I did not post on May 25th as we were on the road heading back from visiting relatives in Daytona Beach.

What I discovered was the number of posts I average in a day.  Last week the average was 53.  I think it may be less in prior weeks. 

After reading this list and seeing just how much I post, I realized that I need to get a life.  Keep in mind many of these posts occur in the middle of the night (especially when I can’t sleep).

Here’s what a typical week on Twitter looks like to me (and my followers):

Every day I posted Interviews with Women in Business and Women on the Move from the WE Magazine for Women blog.

I also Posted a number of quotes, retweeted more than 20 people, thanked dozens of people for the retweets and listed several people to follow during #followfriday. 

In addition, each week I participate in Twitter Tuesday for the Boomer Diva Nation and help other Divas in the group promote their blog posts, articles, websites, events and more.

Each morning I read the dozen or so ezines that come through my email (skim them really) for interesting articles that might also interest my Twitter followers. I copy and paste the titles and URL’s into a post, save in a Twitter file in Outlook and when I have time, post to my Twitter timelines.  I also read at least 8 magazines a week and if I find an interesting article I cut it out, and search online for the article so I can mention it and link to it for my followers to read.  It’s a good thing I read more than 400 words a minute or no way could I even post half this stuff. So here are most of the resources I shared on Twitter from May 23rd to today (in reverse chronological order).
 

May 29th (Today)

Mobile marketing best practices guide by Mobile Marketing Association http://www.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?i=15759&p=17 

Special Delivery Diapers.com’s innovative Web strategies turn customer acquisition and retention into an art form http://www.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?i=15759&p=14 

The Myth of the Rational Buyer: How Too Much Thinking Can Hurt Your Brand  http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/mark-dziersk/design-finds-you/myth-rational-buyer-how-too-much-thinking-can-hurt-your-brand?partner=homepage_newsletter 

Twitter: The Real-Time Answer Engine http://www.twitip.com/twitter-the-real-time-answer-engine/ 

Answer A Reader Question: Twitter For Fundraising?  http://www.twitip.com/answer-a-reader-question-twitter-for-fundraising/

5 tips for objective media planning http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23245.asp

Case study: A Facebook campaign that connected http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23240.asp  

Backlash: Women Bullying Women at Work http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/10/business/10women.html?_r=2&pagewanted=1&8dpc

42 Million U.S. Women Use Social Media: Blogs Most Influential http://smallbiztrends.com/2009/05/42-million-women-use-social-media-blogs.html
Pioneering Women Who Are Breaking Through the Digital Ceiling Part 3 http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/allyson-kapin/radical-tech/pioneering-women-who-are-breaking-through-digital-ceiling-part-3 

How to account for the entire consumer life cycle in your planning process http://www.imediaconnection

The Myth Of The Myths Of Social Media Marketing http://bit.ly/AEXwH

Improve Online Customer Acquisition via Lead Verification, Enhancement and Scoring June 9 2PM EST http://tinyurl.com/mufhze
 
How to maximize a brand’s social relevance http://www.imediaconnection.com/ads/ms-i-09.html?ref=/content/23062.asp
 
Twitter gets main stage at D conference http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23238.asp

May 28th

Know any women under 35 who are tops in their field? Interviews avail for WE Mag. http://bit.ly/A4FQ4

10 Golden Rules of Social Media  http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/05/26/10-golden-rules-of-social-media/

5 Factors to Consider When Selecting Enterprise Social Tools http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/05/28/5-factors-to-consider-when-selecting-enterprise-social-tools/

Babylon 8: On-the-Fly Translation of Words and Web Pages http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/05/27/babylon-8-on-the-fly-translation-of-words-and-web-pages/

Watch Your Website Users with Clixpy http://webworkerdaily.com/2009/05/27/watch-your-web-site-users-with-clixpy/

Topsy: a search-engine whose results come from highly trafficked Twitter links  http://www.boingboing.net/2009/05/27/topsy-a-search-engin.html

Why Are the Most Creative People in Business Skipping Out on Web 2.0? http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/dan-macsai/popwise/100-mcp-why-they-do-and-dont-share-themselves-internet?partner=homepage_newsletter

Reading: The Most Influential Women in Tech: http://www.fastcompany.com/women-in-tech/2009?partner=homepage_newsletter

Reading: There are refreshingly inexpensive ways to refresh a web site http://www.internetretailer.com/dailyNews.asp?id=30570

The Effectiveness of Live Chat Technology (study of Internet shoppers) http://www.boldchat.com/ir

McDonald’s Senior executive reflects on lessons learned over 33 years http://www.thefranchisemagazine.net/franchise/mcdonalds-restaurants/franchising-mcdonalds-way/4339

Improve Online Customer Acquisition via Lead Verification, Enhancement and Scoring June 9 2PM EST https://event.on24.com/eventRegistration/EventLobbyServlet?target=registration.jsp&eventid=137202&sessionid=1&key=385BA6CD81E6EC02775CCF9902416B29&partnerref=001&sourcepage=register

