WiRE Blog

 Yesterday the Government finally announced that it will be scrapping Business Link. Over the years, WiRE has met some fantastic business advisors and support staff, working with them to provide targeted and much needed business support, we wish them luck and are sad to see them go. The announcement was no great surprise, what really rankles is the reason given for why…

 “The Government said the £154m cost of the Business Link network of offices was “high” and the “generalist nature” of the advice often “poorly targeted” towards “lifestyle businesses that have no aspiration to grow”.

www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/yourbusiness/8093448/Business-Link-scrapped-and-replaced-by-call-centre.html

 Over the years “Lifestyle Business” has come to mean anything that is too small to be a SME, that is probably based at home, that provides an income and wages for the owner, that doesn’t and probably doesn’t aspire to employ anybody else and that has limited potential for growth. It is a mystery why this has somehow become a bad thing, there are literally millions of these businesses; the WiRE network is just one example with its 10,000 members (1,500 of them paying for additional services) it generates at least that many jobs and the businesses average a £30,000 turnover – the figures quickly begin to add up.

 For women and in rural areas particularly with limited employment prospects, the need for flexible working patterns and poor transport “Lifestyle Business” is often the only choice. They not only employ themselves and collaborate actively with other businesses, help boost the economy of the local area but they provide a positive role model for the new entrepreneurs the Government is so keen to foster.   

Where will these businesses go to find the support they need; the website for technical and structural help yes, but everybody who has ever worked in business support knows that it is not about downloading a PDF, effective business support is complex and about much more than the “theory”.  The White Paper for the Local Economic Partnerships, also launched yesterday, talked little about support for this sort of business apart from that ubiquitous national website, and the committee leading the Advisory Group for the Regional Growth Fund features no representation of small business. It is a great opportunity to create an effective and cost effective model for supporting the sort of business that underpins local economies – lets not let it get lost in the rush to grow big.

We must stop at best ignoring an at worse demonising “Lifestyle Businesses”  and  support new start ups and give them help to move forward and grow (even if that doesn’t mean employing others). Let’s start celebrating our Lifestyle Businesses and move away from the outmoded idea that the only good business is big business.

 “Lifestyle business” is the patronizing term used by many big businesses and investors for businesses that are unwilling to pursue growth at the expense of a) the quality of their product/service and/or b) the happiness of their employees. The term is often applied to businesses that don’t want said investors’ money. www.jacksonfish.com/blog/2009/03/13/lifestyle-business-defined-in-under-140-chars/

Dear WiRE ladies,

Stress Relief for Female Entrepreneurs part three..

At the week-end, I popped to the cinema to see: ‘ Made in Dagenham,’ wow what an amazing film about a group of lady machinist in Kent who stood up for not getting equal pay at Ford, and then protested and protested until it was made law with Barbara Castle spearheading the legislation for Equal Pay for women, which many of you might know about it, I am sure. Wow, what a film, it’s a must-see as it is so humbling and inspiring how these ladies did it, without any previous experience, or political knowledge! It really makes you think just how powerful we can be when we just focus and keep going after what we want for any aspect of our lives:)

Okeydokie, ladies, over to Ntathu Allen for our final guest blog post piece in which she offers you some top tips on beautiful skin, how exciting? I don’t know about you ladies but I am a little saddened by the ‘push,’ for women to be botoxed during their lunch,  and a filler here and there, it feels sad, and depressing I find facial exercises, good skin care and Nthathu’s tips  much more healthy, but each to their own, of course! Okeydokie ladies, over to Nthathu…

Stress Relief for Female Entrepreneurs – Part 3

 Yoga and Natural Beauty Top Five Tips For Beautiful Skin

 Would you like healthy, glowing young looking skin?  Your skin is constantly exposed to toxins and pollution, whether through poor dietary habits and negative thought patterns or because of exposure to industrial waste and car exhaust fumes.

Effect of Stress on Your Skin

You may not realise it, but your skin is always absorbing and releasing toxins. Your skin is the largest organ in your body. Constant exposure to internal and external stress and pollution can cause your skin to look dry, jaded and dull. Have you noticed how tired and strained your eyes feel after a long stint at the computer, or how grey and dull your skin looks during the cold winters?

Effects of Yoga on Your Skin

 The quality and tone of your skin gives you an indication of the state of your health.

From a yogic perspective, good health starts within. All yogic practices help to keep your skin healthy and radiant.

 Yoga encourages you to be body aware, to be conscious of what is going on inside your body and to observe the external signs and systems of imbalance; for example, cracks, ravines, white furry coatings on your tongue indicate internal imbalances; or spots and pimples, cracked fingernails, dandruff, leg cramps, gassy stomach, excessive yawning, all these physical symptoms lead to you feeling below par, stressed and tired.

Five Natural Self Care Tips For Younger Looking Glowing Skin

 To boost and support your immune system, practice the following natural self care tips and see what a difference they make to the quality and beauty of your skin.  Don’t expect miracles, as it can take many months to eliminate toxins and bacteria from your body, but you will notice an improvement in your energy and quality of your skin in a few days.

