Cheaper, iPhone Coming
Did you, like me, rush out and get a Verizon iPhone last week? We don’t have AT&T service here in the mountains, so I’ve been waiting for Verizon to join the club and get the iPhone since we moved up here a couple years ago. I’ve looked on with envy at all of the cool [...]
Making Fuel From Beer Brewing Waste
Before Eric Fitch started creating fuel from brewing waste, all he knew was how messy it could be. At one time, he caused an accidental plumbing back up. He flooded the basement in his apartment building because he tried to dispose of the grain from his home brewing down the sink. Needless to say, it [...]
Today in Entrepreneurial History: February 14
Happy Valentine’s Day, Entrepreneurs! We often complain that today is a holiday that was made up to sell greeting cards and flowers. What better day to celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit! In 1797, a British publisher issued The Young Man’s Valentine Writer, which contained scores of suggested sentimental verses for the young lover unable to compose [...]
Meet the Readers: Cindy and Ric
Once a week or so I’m going to profile the very special people who read this site. If you’d like to participate, shoot me an email. Tell us about yourself. Ric and I met right after Katrina (August 2005) brought him up to NY from New Orleans. I was teaching an English class, he wandered [...]
Inventor Earns A Spot At Unreasonable Institute’s Boot Camp
Scot Frank, inventor and founder of One Earth Designs, has successfully landed himself a spot in a type of boot camp that is hosted by the Unreasonable Institute. People that enter are required to raise $8,000 within a set period of time. According to The Salt Lake Tribune, those who succeed will receive a position [...]
The lights are no longer the only thing that will go off when you clap. Randy Sarafan has created a unique bra that will unclasp and fall to the ground at the sound of clapping. According to Examiner.com, he hopes that his bra will have start up a lingerie revolution in this country. Sarafan said [...]
Cockroaches for Valentine’s Day
Flowers wilt. Chocolates melt. Roaches are forever. As a Valentine’s Day special, The Bronx Zoo is selling naming rights for their cockroaches. Can’t decide on what to get that special someone for Valentine’s Day? Sometimes the answer is all around us, and right where it’s been for millions of years—like cockroaches! How better to express [...]
The Bright Side To Social Media
A December blizzard buried the Spot Dessert Bar in two feet of snow. When that happened, business dropped considerably. Worried what it might mean for their business, they took to the Internet and brought those customers back. The Wall Street Journal states that it was because of the offer of half-price hot drinks being offered [...]
Dating Websites For And By Entrepreneurs
If you have no one to celebrate today with, you’re not alone. Valentine’s day has been a thorn in the side of single people for a long time. If you are an entrepreneur and you find yourself single today, Reuters has a list of websites that can help you solve that problem. Unlike Match.com or [...]
Healthy Restaurant: Lyfe Kitchen
Lyfe Kitchen (Love Your Food Everyday) is a new fast-casual restaurant from two former McDonald’s executive and an Oprah Winfrey celebrity chef that hopes to be the antithesis of McDonald’s with: no fried foods no butter no cream no high-fructose corn syrup all menu items contain less than 600 calories If you were looking to [...]
Robots can already mow our lawns, wash our hair and vacuum our floors, will they soon take care of our elderly? The Daily has more on the future of eldercare: You will be old but you will not be alone. You will have a household helper, a bumptious and prying type to be sure, but [...]
Weekend Thread: What Do You Want to Know?
Thanks for everyone’s participate in last weekend’s thread about your websites. This weekend, the topic is what would you like me to write about? Is there some specific kind of business that you’re interested in knowing more about? Some aspect of starting an online business, for instance? Or, how to make money with a pancake [...]
Who is John Galt? Atlas Shrugged Movie Trailer
The Official Atlas Shrugged Movie trailer is out. Atlas Shrugged Part 1 opens in theaters April 15th, 2011. Atlas Shrugged, if you don’t know, is a novel by Ayn Rand, first published in 1957. In the book, leading innovators, ranging from industrialists to artists, led by John Galt, refuse to be exploited by society and [...]
Small business owners have a lot of worries when it comes to using social media for their business, and rightfully so. Many entrepreneurs wonder if the time spent is really worth it, and others cannot help but wonder if there is a way to monetize the time spent. The Huffington Post says that social media [...]
Mark Legenstein had spent many years installing carpets. He also spent as many years stuck on his knees while handling each project. Mark had enough. According to Fox WPMT, he created a special pair of skates that straps to your knees. For carpet installers, it means scooting across the floor with ease. Knee Blades makes [...]
Mom’s Hairclip Hobby Goes Entrepreneurial
Innovative people don’t sit around waiting for solutions to come to them, they create their own. That is what Sherryl Mascarinas did when she launched her hairclip business. However, that is not how it started. Sherryl began making her hairclips in 2005. She wanted something special that her daughters could wear. After a while, she [...]
Innovative Entrepreneurs Inside the Box
The following is a guest post by Art Gould. There is nothing more powerful than what you get when you mix a little creativity together with a healthy dose of entrepreneurial spirit. The results can be truly mind- boggling! I am constantly reminded of this whenever I look around and see how people are sometimes [...]
Google Pays Homage To Thomas Edison
In honor of Edison’s 164th birthday, Google has created yet another great logo for the day. The logo (shown above) features a few moving parts and a glowing light bulb. PC Magazine looks at some of the great things that Thomas Edison did when he was alive. Edison, an inventor who was dubbed the “Wizard [...]
Free Online Business Courses for Entrepreneurs
The following is a guest post by Brian Jenkins. A business education doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg. You can actually learn about the various aspects of operating a business for free on the Web. The Internet provides entrepreneurs with numerous free opportunities to enhance their business skills. Several colleges offer their [...]
