How many times do you get asked, "Do you offer discounts?"  If you are like us, it is nearly constant.  A few guiding principles can really help navigate the minefield of discounts.  Decide at the outset what you will do so you have an answer when you get asked...and you will.

The way we see it, giving back is part of business BUT we don't give a percentage discount to specific groups, because there are so many people that are worthy or a discount, and we don't want to get into picking and choosing who is worthy.

These are our guiding principles.

1) Decide where your heart is.   Do you WANT to give a discount? Is there an organization or group of people that really have your heart and you're passionate about giving back to them? A discount is a great way to do it! It's also a great way to advertise to that specific group.

2) You don't have to give a discount in order to appreciate a group. For military, we give freebies every now and then instead of percentages. Likewise, for Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep, we give free sessions and images to families who have lost a newborn

3) For certain organizations we do a specific discount for (our church is 50%, and sometimes free)

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17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

We thought it was impossible. I couldn't even take a week off before this.

2017 we adopted our son. With Hazel we had limited maternity/paternity leave and it was something that we regretted. So if we're our own business owners, we definitely needed to make this happen.

Two months for adoption, one month for surgery. It's possible!

Here's how we took 3 months off of our business...

-We saved $$$$ ahead of time-- importance of saving because you don't know when an emergency will make you take time off work.

-We moved things around.

-Set dedicated time that we WOULD do work.

-I did do weddings that we'd already booked, but still- 10 hours a week between 2 people is still taking a ton of time off.

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

It doesn't quite matter how many followers you have unless you can utilize them. On the flipside, you can not have many followers but have a great successful income producing business.  Instagram + Facebook presence doesn't necessarily equal sales.  Popular is cool but it doesn't pay the bills, and I've never been good at being popular.

 

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

Honestly, I loathe business cards, but Josh loves them.  I pitch them in the trash as soon as I can.  Josh keeps them forever and refers back to them.  But it doesn't matter what we think-- it matters about who we're talking to and who we're handing them to.    What are they going to do with it after we leave, and what is the best way to use business cards for impact in our business?

There are two parts today: First we talk about why on earth business cards are needed in the digital age. Then we'll talk about design and style.  By the time we are finished you will know if business cards are right for you and your business.

WHY:

-There are certain situations where you do need them to look professional

-You don't have to have a million- but having some is important

-Always have some on hand- stash them in purse, wallet, car, computer bag, etc so you don't have to always remember them

-How we use them effectively

-Digital version- have people like you on FB or instagram, then there's another connection to you

-What gives you the best return? I don't hand them out to the barista at Starbucks, but if someone asks for one, I want to have something to give them rather than fumbling on my words.

-Great to use in packaging-- it's already branded to you, so it is a cheap way to add to your packaging without creating something new.

DESIGN:

-What kind? (square, small, thick, local, foil, color edges, glossy, rounded corners)

-What style? -your brand, simple or fun, or pre-made if nothing else

-Where to buy? Vistaprint, local company, Moo.com-- all depends on what you're looking to represet (Moo has different pictures on the back of each card, Vistaprint has a great price for a really thick card, local companies tend to have more flexibility and you can visit and feel the paper before ordering- also it's helping your local economy)

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

There's always a challenge. Either you're blazing a trail with your business idea and have to show people they need you, or you have lots of competition and have to find a way to stand out.

Either way we  just have to prove ourselves. We stick the course when others take a break or burn out, and when others stop, we keep going.

You can't differentiate yourself on that at first, but you can long term and it's what every surviving and thriving business does!

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

When everything around you is calling...distracting you from work, how do you stay on task? In this episode we have some practical "how to's" for keeping focused when you work at home.  It's not easy but there are definitely some things you can do to help insure success!

This is a quick list to get you started:

-make sure you are holding yourself accountable - powersheets Lara Casey (http://laracasey.com)

-plan out your days

-have a standard

-have goals

-place deadlines on yourself

And yes...feel free to reward yourself when you succeed!!  We do!

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

We've been loving these apps, and want to share them with you!

Fitbit

My Fitness Pal

Dark Sky

Untappd

Every Dollar

Fender Tuner

Planoly

Spotify

Voice Memos

Memeatic

Renpho

Snapchat

Starbucks

Vimeo

Why is this so important? Being able to know and likewise understand a social setting is an invaluable skill for the entrepreneur. It let's people know that your cognizant of what's going on, and your ability to be able to see that, and then engage on that same level socially is huge. It creates instant trust and likability. Some people would hear me say that and think "oh that's manipulating a situation," but it isn't. It's just basic human skills of social interaction.

Charles J. Clarke III is the creator of the BOLT personality profile test. BOLT profiling was created to help people increase sales, people skills, improve customer service skills, and build better relationships (work and personal). If you can learn about each type, you'll develop better people skills.

- Bull: Big dominant personality. Bottom line type of individuals. They don't like games. They may be a bull, but they don't like bull. Easy to read, but challenging to develop a rapport with.

- Owl: Somewhere between a bull and a sheep and asks lots of questions, ie : who? Analytical and detail oriented.

- Lamb: Shy and quiet personality, agreeable, avoids conflict, hard to read. an be emotional, but usually empathetic.

- Tiger: Fun loving, bouncy, all over the place, strong, self confident, quick decision maker.

Match people, and you'll be on your way to making more friends, closing more deals, and becoming a person of influence.

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Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.

We've been using Soundstripe for some of our music licensing for a few years now, so it was nice to sit down and talk with their co-CEOs, Travis and Micah to talk about business and the differences between freelancers and entrepreneurs.

Travis Terrell and Micah Sannan started Soundstripe, then Levelo Music Group in 2014, later adding 3rd technical Founder Trevor Hinesley to the founding team in 2015. Travis’ music industry experiences have been broad, having been a live performer, studio musician, producer, film composer and even tour bus driver. Producing, composing and performing on TV jingles for well known international brands such as BMW to McDonald’s. Micah began his career in the music business as an artist, touring internationally as a full-time member of multiple signed acts (Falling Up, Everlife, Disciple). Micah and Travis also started a successful recording studio together in 2010 before evolving into the music licensing company Soundstripe. Today Soundstripe has sold more than one million licenses to customers ranging from the Fortune 500, Youtubers and Wedding Filmmakers.

Stop giving difficult answers to simple questions.

Don't be a jerk.

It's easy to be annoyed, but if you're a business, you need to know how to diffuse situations and help people leave you feeling better than when they arrived... even if they don't end up using your services or buying your product.

 

Connect with us for access to more resources about business + life!

Facebook Group → https://www.facebook.com/groups/190904694978305/

Instagram→ https://www.instagram.com/fulltimehustlepodcast/

17hats → https://www.17hats.com/card/fulltimehustle

17hats has been crucial for growth in our business. It helps us organize clients in an easy way, and handles all our invoicing and contracts. We want to share it with you! Click here for a 17 day free trial and 10% off your purchase.