How to maximize a brand’s social relevance http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23062.asp 

The Franchise Magazine  http://www.thefranchisemagazine.net/?return=9535-eb9408-vltkv

Reading Corner Office: Women Ascending by Grit, Smarts ~ http://bit.ly/A24mc

Subscribe to HispanicBusinessDigital http://hispanicbusinessdigital.epubxpress.com/?site=1

Check out ‘The Long Tail and Social Media’ http://online-social-networking.com/the-long-tail-and-social-media

Why advertisers should think like comedians http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23053.asp 

How internet directory services failed http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23055.asp

10 Tips for entrepreneurs and your business to beat the recession http://bit.ly/qXC7E  #business

How to Write a White Paper (FREE PDF) http://www.klariti.com/white-papers/How%20to%20write%20a%20White%20Paper.pdf  

May 27th 

New York Times ~ Tweeting Your Way to a Job http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/21/fashion/21whiz.html?_r=1

Grab a free 10-part eCourse on “How to Leave the Office Earlier” when U take the LEAVE THE OFFICE EARLIER pledge http://www.TheProductivityPro.com/leave.html by June 2.

Even More Laughs! Humor In Retail Email, Once Again http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.showArticle&art_aid=106710

How To Succeed In Business If You’re Boring http://www.brazencareerist.com/2009/05/24/how-to-succeed-in-business-if-you-re-boring-and-not-quirky-weird-nor-cool

9 tips for dealing with social media enemies http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23205.asp

Twitter’s growth and longevity pinned on many unknowns http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23219.asp 

Twitter gets its shot on primetime http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23218.asp

Creativing ~ Social Media. Let the inquisition continue http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/BlogDetail.aspx?BlogID=636

Forget Electric Cars: The Hydrogen Road Rally Starts Today http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/ariel-schwartz/sustainability/forget-electric-cars-hydrogen-road-rally-coming?partner=homepage_newsletter

How Big Business Weathers the Economic Storm  http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/136/through-the-fire.html?partner=homepage_newsletter                                                                           

Why the Apple Tablet Rumors Still Won’t Go Away http://www.fastcompany.com/blog/kit-eaton/technomix/why-those-apple-tablet-rumors-still-wont-go-away?partner=homepage_newsletter

May 26

Top 5 Ideas to Rev Up Your Sales for the Next Quarter http://bit.ly/ktODy

Share and Share Alike – 4 Fantastic Reasons to Leverage Social Bookmarking ~ http://tinyurl.com/ps3wtr
 
4 ways to Increase Your Twitter Popularity With People That Count http://bit.ly/xj0OI

Women’s Leadership Exchange Ft. Lauderdale Conference at the Sunrise IKEA Tuesday, June 16th $10 off at www.womensleadershipexchange.com

Converting Web Pages Into Subscriber Magnets http://tinyurl.com/qx5yu6

The New Way To Learn About Wine: Twitter http://bit.ly/dgUGT

Top 16 Social Plugins For Wordpress http://bit.ly/uh7js

AUTHORS & SPEAKERS MAKING MAJOR $$$$ listen 2 REAL STORY TELESEMINAR FREE Http://www.anniejenningspr.com/publicitypro.htm

The lights go back on at CircuitCity.com ~ new owner Systemax has relaunched site: http://bit.ly/F7lvp

Watch this video: Overcoming the buyer/seller divide http://www.imediaconnection.com/summits/23193.asp

Google wins search, so Yahoo goes social http://bit.ly/15tuaH   

Reading, Social media: Whose job is it anyway? http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/23165.asp

Flower Mound: Pastor asks congregation to connect with Twitter ~ http://neighborsgo.com/stories/36756

“One has to abandon altogether the search for security and reach out to the risk of living with both arms. Morris West #Quotes

Reading Article Marketing 101: The Perfect Author Resource Box ~ http://tinyurl.com/2ascf6

Save cash by going green One business’s story ~ http://tinyurl.com/r3v5yy

Interesting read: Why small businesses fail http://tinyurl.com/qa6oek

Credit card reform leaves small biz out ~ http://tinyurl.com/p8lysh

Reading: Financial literacy through video games ~ http://tinyurl.com/ogclk7   

Branding on YouTube ~ http://bit.ly/9nkyk

SAVE THE DATE Set 16 ~ Digital Marketing World Fall 2009 : Free Virtual Conference http://tinyurl.com/qyhm5t

Learn How to Leverage Social Media for Your Business with this Social Media Marketing Kit ~ http://tinyurl.com/qet2l8

My So-Called Marketing Life: How Do I Extend the Reach of My Brand? http://tinyurl.com/ot4n4g

HOLISTIC WEB MARKETING: Seeing the Forest through the Trees http://bit.ly/GYdRd

May 24th

The 12 Essential Social Media Stories This Week ~ http://bit.ly/VSxcw

“The secret of Happiness is Freedom, and the secret of Freedom, Courage.” ~ Thucydides #Quotes

We must be prepared to make heroic sacrifices for the cause of peace that we make ungrudgingly for the cause of war… Albert Einstein

