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Everyday we make dozens of decisions. These decisions range from the very simple and mildly important such as, “What will I have for breakfast?” to a life changing decision like, “Should I buy a house?” Everything we do in life requires decision-making. “Should I turn left at the next corner,” may come so automatically that you don’t even realize you are making a decision. In fact, the ability to make decisions separates us from other animals that rely on instinct to respond. This thinking ability is the single most important ability we possess; yet we take it for granted. Often times we make decisions on the fly, off the cuff, or worse with no thought at all.

Here are four points that will help you make better decisions. By following these you are actively deciding to make your decision-making ability more important in your life. With this decision you are also taking the responsibility to make better decisions.

Pros vs. Cons I’ve been taught over my life to weigh the pros and cons before making a decision. Several books have been written on this exercise and even encourage the writing down of pros and cons and then make your decision based solely on whether or not there are enough pros to offset the cons. I agree that the pros and cons should be addressed. A wise decision takes in all the factors, but consider this, had Thomas Edison weighed the pros and cons of inventing the light bulb we may still be lighting our homes with kerosene lamps. Decision-making is not about keeping a scorecard and making that decision based on a positive “Pro” score. This is about being aware of what you’re up against, what your assets are and how you can overcome obstacles. This is about being informed, not about a balance sheet.

Ask A Lot of Questions I ask a lot of questions before I start a project. I want to know everything I can know about what I’m about to do. With knowledge comes the power to make good decisions. It’s taking the pro and con thing to another level. It’s about constantly asking questions and analyzing the information you receive. Be forewarned, you can get totally paralyzed by the process of gathering information. There is a limit to obtaining information. You can overload yourself with facts and figures and never get down to making the decision. Limit yourself to gathering enough information to make the decision, and then make it.

Don’t Forget Your Gut We humans have instinct just like animals. Ever make a decision and have your stomach knot up? That’s your instinct telling you something. Never ignore it. Gut instinct it there for a reason. It means you may have missed something. If you about to make a decision that makes you queasy stop and go back to the first two points. You might be lacking a bit of information that would be useful in the decision making process.

Make the Decision and Stick By It Once you’ve weighed the pros and cons, gathered enough information, and without the aid of antacids, your stomach is calm, make the decision. Be confident in it, don’t second-guess yourself, and don’t back track unless you receive some new information that is vital. Being indecisive is not a trait of success.

Successful people are a success because they have mastered the decision-making process. I’m sure that there are many more points that could be made about good decision-making. I hope these four simple points are a start for you and that by following them you will make better decisions in the future.

Have you decided its time to market your business, develop your brand, do some advertising? Let’s get together and make some good decisions so your business will be successful.

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

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Fear can be a great motivator OR it can have a great paralyzing effect on us. President Franklin Roosevelt understood this and warned the American public about its effects. I would like to address several types of fear that are more insidious than any other fears. They not only prevent us from succeeding in our chosen profession but also can paralyze us to a point that we can’t function.

Fear of failure. As entrepreneurs we put ourselves on the line. Sometimes we put everything we have on the line, our money, our time, and our reputations. To fail and lose everything can generate a huge fear. This type of fear can keep us from taking the necessary risks to succeed.

Fear of lack of recognition. You work hard, you put in the long hours then somehow somebody else gets the credit. You gain nothing from you effort. You’ve wasted your time and effort for nothing. Nobody knows that you are the one who made it all happen. This fear keeps a lot of us from even trying in the first place. Why should we if we aren’t going to be recognized for our efforts? A wise man once pondered how much could a person accomplish if he didn’t care who got the credit. Doing something, building something, inventing something for the pure pleasure of accomplishment should be enough. Recognition is the icing on the cake.

Fear of the unknown. This fear keeps many a small businessperson up all night. Because we cannot know the future we begin to fear it because we start writing “what if” scenarios in our minds. We project fear into our future. “What if the economy goes bad?” What if…what if…what if… It can prevent us from acting positively to create a good future for ourselves. A future we deserve to enjoy.

Fear of Success. This is the most paralyzing fear of all. We begin to succeed and something deep inside of us starts working against us because we don’t feel worthy of success. So we begin to self-sabotage ourselves. This usually occurs on a sub-conscious level that we are unaware of but it happens nonetheless. This fear can stop us in our tracks almost instantly if we don’t face it head on.

Remember this one thing: Fear doesn’t have to be our enemy. As I stated in the opening paragraph, fear can be a great motivator. Remember fear begins in the mind. It resides in our self-concept. How we see ourselves is the root of our fear. If we see ourselves as not worthy of success then fear will paralyze us. If we see ourselves as deserving and worthy of success, then fear can be our friend, our motivator to overcome the obstacles of business and life. Bottom line: We can let fear defeat us or we can use it as a tool by controlling it. It’s our choice.

