Tagged by a Dog!

 Lion Chasing Zebra
Image by Emerald Isle Druid

First my cats play tag. If I walk past without saying “Hi” they reach out and tag me. Doesn’t matter if I’m indoors or out.

Well evidently dogs play tag too, online even. I’ve been tagged by Bob, a dog that is enjoying life on a road trip. Today he is in Arkansas and must have really long paws to tag me across the border into Texas.

Here are the rules:

  1. The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
  2. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
  3. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.
  4. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.
  • What was I doing 10 years ago? Full-time Mom and then son with 7 still living at home and my oldest getting ready for college along with a 1 year old.
  • What are five things on your to-do list for today?
    1. Mow yard
    2. Grocery shop
    3. Pick up kids from swim practice
    4. Update blog
    5. Send a card
    6. Show someone how to send a card easily

    Opps, more than 5, my To Do list gets too long.

  • 3 ) What snacks do I enjoy?
    Yogurt
    Strawberries
    Grapes
    Cheese
    Crackers

    4 ) Things I would do if I were a billionaire?
    Buy land, buy more land, place in the mountains, by the ocean, etc
    Travel
    Fund worthwhile projects and include ways they can become self-funding
    Have a home with a wonderful view, grow own food, water wells, solar/wind power, etc, hire help, a small community which would support itself if need be.

    5 ) Three Bad Habits
    Walk barefoot
    Check email too often
    Not enough sleep

    6 ) 5 places I have lived…
    Riverside, CA
    Altus, OK
    Penn Hills, PA
    Orem, UT
    Bossier City, LA
    Farmington, NM
    Lawton, OK
    Nash, TX
    (OK, I can’t count)

    7 ) 5 Jobs I have had
    Babysitter
    Fast Food
    Catering
    Pre-School Teacher
    Income Tax Preparer

    Thanks Melodieann! Visit her Travels with Bob
    Tagging:

    Betty Lynch of MyCountryKitchen

    Aspen of Aspen the Yorkie Only fair to tag a dog, since I’ve been tagged by one.
    Susan Lowe of California Musing
    Cats Only Blog Now if dogs are playing tag, shouldn’t cats too?
    In which case we have to include Catnip Loving Prince Muddy Paws’ Blogging Cat

    Maybe we can get these dogs and cats playing together online. Anyone who knows where that zebra or lion blogs let me know. They like to play chase.

A Story of Ethics


Photo by David Prior

How would you handle this?

I was building a team with a previous NWM business. One of the things I did was help with out local meetings, and those in another town a couple hours away. Thank goodness for the internet and online meetings today. We did not have such tools back then and put many miles on the car. My husband would say don’t go, you are wasting your time, let someone else support those meetings. Yet I had downline there, and I could go, and I did, putting a positive tape in the car to listen on the way down.

One of my reps was a stay at home Mom with a GED education and no job experience. I learned that when I worked with her almost everyone we talked to became a customer or rep, kind of cool and I saw the real value in helping others. She was quite excited, sadly she only worked after I called, or while I was down there, but it was time well spent. I learned much. One of her reps became a leader and friend in her local area.

At one of the meetings there was a guest from an out-of-town rep. We answered her questions and she was ready to join. We told her to get back with the person who sent her. She said No, she wanted a local sponsor and asked quite firmly to join our group. It would have been real easy to do so, and quick money. But we didn’t. It would not be right. She was upset with us for not letting her join us. I explained how we would help her anyway, not good enough for her, but we could not sponsor her. Ethics. In the end, she didn’t join anyone. Other times it would have been real easy to give in to the lure of quick money and sponsor other people’s guests.

As a company grows, a person may have more than one rep contact them. It is that person’s decision who to join. I know one person in this previous company who loved that company but would not join because he felt torn too many ways. It doesn’t have to be that way.

We had a good local group, leaders cross-line of each other. One thing we had was trust. Instead of pulling prospects in different directions, we encouraged them to join who ever showed them first. Now if that first person was no longer working the business, nor following up, nor just mentioned they had a business but never invited them to look, it was fair game. We helped many locally who belonged to leaders in other organizations. One guy we spent a lot of time with after meetings, etc. Put it this way, he is excited and doing things, lets help him do the right things so our company can keep its good name. Other groups helped our reps in their town.

One person who was running newspaper ads even went so far as to pull out his list and ask “Do you know ______ ?” If we knew them it was is this someone you would want in your business? If we said No, he chunked their card. If we knew them, it was how well do you know them, if we knew them well it was you have so many days to contact them, if you don’t I will.

And life was good.

Consider what your actions do to a company, and even the reputation of Network Marketing in general.
We can help each other out and the business can thrive, or we can work out of a fear of lack, and say “they are all mine!” and it becomes a war zone.

Today we have the internet, so much information at our fingertips. Nothing wrong with picking your sponsor carefully. Consider their upline organization too. I enjoy and appreciate the support I get from Diane Walker and her SendOutCards group:

“I can do things that you cannot. You can do things that I cannot. Together we can do great things”
– Mother Teresa

“Our team works together just like this quote :-)” Diane Walker

Meetings are done more and more online through conference calls and webinars, thank goodness. It is great fun to meet face to face occasionaly. As leaders we still have a responsibility.

Open to thoughts. Where do you draw the line? If you are a leader in your business, do you help those crossline? under what conditions? do you encourage crossline prospects to join whoever introduced them to the business? or would you after a corporate sponsored meeting encourage someone else’s guest to join you instead?

Heidi Caswell

Send the coolest greeting cards in town.
Visit http://CardsConnectSimply.com
and I’ll give you a couple for free.