4 things support the world: the learning of the wise the justice of the great the prayers of the good, and the valor of the brave”

“The legacy of heroes is the memory of a great name and the inheritance of a great example.” Benjamin Disraeli

Be sure to stop and say a little prayer in honor of those who gave their lives so we might enjoy ours this Memorial Day  

If you are celebrating a Happy Memorial Day this weekend with family & friends thank a Veteran! www.tweettoremind.com #tweettoremind

Who is your Hero? Mine R the men & women who every day put their lives on the line 4 PEACE & FREEDOM #tweettoremind www.tweettoremind.com   

Interactive map tool creates online memorial 2 U.S. coalition troops ~ http://tinyurl.com/qtc2r4 thank U to all who have sacrificed 4 US

May 23rd

Read Finding the Right Wave to Ride (Secular Trends)
http://tinyurl.com/olqenc

Reading Linked Data is Blooming: Why You Should Care http://bit.ly/301r2

Web 3.0 or Not, There’s Something Different About 2009 http://bit.ly/UfG46

WECAI Domains ~ need a domain name, email or hosting ~ check out www.WECAIDomains.com

2 Faves Business Week - http://www.businessweek.com… & Inc. Magazine

Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs http://www.inc.com/

Ten Common Selling Mistakes in Business http://tinyurl.com/p5tzm

Do you know if you are charging the right price? http://tinyurl.com/qvuee

Everything I Needed to Know about Customer Service I learned in a Tokyo Convenience Store http://tinyurl.com/oojfjj

Number-one way people grow their business is with a follow up system. What’s your follow up system? I use www.SendOutCards.com/heidi  

Check out interviews at WE Magazine for Women ~ Business & Lifestyle Magazine for Women on the Go www.WEMagazineforWomen.com12:48 AM May 23rd from web    

Subscribe to Keith Ferrazi’ free Newsletter (Author, Never Eat Alone) at www.ferrazzigreenlight.com #SmallBizWeek

Learning, and Profiting, from Online Friendships (Twitter, LinkedIn, etc) VIDEO http://tinyurl.com/rbwqss12:29 AM May 23rd from web    

Why You’ll Give Your Money to Strangers, and Date Someone You’ve Never Met http://tinyurl.com/q658cv

Newspapers Tweeting Like Crazy But What Are the Rules? http://bit.ly/1aeigN

Join Business and Professional Women’s Foundation as they honor women veterans this Memorial Day www.bpwfoundation.org

This is an excellent exercise to see just how much you post, how much content you post is relevant and how much you interact with your followers. I believe that the reason so many people follow me is the high content I submit.  BTW, if you are interested in finding new resources and like mega content, and you don’t mind getting lots of tweets from one person, follow me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/heidirichards. Of course, if you have a life, and don’t have time to follow me, I totally understand.  I am not sure I could follow me either!

Happy Tweetin’

Welcome to FREEBIE Friday for Small Business WEEK.  Here are additional resources to help you manage and grow your small business into a sustainable enterprise.  Read these articles and use these tools to position yourself for exponential success in your small business.

ARTICLES to Help you Manage Your SMALL BUSINESS:

Why PR Is the Prescription http://tinyurl.com/q2n2yz

The Right People vs. Getting the People Right http://tinyurl.com/ozuz4q

For Some Small Businesses, Recession Is Good News http://tinyurl.com/p22yn3                                                                                              
Don’t call her an entrepreneur  http://tinyurl.com/bdbr6w

Reading “The Heart of a Company” http://tinyurl.com/rcrdbm 
                             
Women: Selling Ice to Eskimos http://tinyurl.com/qjvkf9
 
Everything I Needed to Know about Customer Service I learned in a Tokyo Convenience Store http://tinyurl.com/oojfjj

The Pros and Cons of Business Blogging http://tinyurl.com/okyurz

How to Start and Grow a Business in a Slow Economy http://tinyurl.com/prma4x

Do you know if you are charging the right price? http://tinyurl.com/qvuee5

BRIDGING THE GENDER COMMUNICATION GAP TO BOOST BUSINESS SUCCESS http://tinyurl.com/o7323h
WEBSITES WITH Small Business IDEAS, TIPS AND Resources

Michigan State University Center for Intnl Business Education & Research ~ www.ciber.msu.edu/
 
Info on proposal writing and government contracting, doing business with the government, small, minority & women-owned business ~  www.proposalwriter.com
 
Home Based Business - A resource for home based business owners: guides, discussion board, government alerts, calendar, hbe newsletter, more. www.missouribusiness.net/hbb/

Provides access to University of Missouri Extension business programs, publications, newsletters, guide sheets, related resources, more.  www.extension.missouri.edu
 
SBA State Home Pages ~  www.sba.gov/world/states.html

State and Local Government on the Net ~  www.statelocalgov.net/index.cfm

Small Business Advisor ~ www.isquare.com

The Mining Co: Small Business Information ~ www.sbinformation.miningco.com
 
Resource for family business owners and executives ~ www.fambiz.com ~

The Daily Resource: the ultimate resource for today’s SMALL BUSINESS Entrepreneur (daily motivational podcast beginning June 1, 2009) www.TheDailyResource.com