Do you fear marketing, branding, advertising? Is it because you see these as unknowns? I will gladly sit down with you and show you how to overcome fear of the unknown by showing you there is nothing to fear. As always the first meeting is free.

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

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Let me get this straight. I’m not going to discourage you in the least. I strongly believe that new small businesses are what are going to save our economy. What I am going to do is encourage you to slow down, think it through, and make some wise decisions. I’ll sum it up in a few points.

Start with a business plan. Utilize the SBA, SCORE or your local not for profit small business development center and pick their brains. They can be a wealth of information and usually it’s free. Here locally in Johnson County we have the Kansas Small Business Development Center. The service is free. Let them help you develop a sound business plan.

Make sure you’re plan includes branding. You need to think of branding right up front. How do you want the public, you’re potential customers, to see you. As a small business owner you are your brand. You are whom the customer will rely on for a good experience with your company. Branding is not just a well-designed logo, signs, or stationery. It’s how you perform customer service, how you train your staff, even how clean you keep the place. Think McDonald’s. They have branding down pat. When you put branding at the top of the list and make it a priority you also need to figure it in to the budget. Your brand must be in place before you even open the doors. Without it you will have no direction on how you plan on marketing your new enterprise.

Have a marketing plan. A marketing plan will be well thought out. You will know who your target market is, who your customer is. By knowing the nuts and bolts of whom you want as a customer you will then begin to know how to get you message to them. Do they read newspapers, watch TV, or sit in front of a computer a lot? Do they like informational advertising or humorous? These and many questions must be answered before you buy your first ad or place a commercial on TV. Long before you open your doors this homework must be well on its way to completion and the HOW of you marketing must be in place.

Make sure you are funded. Every new businessman thinks he can start a business on a shoestring. Truth is you don’t need millions but having enough money to keep the doors open until your profitable is a goal you should shoot for. Will it take 6 months, 12 months, or 2 years to become profitable? If so you will need operating expenses to get you through. Otherwise you may be tempted to not spend money on your brand and marketing. Without these you won’t last long.

Remember this one thing: Branding and Marketing aren’t expenses but investments. By investing in them you ensure your success over the long haul.

If I can be of service to you buy sitting down with you and helping you craft a successful brand and marketing plan, please don’t hesitate to contact me. As always the first meeting is free.

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

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I didn’t make a resolutions list and I never do. They are usually broken within a few days because we are all human. My observation is that any structuring goes against basic human nature. If goal setting, or for that matter discipline in general, were easy we’d all be doing it. It’s easier for us to be able to direct others than it is to discipline ourselves on a personal level. I guess we can’t all be Peter Pan, some of us have to force ourselves to do things against our nature otherwise nothing would get done. So in that spirit I have made some mental goals as well as resolving to write them down soon so I don’t forget them. How about you?

Up till now I’ve lived my personal life basically without any real direction. Don’t get me wrong I’ve accomplished a lot but it’s been more about luck than planning. I’m sixty now so maybe it’s about time to get organized or perhaps it’s too late and I should just live out my life as I have to this point. After all it’s been a good life so far. True, there have been the thin spots along with the abundance. There have been good times as well as bad, but that’s life. I’ve loved, lost and lived to love again. I now have nine grandkids that are special to me and will carry on my legacy. So maybe just living out the next couple of decades taking things as they come is not such a bad way to go. Yet I have to wonder how much better life could have been with a little goal setting.

I think there is a lot to be said about setting goals—both long and short term. It’s a habit that many, many successful people swear by. They use the analogy of starting a trip or steering a ship. They argue the point that if you don’t have a destination in mind that you’ll never get there. I have to agree with these interpretations, but goal setting is so, so…structured and confining. After all I’m a creative person…I create. Creative people tend to live in the moment. Isn’t Life itself a journey making goals and destinations, too confining? Doesn’t that impede enjoying life to its fullest? Hold it a minute. I’m not Vincent Van Gogh. I can do this.

So, for a start, I’m going to try a short list of written goals this year both long and short term. I’m going to write a list out, put it where I can see it, and scratch off my accomplishments. I’m not going to make it too vague but I’m not going to make it too complicated either. I want it to be in plain simple language so that as I glance at it I can quickly see what my destination is. Hopefully as the year progresses and I get the hang of this goal setting thing I will add more.

Then at the end of the year I want to look over my accomplishments and see how I did with the goals. At that point I may decide that goal setting is a lot of bunk, or as I suspect, I will find that it gave me a little focus and direction in my life and I’ll do it again next year. Want to join me in my little experiment?

