BEHIND THE BRAND: A WHIMSY WONDERLAND

I’m so excited to introduce my new interview series, Behind The Brand, featuring small business owners & creative entrepreneurs!  My goal is to inspire and empower you by sharing stories of some ah-mazing bossbabes and bossdudes, as they navigate their business journey. First up is the adorable, rainbow-dipped duo, Jenna & Cortney.  These beauties are the smiling faces behind, A Whimsy Wonderland, lifestyle blog and social media brand. Their fun, sense of style and silly approach to life is inspiring and downright infectious!

20 AUTOMATION TOOLS FOR YOUR SMALL BUSINESS

Being a blogger, entrepreneur or small business owner means wearing every hat you can shove on your head and having the multi-tasking skills like a badass, mother f*cker.  I’ve rounded up 20 of my favorite automation tools for your small business to grow, expand your customer base and help implement your digital marketing strategies while saving you time to you do what you really love, CREATE. Many of these small business, automation marketing tools are free or only cost a small, monthly fee.

5 TIME MANAGEMENT TIPS WHEN WORKING FROM HOME

As an entrepreneur, there are three things that can eat up your day. Emails, dead-end client prospects and the deep, black hole of social media. When you're fully aware of how your time is spent, it can be mind-blowing. Think about how many minutes you spend making to-do lists, scrolling instagram, researching something or crafting the perfect email. These boring, but necessary, tasks can easily take up 6-8 hours a week. That's an entire work day if you add it all up!  As a creative entrepreneur or small business owner, you have to be spending your time as wisely as possible.  Here are 5 time management tips I've learned over the years, when working from home.

NEW YEAR, NEW GOALS AND A BRAND NEW ME

photo credit: jeff mindell for studio diy

I've never been more excited to welcome the new year.  Last year was just a pure shit show, filled with grief, sadness, stress and road blocks.  Since 2017 blew, I'm calling for a do-over.  I'm healing well after losing my dad and I have a new energy like I've never had before.  The changes I went through last year, as difficult as they were, brought me to a welcomed place of alignment and evolution.  Surprising enough, this "new person" I turned into, was actually ME, but the authentic version of me.  

Let me explain...

THE SECRET TO SUCCESS: CONFIDENCE IS KEY

To say this holiday season is a busy one, would be an understatement. I'm swamped, but in the best way possible. I'm finishing up current projects, trying to find the time to enjoy the festivities of the season, while still planning some even bigger upcoming projects. This past week, I've been chatting with a few other creative entrepreneurs and they seem to all be in the same place.  Ambitious, overwhelmed, excited to plan for the new year, but stuck. So I'm interrupting your regularly scheduled holiday programming to just chime in and "preach" for a minute. I'm hoping that maybe this rant will help you overcome one of your biggest barriers.

Success doesn't come easy, but here's a little secret...

PR 101: HOW TO WORK WITH BLOGGERS + INFLUENCERS

photo credit: wildfox

Alright, here it is.  This is a post I’ve been wanting to write for quite some time now.  With 10+ years of blogging, content marketing and PR under my belt, I thought it was time to shed light on a topic that no one seems to be talking about.  This is the raw, ugly/pretty truth and the do’s and don'ts of influencer marketing. Whether you own a small business, work in public relations or are a kick-ass blogger, these are crucial tips and reminders when it comes to working with bloggers. These are the cold, hard facts that every brand need to know, but no one is telling them.

FEAR IS YOUR FRIEND

 credit: fashion gone rogue

If you are a blogger, business owner or creative entrepreneur of any sort, listen up!  No matter what stage of success you are in, there is always room for growth. Stop closing your eyes and keeping wishing for a miracle, because that miracle is right inside you. Yes, you have the answer if you look deep enough.

SELF REFLECTION: TAKE A LOOK AT YOURSELF AND THEN MAKE A CHANGE

credit: juco photo

If you're currently in a state of struggle in your business, building your brand or blog, please take this moment. Sit back, breathe and feel my words.  Re-read, post, share, bookmark and read again. You aren't alone. I see you, I hear you and I want to try and help. 

PUTTING ON MY POSITIVE PANTS + STILL SEEKING JOY

Hello lovelies.  Here I am, once again at a crossroads. I try to keep my personal life out of this blog, but sometimes I feel the need to share my thoughts with you and today is one of those days.  If you follow me on social media then you know I'm all about spreading the positive vibes and I try to keep you motivated and inspired as much as I can, but I'm feeling the summer slump...

DON'T JUST BE A DREAMER, BE A DOER.

You can't judge a book but the cover.  On the outside it might seem that I've been slacking and falling short in my "stylish" duties, or it could simply just be my own guilt. But the truth is, I haven't been around as much as I should be and I just wanted to check in and let you know I'm still here and I still love you all.  In fact I love you so much that I've been putting in 12 hour days to prove it.

SAYING GOODBYE TO STYLIST DIVA AND SAYING HELLO TO THE NEW ME

Eight years after creating Stylist Diva, it's time to say goodbye. I'm not saying goodbye to the blog itself, but the name. You might have noticed a few cha cha changes around here and I must say that I'm so excited about where this new blogging journey might take me.  When I started this blog the name was something I came up with as a nod to my knowledge as a wardrobe stylist and my love of fashion. I've wanted to change the name for many years now, but it wasn't until recently when I decided that there couldn't be a better name, than my own.

MY WORD OF THE YEAR IS... JOY

Happy 2016!  As it may seem I'm a bit late in celebrating the new year, I'm really just getting started. Have you ever experienced one of those pivotal moments in life when you almost wanted to smack yourself upside the head, because the answer you've been looking for was right in front of you?

3 WAYS TO BUILD SELF WORTH AND DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU DIFFERENT

Having self-confidence and believing in who I am, hasn't always been easy.  This isn't something you learn overnight and it doesn't come in a pretty package with a big pink bow on top.

People have always been impressed with my ambition, dedication and most of all, my resilience. These acknowledgements have come from friends and family, clients and sometimes even strangers.

I wanted to take a moment today and share with you a few ways on how to build your self-worth.

12 THINGS TO DO EVERY MORNING FOR SUCCESSFUL AT-HOME ENTREPRENEURS

Spring is in the air so let's start with a little spring mind cleaning.  I've worked for myself for over 18 years and every day is a learning process.  Here are some of my tips I wanted to share that helps make my day productive and successful!

5 WAYS TO STAY CONFIDENT & FEEL YOUR BEST!

A common factor in so many women today, is the lack of confidence.  This is something I lacked for most of my 20's, but when I turned 30 something changed.  I was living abroad at the time, going through an extremely traumatic situation and learning a lot about myself.  I needed an outlet and that's when this blog was born.  As time went on, this baby of mine, actually taught me that my talent was right inside, I just needed to embrace it.

Dream BIG, Work HARD and don't EVER quit.

 {neryl walker}

Lately these days seem to be getting shorter and shorter, and it's not just the time change.  The more I grow as an Editor and Stylist, the more tasks I have to juggle.  I'm grateful for each one, I just wish sometimes I had a bit more time to chat with all of you! Can it really be November? I know it may seem I've been slacking on the blog a bit this year, but I promise you I've been working round' the clock on a special project, I can't wait to share!  (launching Nov. 29th!)