Business & Economic Reference Library ~ www.mnsfld.edu/depts/lib/business.html
 
Smart Business Supersite ~ www.smartbiz.com/sbs/about.htm
 
K. Williams Business Resources ~ www.members.tripod.com/~KWilliamsResources
 
EBOOKS AND SPECIAL REPORTS:
 
Self Marketing dictionary This Glossary of Sales & Marketing Commonly Used in Bricks & Mortar and Online Businesses ~ Includes Internet Marketing Definitions and Acronyms Widely Used Today. http://tinyurl.com/r6o8cb

SmallBusiness.com Guide to Emergency Planning Basics for Small Business  http://tinyurl.com/qrmn4z
 
SmallBusiness.com Guide to Marketing Basics for Small Business http://tinyurl.com/pdfdbb

SmallBusiness.com Guide to Advertising Basics for Small Business http://tinyurl.com/pysez2

Smallbusiness.com Directories are user-contributed directories of links to online resources for small business owners and employees http://tinyurl.com/qk2vct

Want to start a small business? Check out this guide http://tinyurl.com/q3verj

The IRS and Small Business Administration (SBA) “Small Business Resource Guide” http://www.sbrg.irs.gov/
 
Ten Common Selling Mistakes in Business http://tinyurl.com/p5tzml

Nine Ways to Increase Profits in Your Business http://tinyurl.com/p9lzuh

Start your own Internet Business the right way, without falling into the traps that are out there waiting for you EVERYWHERE… http://tinyurl.com/pczpdr

Quirky Marketing 365 Ways to Promote Your Business Using Zany & Non-traditional Holiday – chapter 1 ++ http://tinyurl.com/pfk2ag
 
Get free audio Cashing in on MySpace AND two other FREE Gifts at http://www.quirkyoffer.com/LiveCallsInstructions.htm

Promoting Your Business on the WEB: 15 Strategies to Establish Your Brand, Get More Traffic and Make MORE Money on the Internet! (8-page report) http://tinyurl.com/r88sc5

NEWSLETTERS AND ONLINE MAGAZINES:

FUTURIST UPDATE newsletter from the World Future Society ~ www.wfs.org/futuristupdate.htm 

Sales Caffeine with Jeffrey Gittomer http://www.gitomer.com/sales-magazine/Sales-Caffeine.html

Business KnowHow Newsletter http://www.businessknowhow.com/newsletter/subscribe.htm

Seeds of Success Newsletter ~ http://www.successmagazine.com/subscribe/seeds/of/success

Business Week - http://www.businessweek.com/smallbiz/

Inc. Magazine Daily Resource for Entrepreneurs http://www.inc.com/

Entrepreneur Magazine ~ http://www.entrepreneur.com/

WomenEntrepreneur ~ http://www.womenentrepreneur.com

Success Magazine ~ http://www.successmagazine.com/

WE Magazine for Women ~ Business & Lifestyle Magazine for Women on the Go www.WEMagazineforWomen.com 

Subscribe to Keith Ferrazi’ free Newsletter (Author, Never Eat Alone) at www.ferrazzigreenlight.com

eMonday News ~ bi-weekly digital newsletter filled with small business and social media marketing tips and resources. To subscribe send a message to NEWS (at) wecai.org with “Subscribe eMonday” in subject line.
 
MISCELLEANEOUS SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES:
 
Have a freebie you’d like promoted? Visit www.1000greatgiveaways.com (we are updating w new prods)  Send me DM with link to freebie and I check it out!

Free Autoresponder – www.freeautobot.com

Free teleseminar services – www.freeteleseminars.com (can record your sessions for free)

Animoto lets you produce TV-quality music videos using your own photos, or stock photos, in just minutes- www.animoto.com

Number-one way people grow their business is with a follow up system. What’s your follow up system? I use www.SendOutCards.com/heidi Test drive with a FREE card.

Instant Teleseminar http://instantTeleseminar.com/productInfo.asp?x=1306902

WECAI Domains ~ need a domain name, email or hosting?  Domains start at $8.95 each at www.WECAIDomains.com

Here are a list of small business resources to help you realize your financial goals:

Structure financing to satisfy both your business and personal needs ~ www.score.org/fc_3.html

Small Business Loans and Grants ~ http://www.business.gov/finance/financing/

Small Business Financing Resources ~ http://tinyurl.com/4ctlga

9 Steps to Establish Business Credit ~ http://tinyurl.com/qzv6qd

Tap 7 Innovative Ways to Finance Your Business ~ http://tinyurl.com/qle8tm

Discover all the Basics to Getting Business Grants and Loans ~ Take the Free eCourse ~ http://tinyurl.com/pqxucr

Alternative Financing Sources ~ Does your company need capital and it doesn’t qualify for traditional bank financing? http://tinyurl.com/qdjfwf

LOCAL AND NATIONAL EVENTS:

HOW to Promote Your Small Business on the RADIO ~ Here’s  event taking place on Wednesday, May 20th, that you don’t want to miss. IT’S FREE and early in the day. The perfect incentive to jumpstart your Publicity campaign.  Go to: http://tinyurl.com/qt8qfw and read all about it.