Things I’ve Learned From My Kids

Mad Barber

In honor of Mother’s Day, a little true life humor for mothers everywhere.

  • Money can burn a hole in your pocket. Add a 9 volt battery to a pocket full of pennies.
  • Bread twist ties will conduct electricity, esp. when you put directly into wall plug. Blackens fingers too. Caution, loud pop may be heard and parents will investigate.
  • Your little sister’s dolls attached to ceiling fan, doesn’t usually break any windows when they fly off.
  • Jumping off the roof into the back of a pickup truck makes for a hard landing, better to hit the softer ground.
  • Riding your bike into a UPS truck can cause you to lose 3 years of memory.
  • Riding your bike too close to your sibling during a race can cause the handle bars to lock up and result in a very bad case of road rash.
  • Miscalculating the size of a hole when jumping over on your bike has been known to crack bike helmets, even the frame of your bike.
  • Taking the brakes off your skates and speeding down a steep hill can cause you to do a flip when you hit the divider in the middle of the road down below, landing you in a driveway, and creating more road rash.
  • Jumping in front of a log rolling down hill, can cause the log to knock you down and roll over you.
  • No such thing as a child safe home. Toddlers will gladly open child proof medicines and cabinets for you.
  • A toddler can dismantle their crib, removing all the bars.
  • Car cigarette lighters can burn your fingers if you heat them up and put your finger in it. Then you have the dilemma, “If I tell Mom I burnt my finger, she’ll know I played with the lighter which was off limits, but it hurts so bad.”
  • Standing under a tree throwing bricks up to knock down your ball usually ends with a trip to the emergency room.
  • Tripping down the steps at the hospital on the way home can land you back in the emergency room.
  • So can fainting.
  • You can play in a mud puddle without getting your clothes dirty by taking them off.
  • Rocking chairs are not the most stable thing to climb on to reach that computer your parents put on the tall shelf. One more way to get back to that emergency room.
  • Your sister’s hair elastics with the balls on the end make great sling shots. Care is needed when you bite one ball and pull elastic with hand. If your hand lets go before your teeth, it backfires, chipping tooth.
  • You can also break teeth playing gutterball in the pool, best not to do this Friday afternoons, dentists are hard to find.
  • If you sneak out of the house for a trip to the store while your big brothers are busy playing computer games, picking out some candy bars, saying “I’m hungry! I don’t have any money. I don’t know where my mom is!” does not get you candy bars, but a ride home in police car.
  • Some girls will do anything for chocolate, including a preschooler grabbing a container of chocolate frosting, locking herself in a room, hiding under the computer desk, taking screwdrivers with her so no one can unlock the door before chocolate is consumed.

Michigan Mom tells her story about being a Rock Star Mommy

Rock Star Mommy

I love real life stories of those who do something different to live their dreams. Earlier I shared how Randy Pausch lived his childhood dreams. Today brings Judy Davids, Rock Star Mommy, who shows it is never to late to learn new things and follow your dreams.

Judy, what inspired you to be a Rock Star Mommy?

I saw Jack White (of the White Stripes) play at my sons’ elementary school. He was in his mid-20s (a kid) but he had the presence of a king. He talked to the students about his passion for music and he sold me hook, line and sinker. The next day I signed up for guitar lessons. His presence convinced me to shine. A few weeks ago I saw Jack on the cover of Rolling Stone with Mick Jagger and Keith Richards and I thought if he only knew what he started!

What prompted you to share your story in a book?

Right from the beginning I felt people got a kick out of our story–it’s somewhat inspiring. We (the Mydols) prove that you don’t have to be young or thin or blessed with talent to be successful.


Is it tough juggling everything?

Absolutely. We just played in Minnesota last weeked for about 1200 people at the Minneapolis Convention Center. We were on TV and the radio and little kids asked us for autographs. It was surreal. It made me wonder how far we could take this band if we toured like the 20-something bands do. But the reality is I really missed my family so we left Minneapolis at 4 AM so we had time to spend with our kids when we got back to Detroit. The word “mom” is the first word in “mom band” for a reason.

How have you used the internet and social media to promote your career?

In so many ways. After I took guitar lessons, I signed up for web design classes! I design and maintain www.judydavids.com and www.mydols.com. I also do ALL the social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter. I blog. I write articles for webzines. I use CafePress and Zazzle to sell CDs and T-shirts. I use www.fanbridge.com to keep in touch with fans. What else? I am probably forgetting 20 other things I do on-line!

You have been an inspiration to many mothers and people in general, setting an example of living your dreams. Can you share one tidbit of advice for someone just starting their journey towards their dream, wondering “Is it worth it?” “Should I really try?”

I will pass along my favorite advice. My friend Rick Mills told me “it takes more guts than talent to be in a band.” Whenever I feel bad about a performance I stop and think that there is probably some guy somewhere who is a ripper on the guitar but has never played for an audience. That’s a tragedy. I have no regrets.

And then my friend Thom Sharp said to me “Judy you’re in show business now so your life is an audition.” Meaning that even if 3 people show up at a gig I need to give the show of my life because I never know who’s in the audience. I have found that really useful because sure enough even when a club looks dead there is always a radio dj, music writer, musician…someone who is passionate about music…in the crowd and they don’t care about how many people are there. They came for a show and these people want to help you. If you believe in yourself, they will too!

Yesterday the tour was hosted at Betty Lynch’s blog at My Country Kitchen.
Tomorrow the tour will be hosted at Kathie Thomas’ blog at Blessed Reading

And to order Rock Star Mommy for yourself, follow this link: http://mydols.com/judydavids.htm