My favorite folk
A colleague of mine made a nice little list like this last month and graciously included me (Thanks, Andrea!). It’s a great idea and I thought it would be fun to do the same. This short list of inspirational people are some who I look to for genius sparks to propel me into whatever my action-packed self-employed life has for me next.
Seth Godin: Author, Speaker and Entrepreneur Extraordinaire
Of course he’s on this list, and #1 to boot. If you’re in marketing or design and he’s not on your short list, deduct 600 points from your score. Now, add them back by getting in the know!
Seth Godin is amazing. Seth Godin is brilliant. Seth Godin is so smart.
Mr. Godin entered my life as a book I had to buy for a college course. It was about a cow. Since then I’ve been hooked. Small is the new big. Tribes. The Dip. Linchpin. Linchpin! Poke the Box. All brilliant and all like literary oatmeal that’ll stick to your ribs. Don’t even bother checking his books out from the library. You’ll want to outline, underline and dog-ear them to death. (Trust me. I tried it and returned the thing with 67 pages turned. See photo. Oops.)
Dave Ramsey: Author, Speaker and Personal Money-Management Expert
Oh, Dave. Where do I begin? Dave has changed my life. Honestly.
Just over two years ago I picked up The Total Money Makeover. I had no idea how far and deep and wide the wisdom in that book would reach. Thanks to Dave’s experience and willingness to shepherd others through the mayhem called personal finance, my husband and I are on our way to being debt-free. In The Total Money Makeover Dave outlines seven baby steps to financial peace. We’re on Step #2 (the debt snowball, explained in this previous post). We’ve paid off five of our six loans, three of which were school loans (AKA “good debt” – Lies! There is no such thing).
The more control we gain over our money, the closer we are to realizing our financial goals. It’s a hard road, but one that is well worth the pain. Those of us who are self-employed especially need to get a grip on our bookkeeping and bank accounts. Don’t wait a second longer. Throw The Total Money Makeover in that Amazon cart with Seth’s stuff and get your money-making butt in gear. Your income is your greatest wealth-building tool (as Dave would say).
P.S. You can get one hour of his three-hour radio shows daily as a podcast on iTunes. I’m addicted.
Lisa Johnson: Author, Speaker and Chief Storyteller of Reach Group Consulting
The first time my path crossed with Lisa’s was at a Portland Advertising Federation event, probably in 2007. She was the keynote speaker and was talking about a new generation of consumers. Her presentation style was fresh, colorful and anything but snore-inducing. I was enamored. Imagine my delight when in 2010 I was unexpectedly, but officially introduced to Lisa by my spiritual mentor, Paula Gamble. They knew each other from way back when. In turn, I knew that the connection was certainly not a coincidence.
Since that introduction Lisa has become my go-to friend and guide for all things business, client and entrepreneur-related. She has revolutionized the way I think about myself and my business. She’s helped me combat my fear of getting ten years down the road and hating the business I’ve built by equipping me with ideas and tools to make my work (and life) exactly what I want it to be.
It was through a course I co-directed with her and Jordan Philips of Hey Jo Jo Studios that The Exceptional Creative ever even came to be. For that alone I owe her a big, fat….kiss? Money order? Something! (By the way, she co-authored The Free Agent Formula, a must-have toolkit for anyone who works for themselves. Add it to your library with the others.)
There are other favorite folk, but this is a pretty darn good start.