CHECK OUT THE U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)  Small Business FREE Workshops Nationwide info at:  www.onealtectraining.com

Internet Retailer 2009 Conference & Exhibition Boston on June 15-18 http://tinyurl.com/r8tz5p

Social Media Summit - Early Bird Discount Ends This Thursday http://www.socialmediasummit09.com/

June 9-11 - WEBNC Women in Business: National Conference and Business Fair - San Francisco, CA  http://tinyurl.com/cgwhu4

Power You Dream: NAWBO Women’s Business Conference 2009 ~ Women’s Business Conference 2009 offers a unique platform for women entrepreneurs to power their businesses. From awe-inspiring general sessions to value-added concurrent breakout sessions- some of the country’s top business experts and renowned entrepreneurs will present keen insight and timely perspective on how women business owners can sustain, grow, and expand their enterprises by recognizing and seizing opportunities in today’s challenging business environment. June 24 - June 26, 2009 www.nawbo.org

Green Business Event ~ second annual Green Business Event will invite an elite business panel to address questions regarding the local Green Movement. The Los Angeles Business Journal invites you to join us as we investigate ways in which companies of all sizes can intelligently respond to the call for sustainable business practices. Luncheon & Networking, 500+ attendees.
July 7 Los Angeles, CA www.labusinessjournal.com

WEBINARS ON DEMAND:

Expanding Your Web Presence in 2009 ~ Business is booming. In the past two years Online sales have increased more than 40%. Isn’t it time to maximize your online presence in 2009?
Learn search engine optimization tips and e-commerce strategies to help increase your sales, how to build a loyal customer base with email marketing and more…  http://tinyurl.com/pyauj3

Disaster Preparation and Planning for Small Business ~ Disasters can strike at any time. What’s your recovery plan in place? Did you know that 70% of small businesses that suffer a major data loss will go out of business within a year. Arm yourself with the information you need so you won’t be another statistic.
http://tinyurl.com/on5z7b

Finding Success in Today’s Economy ~ Learn business tips and information for “Finding Success in Today’s Economy”. Entrepreneurs and small to mid-sized companies who wants to achieve business success during tough economic times, can learn how to establish good business practices, develop sales and marketing strategies, identify new business opportunities and more ~ http://tinyurl.com/qakubn
 
Put Your Business to Work…For You ~ free online seminar. In one hour, learn how to increase productivity and make smart use of technology to grow your small business.
http://tinyurl.com/qcqycb

MISCELLANEOUS SMALL BUSINESS RESOURCES:

Nominate a Top Small Business for the 2009 Top 200 So. FLA Small Business Awards http://www.businessleader.com/SouthFlorida-Top100

Check out the SBTV Events Calendar for a list of Small Business Events around the USA ~ http://www.sbtv.com/calendar/default.aspx

Help a Reporter Out (HARO) ~ Find out who’s looking for whom to interview at www.helpareporter.com

Grow a Million Dollar Business Audio Program ~ 17 interviews with experts on topics that add to your bottom line at www.growamilliondollarbusiness.com

WECAI Domains ~ Register Your new domains here: www.WECAIDomains.com

Tips Booklets are better than brochures and people hold on to them! Create Tips Booklets to Promote Your Small Business ~ http://www.tipsbooklets.com/

GRAB Annie Jennings FREE Publicity CD at http://www.anniejenningspr.com/experts.htm

Want great publicity tips for your small business? Check out Joan Stewart’s Publicity Hound Newsletter ~ www.publicityhound.com
 
Influence and Social Networking sites ~ Places to find other Small Business Owners Online:

The Small Business Buzz (@sbbuzz) community on Twitter convenes two hours every Tuesday starting at 8 p.m. EST

LinkedIn ~  www.LinkedIn.com

Sta.rtUp.Biz ~ The Small Business Social Network at: http://sta.rtup.biz

Perfect Networker ~ www.perfectnetworker.com 

Check out the social networking directory Ning http://Ning.com for niche social networking sites

Manage Your Messages on Dozens of Social Networking Services at Once with Ping.fm  http://tinyurl.com/ov95ml

Read yesterday’s post 100+ Tips to Manage Your Small Business http://tinyurl.com/q928l6

Be sure to read today’s Women in Business Interviews on the WE Magazine for Women Blog ~ www.WEMagazineforWomen.com

Feel free to suggest similar resources in the comments section.

In keeping with the theme of Small Business week I am posting several articles and resources filled with more than 100 tips and ideas to help you manage and grow your small business.

If you have a great resource (or know of any) feel free to leave the info in the comments section. And do remember to comment. It helps us both with the search engines.