Hope you had a wonderful Holiday Season. I look forward to serving many new friends this year in whatever way I can. In fact making more new friends will be my first goal. If I can be of service to you, contact me.

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

First off I wish/hope that the Mayans are mistaken and the world will not end next December. That would be a bummer. Not that there hasn’t been these predictions in the past (anybody remember Y2K?) True we as humans are messing up at an alarming rate lately but then there’s a lot more of us on this planet than there used to be. My wish is that in the coming year a vast majority of us start “getting it” and realize that if we would just practice love toward one another as every major world religion preaches, this planet would be a better place to live on.

In the coming year I wish the homeless to have homes, the starving to have food, and the unloved to be loved. Seems kind of vague I know but if all of us would try to help just one person this coming year with these needs, again the planet will be better off.

Another wish I have is that our family gets some rest from loss. My family has had a lot this year and we are a little worse for the wear because of it. But I want to go even further with this. May all of you who have had loss this year get a break this coming year. Loss is never a good thing; it can beat you down and use you up whether it’s the loss of a loved one, a job, or a home. May all of us have less loss in our lives and more happiness.

I wish blessings on the unblessed and hope for the hopeless. Believe me, there have been many times in my life that I have felt unblessed and hopeless. It’s not a good feeling. We can help others by gifting them with blessings and hope. Waiting on a higher power to do it while we stand by and watch is not how it works. That higher power works through us not without us to bless and give hope. This next year I wish that all of us would be the conduits from which flow blessings and hope to our fellow man.

I know this seems very generic, that you’ve heard these platitudes many times in many ways over the last few weeks. So bear with me as I spout one more cliché. I wish that we all would practice the spirit of this Season throughout the coming New Year. I wish that the peace, the love, the blessings; the hope that we share from Thanksgiving till Christmas/Hanukah will be with us, in us and around us for the next 365 days.

That is my wish list.

Have a wonderful Holiday Season; enjoy all the love and beauty it brings. May each and every one of you have the best New Year ever.

Deluxe Cheesecake

All-purpose flour

¾ cup butter or margarine, softened

Sugar

3 egg yolks

Grated peel of 2 lemons

5 8 oz. packages of cream cheese

¼ cup heavy whipping cream

1 Tblspn grated orange peel

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup sour cream for garnish

Day before serving:

1. In amall bowl, with mixer at low speed, beat 1 1/14 cups flouor, butter or margarine, ¼ cup sugar, 1 egg yolk and half of grated lemon peel until well mixed; refigerate, covered, for 1 hour.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Press 1/3 of flour mixture into bottom of 10 inch spring form pan; bake 8 minutes; cool. Turn oven control to 475 degrees F.
3. Meanwhile, in large bowl, with mixer at medium speed, beat cream cheese jut until smooth; slowly beat in 1 ¾ cups sugar. With mixer at low speed, beat in 3 tablespoons flour and remaining ingredients except sour cream. At high speed, beat 5 minutes, occasionally scraping bowl with rubber spatula.
4. Press rest of dough around side of pan to within 1 inch of top; don not bake. Pour cream-cheese mixture into pan; bake 12 minutes. Turn oven control to 300 degreed F. and back 35 minutes longer. Turn off oven; let ceesecake remaining oven 30 minutes. Remove; cool in pan on wire rack. Refrigerate.

To Serve:

Remove side of pan. With large spatula loosen cake from pan bottom; slide onto plate. Spread top with sour cream. Makes 16 servings.

Strawberry Deluxe Cheesecake: Prepare cheesecake as above but omit sour cream; cool. Meanwhile make Strawberry Glaze: Reserve 2 cups berries from 2 pints of strawberries. In medium sauce pan, stir ¾ cup sugar, 2 tablespoons cornstarch and 2 tablespoons lemon juice until smooth; add remaining berries and, using potato masher or slotted spoon,  crush berries; cook over low heat, stirring, until thickened; cool.

Spoon mixture on top of cooled cheesecake. Cut reserved berries in half length-wise; arrange, cut side up, over top. In small saucepan over low heat, melt 2 tablespoons currant jelly; brush over berries. Chill.

Dark Fruitcake

1                 6 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
½               cup molasses
1                  15 oz package (3 cups) raisins
1                  pound (2 cups) chopped mixed candied fruits and peels

•   •   •

½                cup butter or margarine
½                cup sugar
3                   eggs

1 ¼              cups sifted all-purpose flour
1/8               teaspoon soda
1                    teaspoon ground cinnamon
½                 teaspoon ground nutmeg
¼                 teaspoon ground allspice
¼                 teaspoon ground cloves

•   •   •

Combine orange juice concentrate, molasses, and raisins in saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally till mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in candied fruits and peels.

