Saying No: Boundaries in Small Business

I’m sure you’ve heard this saying or seen it floating around the internet. Personally and professionally, I tend to agree with it. I believe it is a powerful statement on the greater concept of setting boundaries. There are many ways we set boundaries in our businesses. Be it contracts, deadlines, or clear communication, working with customers and clients is going to be difficult if you don’t set boundaries, or don’t know where the boundaries are.

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5 Tips for Work-From-Home Newbies

This post was written in light of the COVID-19 outbreak and the number of people who are now adjusting to working from home. I’ve done this for several years, about fiveish to be not-very-exact. If you are frustrated with the transition to working from home for the first time, this post is for you. I hope what I have to share here encourages you, and helps make the transition easier.

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People First // when work isn’t a priority.

I love my job, but my people always come first. Last week’s blog will be pushed back. This past weekend was a lot of things. People I love have a lot going on, and I made a point of making myself available/on-call to them. My people are more important than my job. Work was not a priority this past week and I’m okay with that. I am a big believer in putting your loved ones over your job when it really counts. For me, that needed to happen for much of last week.

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3 Temptations to Avoid on Social Media

Social media is known for being fake, essentially a collection of people’s highlights and what they’re having for lunch. Studies have shown that people who spend an excessive amount of time on social media are more prone to depression. It’s a great place to go if we want to feel like our insecurities are being exploited. But what if, instead of trying to hide our insecurities, we just got real about them?

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How To Write A Blog

At first glance, a blog may appear to simply be an online journal or newsletter. It looks simple and straightforward. If you are blogging for business, though, it’s a little more complicated. It requires a lot of editing, creating and planning. Everything you see on my blog here at Emma Lee Creative is created by me. I write everything, decide on topics to write about, create all the visuals such as photos and illustrations, including the images you see accompanying the links on social media. It’s much more complicated than meets the eye.

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The Myth of the Solopreneur

A solopreneur is typically described as an entrepreneur who runs their show on their own. Google defines solopreneur as, “a person who sets up and runs a business on their own.” I understand we’re getting into semantics here, but I think this definition is lacking. I am a solopreneur and I do most of my work in solitude. It becomes very easy to forget that I am not alone in this, and that I didn’t get where I am solely on my own efforts. I am the sole worker at Emma Lee Creative, but don’t call me a self-made woman. I am mostly others-made, and I owe my success to my support network.

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Onward // 2019 in Review + Goals for 2020

Here we are: the end of a month, a year, a decade. I’ve been running my company for three and a half years. It was a hard year, but I have learned a lot. I guess that typically comes with hard experiences. There were days that shook my confidence and days that showed me just how capable I am of doing this. There were a lot of things that weren’t great about 2019, but I am in a great place because I have a fresh start ahead, and know what I need to do differently.

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