TODAY’S TIPS & Strategies to Thrive in Your Small Business:

7 Tips to Promote an Effective Meeting ~ http://tinyurl.com/pezv97

Slideshow: 8 Tips for Managing Staff Through Hard Times http://tinyurl.com/pezv97

Slideshow: 5 Tips for Selling Services Now http://tinyurl.com/ozx9wl

23 Tips for Tough Times ~ The Ultimate Business Tune-up for Times Like These http://tinyurl.com/ovckhw

6 Ways to Grow, Despite the Downturn http://tinyurl.com/pcbzy5

12 Ways to Attract Clients with Your Business Card http://tinyurl.com/q92lsz

5 Ways to Stand Above the Crowd http://tinyurl.com/pd42za

10 Business Survival Tips from Donald Trump http://tinyurl.com/r3llma

10+ Business Uses For Twitter http://tinyurl.com/cq8g4x

12 Powerful Recession Bustershttp://tinyurl.com/ovetpd ~ Legendary brands like Microsoft and Tupperware were born during a recession. The truth is that small businesses can grow in any economy.

5 Tips to On-Hold Profits ~  http://tinyurl.com/om95tf

5 More Tips to On-Hold Profits ~ http://tinyurl.com/p93sgn

WEBINARS on-demand

Four Ways to Double Sales ~  FREE web-based seminar about how to double your sales in 12 months. The concepts shared will be your best resource for increasing revenue. In this short hour, you will learn how to focus on your “best buyers,” hire the right sales force, reduce costs, and more! http://tinyurl.com/pe2wn8

Running a Small Business: 10 Overlooked Truths Revealed ~ Susan Wilson Solovic, Bestselling author, attorney, speaker and journalist and the CEO of SBTV.com ®, discusses some of the real-world challenges of running a small business that the textbooks don’t teach you.
http://tinyurl.com/rxcak3

ARTICLES for the Small Business Entrepreneur:

America’s Most Promising Startups (Is yours one of them?) http://tinyurl.com/8253bb

Twitter: Building Businesses Tweet by Tweet http://tinyurl.com/q3y4qc

Effective PR on a Limited Budget http://tinyurl.com/olftuh

America’s Weirdest Businesses http://tinyurl.com/dly4nh

How to Get on DailyCandy and Thrillist http://tinyurl.com/92hdt4

The 30 Greatest Fictional Entrepreneurs http://tinyurl.com/pptgpg
 
5 Moms Who Built Great Companies http://tinyurl.com/o9nfje

LIVE EVENTS:

~ Join me May 19 (today), 3 pm EST for In Praise of Bolder Women (free teleseminar) http://www.aprillejanes.com/bolderwomen.htm

HOW to Promote Your Small Business on the RADIO ~ Here’s  event taking place on Wednesday, May 20th, that you don’t want to miss. IT’S FREE and early in the day. The perfect incentive to jumpstart your Publicity campaign.  Go to: http://tinyurl.com/qt8qfw and read all about it.

And be sure to visit WE Magazine for Women at www.WEMagazineforWomen.com. Every day this week WE Magazine interviews 15 facinating women business owners and what they are doing to make a difference in their business and the lives of others.

Try AWeber Email Marketing Risk-Free

SBTV ~ Small Business Television: Real People Real Business ~ www.SBTV.com

Nominate a Top Small Business for the 2009 Top 200 So. Florida Small Business Awards ~ http://www.businessleader.com/SouthFlorida-Top100

Manage Your Messages on Dozens of Social Networking Services at Once with Ping.fm  ~ http://tinyurl.com/ov95ml

Ask the Expert Rieva Lesonsky of Entrepreneur Magazine (listen to her podcasts) http://tinyurl.com/pmr53m

Why PR Is the Prescription ~ Business Week Article http://tinyurl.com/q2n2yz

Commercial Creation Center Multi-media Production Suite including Audio, Video & Image Creation * Editing * Uploading ~ http://tinyurl.com/osmx9l

Publici-tea TO-GO is a bundle of comfort, joy, and DIY publicity inspiration that engages all of your senses, captures your attention, and compels you into DIY action to realize ready results with confidence ~ http://tinyurl.com/ouxmn5

Small Business Trends Blog with Anita Campbell http://smallbiztrends.com/

Penny Pinching Publicity Program with Shannon Cherry ~ Here’s an easy way to get proven publicity and public relations strategies to create more traffic, more prospects, more sales and more profits in less time AT LITTLE OR NO COST!!!