Cream butter or margarine and sugar. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each, Sift together flour, soda, and spices. Stir into creamed mixture. Stir in fruit and peel mixture and nuts; mix well till fruit is coated.

Line an 11 x 4 x 3 inch pan and two 5 ½ x 3 x 2 ¼ pans with heavy paper, allowing ½ inch to extend above all sides. Pour batter into pans, filling about ¾ full. Bake in very slow oven (275 degrees) about 2 ¼ to 2 ½ hours for large loaf and about 1 ½ hours for smaller loaves. Cool cakes in pans; remove. Wrap in foil or clear plastic wrap and store in cool place several weeks. Makes about 3 ½ pounds fruitcake.

I substitute ½ dried cranberries and ½ golden raisins for the dark raisins. I also bake in disposable tins so I can give the loaves away. I use large and small tins.

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Okay, you paid your nephew $50 bucks to build you one of those template websites. Now all you have to do is sit back and watch the customers flock to you. Well I hate to burst your bubble, but it doesn’t usually work that way. First off, there’s a lot more to marketing than throwing up a website. Second if the website isn’t well designed, have engaging content, and flawless in it’s ease of use, more people are going to move on to the next site on the list than stay long enough to know what you and your business are about.

Think of your website as a three-legged stool. Now mentally take one leg away. What happens? It falls over of course. It’s the same with your site. Think of the three legs as: design, content, and the actual coding that makes the site work.

Design
Pulling a template off the web and plugging in your content doesn’t mean your site is designed. Instead of having a design that is unique to your site, you’ve adapted your site to somebody else’s idea of what design is. To be successful in business you have to set yourself apart from the competition. You have to stand out from the crowd. In this case the crowd of template websites. That can’t be done if you and your competition all look alike because you used similar templates for your sites. The potential client just sees a morass of gray as nothing stands out. You need a professional web designer to design a unique site that gives the customer the look and feel of who and what your company is and why you’re different from your competition.

Content
Without engaging, well written content you will not grab and keep the attention of a potential customer. This is accomplished by hiring a seasoned professional copywriter. A copywriter has the necessary experience to know how to write content that will engage and hold the attention of a potential client. They also know how to weave keywords into the text so that search engines will pick up your site and give you more exposure. Just throwing some copy in that you wrote yourself or pulled from an old brochure will not do the job. Copy must be well thought out and for this you need a professional copywriter.

Coding
Off the shelf coding doesn’t always work for every application. It needs to be tweaked and tested just to begin to work right. By hiring a top-notch web developer you ensure that the viewer experience will be smooth and flawless. Links that don’t work, dead-ends, missing pictures or copy, frustrate the viewer. Most people using the web today don’t have the patience or the time for badly coded or barely working websites. They will just move on to your competition’s site, which is well coded and works.

Each of the above points is of equal value. Remember the three-legged stool? If you take just one of these points away the stool falls over. These three attributes are essential to building a successful website. Hiring professionals to build your website ensures success and doesn’t cost but pays a big dividend.

So tell your nephew you love him but that you’re going to hire seasoned professionals to design your website, but that he can design your family Christmas card if he’d like to.

Are you a small business owner needing a to update or build a new website? Give me a call and let’s discuss it. The first meeting is free as always. My contact info is:

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

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Okay I’ll admit it, I just turned sixty. I might as well admit it, I posted the event on FaceBook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and many other social media sites. I got well wishes from dozens of people, many I’ve never met. Some from far off places like Seattle. Isn’t social media amazing?

Society says that I should get me a cane (in fact my oldest son gave me one), find me a rocking chair, sit back and fade away. After all the young are in charge now, or so they think. Apparently my life is over now…or is it?

I don’t think so. Inside in my head I still feel 17. My body, however, is telling me something different. I’m not able to move as fast, or as gracefully. I wander around at times wondering why I came into a certain room. That’s all a part of growing old. No surprises here. So why does society say I’m washed up?

The youth movement started long ago in advertising. Because younger meant prettier and more visually appealing, youth was used to push products. It’s called brand identity. You identify with a brand because you visualize yourself becoming that buff young man if you use the product. Most people with common sense know that’s not how it works, but nonetheless it’s been an effective advertising tool for decades and still works today.

The thing to remember is that gray hair and wrinkles don’t affect thinking ability. In fact with age comes wisdom and experience that actually makes thinking more efficient and the results of that thinking more valuable. Sadly wisdom and experience aren’t really valued in today’s marketplace. Too bad.