Women’s Media Summit Resource List (hundreds of resources to connect with the media) http://tinyurl.com/qk6dlz

The Twitter Phenomenon, My Twitter Story ~ http://tinyurl.com/cc4m88

Tuesday Twitter Tutorials - Attend a weekly teleseminar on how to get your Tweet On! http://tinyurl.com/cauf3p

GET MEDIA SAVVY!– The Ultimate eGuide to Promote Your Products, Services and Ideas to the World ~ http://tinyurl.com/bezt4g
AUDIOS & VIDEOS

Recognition Awards can Benefit Your Small Business http://tinyurl.com/pt2s4g

Lilian Vernon Shares her Theory on Entrepreneurship http://tinyurl.com/okrgpo

Overcoming Business Obstacles http://tinyurl.com/qd9u6k
 
Savvy Selling: How to Identify, Cultivate and Retain Your Best Customers VIDEO http://tinyurl.com/dbu4t5

Marketing: Tell a Story to Your Customers VIDEO http://tinyurl.com/pchm7l

Small Biz America: Where Small Business Talks ~ http://www.smallbizamerica.com/

Women’s Media Summit Audio Program ~ http://tinyurl.com/pcplh4

Blogging for Business Program How to Create Multiple Income Streams, Celebrity Status & More With Your Blog www.bloggingforbusinessprogram.com

If you have any media resources you’d like to share, be sure and leave the information and link in the comments section!

Best wishes for a successfull small business week in your neighborhood or part of the world!

Be sure to stop by tomorrow for Small Business Tips Tuesday!

And in honor of Small Business Owners the United States Small Business Administration kickes off  week long celebration called Small Business Week.

Beginning Monday May 18th through Friday, May 22nd, events will take place across the country in honor of small business owners. Chambers of Commerce will honor their small business person of the year, and small business owners will have specials and sales that customers and clients will be able to take advantage of.

In fact, during Small Business Week WE Magazine for Women is featuring at least 60 women business owners including mothers and daughters who work together.

And Success and Then Some will be bringing you a list of resources every day that can help you plan and grow your small business in every way, every day. 

For instance, on Monday you will learn about Media resources, Tuesday is Small Business Tips Tuesday, Wednesday I will post links to Events for Small Business Owners, Thursday is Small Business Resources Day for all those miscellaneous small business resources you may not know existed and Friday is Small Business Freebie Friday.  I will post dozens of online resources available to small business owners that you can access online for free!

And every day these resources will be featured on my Twitter timeline (one resource at a time). You can share your own small business resources and follow the conversations at #SmallBizWeek. And if you aren’t doing so already be sure and follow me at http://twitter.com/heidirichards. It should be a fun and informative week.

For more info on Small Business Week, read NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK: ‘Backbone of America’ here: http://tinyurl.com/pn6cw6

Here’s the official site for National Small Business Week: http://www.nationalsmallbusinessweek.com/

Here are some FAQ’s by the SBA Advocacy Small Business Statistics and Research ~ http://web.sba.gov/faqs/faqindex.cfm?areaID=24

Looking forward to sharing these helpful resources with you.

To your success… and then some,

Heidi

What I’d like to do today is take each area of our business and see how we can maximize our profitability, beginning with Processes.

Are you maximizine your time? Do you focus on the work at hand? Do you play on your strenghts in business? Do you know what your competitors weaknesses are? Do you look at expenses and focus on reducing them to add to your bottom line? If you answered “no” to any or all of these questions, chances are you are not getting the most profit from your small business.

The first thing to look at are the processes you have in place to run your business. Do your processes add value to your business or are they things you do to stay busy? Busy-ness is doing things that you don’t really need to do and not paying attention to those things that could add value to your business. Only you can answer this question.

Processes in business can include how you handle mail, how and when you check email, paperwork, reports, meetings, travel, and other forms of communication such as the telephone.

The first question to ask yourself when looking at your processes is “Do I find things to do that keep me from doing the really important stuff, do I procrastinate by hiding behind “doing?” Do I find myself wasting time on mundane tasks during times when I should be marketing my products and services or training my clients, customers and staff for maximum effectiveness?

This is huge for me. When I have a task that seems overwhelming, I can find myself working on things that have little or nothing to with the task that really needs to be done. Take my newsletters for instance. I sometimes put them off until the very last moment because the job just seems too overwhelming to me. I want to work on them and get them out, but somehow I manage to find other things to do, such as answering emails, or going through old emails and deleting them. BTW, there is a time and place for everything so doing the sorting is not a bad thing, it’s just that I might do this during my peak time instead of working on the creative aspects of business when I am at my best.

What processes do you put too much time in, avoid, procrastinate about, or just get by doing that could be affecting your bottom line?

Here are some processes you could change to better manage your time and add to your bottom line:

THE TELEPHONE - Screen your calls. By doing this you are choosing who you wish to speak to. For example, say you are having a highly productive day, you are really in a flow, accomplishing a lot of things on your to-do list. And the phone rings. It could be a customer or it could be a sales person making a cold-call. Now I am not against sales people, I just wish they had better timing. It seems to me they call when I am either in the middle of writing an article or working on my website, having dinner or meeting with an important client.

Wouldn’t it be nice if you could “screen these calls?” You may already be doing so, by having an answering machine pick up. However if you are in earshot and you hear the message it becomes another distraction. I recommend you hire someone to answer those calls for you. Having someone answer your calls (a live person) makes your company appear larger, and in some cases more professional. Now I already know that for some of you this is not the answer. You will tell me that your customers like being able to get you directly. And that may be true.

What I am saying is that having someone who is trained to answer your calls can free up a lot of your time to pursue those things that are important to business growth. Like marketing and public relations. There are many companies who offer this type of service. The most important thing is if you are going to screen your calls make sure you return them promptly. Don’t make people wait. It could cost you a job, a career or even a customer.

EMAIL - If you’re like most people these days, you probably get between50 and 250 email messages a day, many of which are unwanted. And some which are important. Multiply that by the number of email accounts you have, and you could find yourself spending the better part of most days just deleting and/or responding to these electronic communications. The problem is how to clear out your inbox and better manage your time.

Here are some tips to get your email under control.

Keep your inbox empty. This is the key to managing you e-mail.

Put important email messages in a folder or folders and title the folders appropriately.

Answer important emails in a timely fashion at specified times of the day (you decide when it is appropriate to respond and schedule that as your email writing time.

Set your inbox to check for new messages only a few times a day. Turn down the “you’ve got mail” announcer so you can better focus on the job at hand.

Get a spam filter. You may risk losing some email messages, however, you have greater control over what you allow into your inbox.

Put important email addresses in your address book so you won’t have to go searching for them when you need to send a message in a hurry.

Subscribe to mailing lists, listservs and the like at a new e-mail address. This will help with email overload and you can check these in your spare time instead of having to peruse them with your more urgent communications. Gmail may be a good choice for this.

Use your “delete” key. Clean up your inbox and remove old, unused messages.

In a subsequent message I will talk about maximizing meeting effectiveness….

Heidi

Heidi Richards Mooney ~ Author, Entrepreneur, Business Coach
Stay in Touch with SendOutCards http://www.SendOutCards.com/Heidi
Check out my latest book: QUIRKY MARKETING at http://www.quirkyoffer.com

Follow Me on Twitter ~ http://twitter.com/heidirichards

1. Improve your performance every day.  What 2 skills are you really good at? What has helped you become successful?  What can you do to improve upon them?

2. Model other leaders.  What traits do your role models possess that you would like to also possess?  Model these traits. Practice until they become second nature to you.

3. Find a mentor.  One of the best ways to accelerate success is to find a mentor to help you get there faster. Your mentor could be someone you know,  a book, audio or video  program by an author you admire or even an online mentor program.

4. What resolution have you failed to accomplish? If its important to you, take one step to accomplishing it.

5. Choose one habit great leaders have and work on it for the next two weeks.

6. Schedule time for your fitness plan.  You have a business plan, maybe even a life plan, how is your fitness plan coming along? If you’ve been neglecting fitness, schedule it like you would a meeting.

7. Honor others.  When others do a good job, tell them. 

8.  Read my post A Dozen Ways to Reduce Your RealAge and Take the RealAge Test

9. What opportunities are in your community for you to get involved and make a difference.  How can you capitalize on the current economic climate to help others?

10.  Write each of these WAYS down on paper, keep them in your wallet, your purse, post to your bulletin board above your computer or keep in your planner.  Add them to your Outlook calendar and look at them every day.

Subscribe to and read Success Magazine for more great ideas to achieve your goals.

This month I read an article in the April issue of Success Magazine by Dr. Mehmet C. Oz (co-author of YOU, Being Beautiful). And discovered why I feel so young, physically that is. It is important to have a good quality of life. If I am lucky enough to live a long life, then taking care of this body is in my control and I need to everything I can to stay healthy.  Here are Dr. Oz’s 12 tips:

1. Take Your Vitamins

2. Quit Smoking and Avoid Passive Smoke
 
3. Know Your Blood Pressure

4. Reduce Stress

5. Floss Your Teeth

6. Be Active

7. Wear Your Seatbelt

8. Fill Up on Fiber

9. Monitor Your Health

10. Take the RealAge Test; Develop an Age Reduction Plan®

11. Laugh a Lot

12. Become a Lifelong Learner
To read each tip in detail, visit: http://www.realage.com/research_library/12ways.aspx

Each of these points sound like common sense and yet, how many people actually follow them?  Do you look for ways to reduce stress?  Do you actually know what your blood pressure it?   Do you floss your teeth every day or after every meal?  Do you laugh a lot? 

If you are having trouble with your weight, get a personal trainer or exercise buddy, someone who can encourage you and keep you on your toes.

One of the things I love to do to stay active is Belly Dancing. Not only is it good for the heart and the body, it makes me feel younger.  I also love the hula hoop. Funny thing, I could not even do the hula hoop as a kid.  I sucked at it.  Now I have hula hoop contests with my 8 year old grandson. Hoop dancing is such a great workout and its fun! Recently I came across a website called Hoopnotica with some excellent videos on hula hoop dancing.
 
The RealAge test is great and if you’d like a second opinion, take the Younger You Test here: http://www.youngeryoubook.com/assets/pdf/age_print_test.pdf.

The point is, it is if you feel younger than your biological age, you are probably doing something or many things right. If you feel your age or older, there are steps you can take to reverse the process or at least slow it down.  Start today to feel younger.