Maybe I don’t get some of the commercials today because I’m not young and hip, but there are an awful lot of people around my age that don’t either. We’re a growing demographic with more disposal income than the youth market so advertisers better start taking notice. We are buying more computers and electronic “gadgets” per capita each and every year. We have more money, more time, and we are smart enough not to be fooled by slick, mindless, advertising. Sonic dropped its agency because the “hip and with it” advertising that won many awards didn’t increase revenue. I for one didn’t want to eat their food and become stupid. There’s that brand identity thing again.

I’m proud to be sixty. At thirty I didn’t have near the experience or wisdom I have now. I now have a college degree that I didn’t have then. I’m not struggling financially like I was then. In other words I wouldn’t trade my life now for the one back then just to be young. I like being older. With age I now have credibility and a track record.

So to all those agencies and companies that lust after the next graduating group of young people who will work for nothing remember this: you get what you pay for. Age brings so much more to the table but you have to pay for it. The bottom line is that your return will be larger as well. Remember our brains are more efficient and contain more knowledge.

Think about it.

Do you get what I’m saying? Do you value the wisdom and experience that age brings to the table? Then I want to partner with you and help you tell your story to the world. My contact info is:

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm
Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2
Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/michaelrvinbigideaguy
Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin
Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.behance.net/michaelirvin
Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia

Does it get any worse than this?

Recently greed has become a national debate. This year I’ve been told that greed is a law of economics that can’t be denied and without it we will continue to have a faltering economy. I just can’t bring myself to even consider it. I was taught differently. I was taught to share. If I had two of something and somebody else had none I was to give one up. How many of you were taught that? A lot of you I bet. Yet, year after year as we accumulate more and more we seem to need more and more and we’re less and less happy.

Gone are the days when good strong families were raised in small tract homes with one car, one TV and one bathroom. Today if you don’t have at least a three-car garage, a media-room complete with big screen TV and a bathroom for every bedroom you are deprived. How can this be? The people that built this country lived in one-room cabins, sod houses, and at times tents, just to enjoy their freedom and a chance at a better life.

In my case, though the economy has been bad for a while, I am enjoying more wealth than I have ever had in my life. Yet, I wish for more. More possessions, more money in the bank, newer car. Why would I want for anything? Human nature. The more you have the more you want. Greed. Looks like it does make the economy go. It’s a sad thing to have to admit.

How can the world become less greedy? It starts with us. We first have to change our outlook on life and stop trying to find happiness in things. Right now I’m talking to myself as well. Being at peace with yourself and the world doesn’t require one thin dime. Internal peace is free for the asking. All it takes is following three simple rules:

Consume Less
I didn’t say “buy” less I said consume less. Less water, less fuel, fewer things, produce less trash. By consuming less you will buy less. Recycle, reuse, repurpose. Find satisfaction in knowing that you are protecting your lifestyle for the next generation.

Give More
Not just of your money, but your time. When you help others who can’t help you back you set in motion a spirit of giving that reaches far and wide. Some call it paying forward. There seems to be a law that is very contrary to the greed “law” that says that the more you give the more you’ll have and the more at peace you will be.

Be Content
By being content with what you have you come to a peace that can’t be purchased. Now I didn’t say you can’t have anything more. That you can’t prosper. What I said is written in the Bible. I’ll paraphrase, “In what ever condition you find yourself be content.” By doing so you take the pressure off. You stop keeping up with the “Jones” and allow the blessings of life show through. Another thing will happen, you’ll become thankful for what you do have.

So take a moment during Thanksgiving Day next week to truly count your blessings. Don’t dwell on the bad economy, the loss you may have experienced this last year, or what you don’t have. Instead think about all the wonderful things you do have. If you have to compare, compare yourself to someone in a third world country that isn’t eating at a table weighted down with abundance, then look deep inside and be truly thankful.

I wish you and yours a very blest and thankful Thanksgiving filled with love and peace!

Are you a small business owner who counts his blessings? Do you understand that from the bad stuff of life can come good? Do you see the current economy as just the cocking of the gun for a great future just around the corner? Then I want to partner with you and help you tell your story to the world. My contact info is:

Michael Irvin
Creative Project Manager
913.677.7060 cell: 913.530.7030
mirvin1129@yahoo.com

Find me on

LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelirvincpm

Plaxo: http://tinyurl.com/nps8o2

Twittter: http://twitter.com/mirvin1129

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/mirvin1129

Business Profile: http://www.kconlinecommunity.com/profile/MichaelIrvin

Graphic Design and Illustration Portfolio: http://www.elance.com/experts/mirvin1129

Fine Art Portfolio: http://www.taltopia