Many of these tips involve using simple every day household products so you don’t have to spend vast sums of money on expensive manufactured products.

1. Dry body brushing.  Dry skin brushing is an excellent way to exfoliate and cleanse your skin and releases toxins from your system.  Dry skin brushing helps to make your skin smooth and radiant as it encourages the rate at which toxins are released through the body. Your lymphatic system (blood cells and lymph tissue) gets a good boost as you skin brush and release toxins through your skin.  Ideally your body needs to be dry for skin brushing, so it a good idea to skin brush before you shower or bathe.  Use a good quality natural bristle wooden brush.  Always brush towards your heart as this increases circulation. Starting at the soles of your feet, use long deep slow strokes and brush the soles of your feet, work your way up your inner and outer legs, then up your arms, over your shoulders and down your back. Brush your stomach using small circular clockwise strokes. Take your time and aim to spend at least 10 minutes breathing and brushing your skin.  Avoid brushing over sore, tender or broken areas of skin and do not brush over your face.
2. Facial steam – a facial steam releases stale oils from the pores and loosens debris sticking to the skin.  Simply fill a small bowl with hot (not boiling) water.  If you have any herbs or aromatherapy oils sprinkle in a few drops (for example, lavender and peppermint are stimulating, rosemary, eucalyptus and rose are cleansing, and chamomile is soothing).  If you don’t have any, that’s ok.  Place a towel over your head and sit quietly with your head about 20 inches from the water, with the towel covering the bowl.  Breathe deeply for about 5 minutes as you allow the steam to gently ease away cares and stress from your skin.
3. Drink at least 6 – 8 glasses of spring water or herbal teas (nettle, fennel, dandelion teas are great detoxifiers) throughout your day to help flush out your system.
4. Foot massage – at the end of a busy day a foot massage is a beautiful way to relax and release tension and stress in your body.  Wash your feet in warm water and sprinkle in a few drops of your favourite aromatherapy oil.  Dry and massage your feet with a soothing cream.
5. Dab your face with small amounts of olive oil to keep your face glowing and fresh. Have a bath as you allow this to soak into your face.

Everyone wants to look younger and have more beautiful skin and to feel healthy and well.

I hope you have enjoyed this mini series of Stress Relief Techniques for Female Entrepreneurs. In Part 1 we looked at the role of yoga stretches to reduce stress. Part 2  I offered you simple foods to cook or snack on to boost your energy levels; whilst Part 3 showed the effects of stress on your skin and gave you five natural self care tips you can do at home to reduce the signs of worry on your body.

Stay Blessed and Stay Happy

Ntathu -ntathu@yogainspires.co.uk

www.yogainspires.co.uk

Thanks Ntathu, much appreciated! I trust you ladies loved her posts as much as I have:)

Any questions as ever about marketing to women or overcoming chocolate addiction, the best email to catch me on is: carrie@theblondemarketinggoddess.com. Remember, no question too blonde!

Shortly, I will have  two new businesses to let you know about which I am quite excited about, to put it mildly. Sometimes I feel, it is vital to wait for the right people and to launch something at the right time! Well, this week it is a new moon, so it is optimal for launching and indeed started something new be it a business, a habit, a new way of being- go for it ladies

Namaste, giggles & light,

Carrie Eddinsxxx

Dear WiRE Ladies,

Stress Relief for Female Entrepreneurs

I trust you are well and are enjoying the  few surprisingly sunny days of late- wow haven’t they been glorious!! As I sit in our conservatory, it is just lovely to have the sunlight beaming onto my workplace:)

Have you been to the cinema lately? Well, I am planning to go and see the movie: ‘ Eat, pray and love,’ next week and am looking forward to it already! I rememer reading Elizabeth Gilbert’s book last year and loving it; such a heart-warming account of how she put her life back together  after a rather painful divorce  and how she re-discovered herself and her spirit through travelling and through stepping into the unknown in Italy, India and Bali.

 I have been to Italy myself and I truly loved the open-he arted, warm and friendly people, and the food and the surroundings were divine too ! I have yet to make it to India, but I have been to Bali, most definitely one of the most romantic places I have ever been to, and I loved the hospitable people. When the locals in central Bali discoverd I have travelled on my own, they just kept on inviting me to gathering, took me white water rafting and even to a local wedding which was rather humbling to say the least! Karen Kingston, the space clearer, which is a type of Feng Shui, said that in Bali, you could feel your sacral chakra open and your heart chakra, which I felt too, hence I am not remotely surprised that it is  one of the most popular romantic getaways of the planet! I promised myself I would next time  go with a hot young man, which I have every intention of doing in the future!

Okay ladies, now, let’s draw upon some more inspirational thoughts and words from Ntathu Allen who has recommendations for foods you can eat to help relieve you from your stress!

Over to you Ntathu: )

5 Foods To Eat To Help You Cope With Stress

Welcome Back! How did you get on with the last post’s tips? Were you able to try out any of the stress relief techniques ? I hope you found them easy to slip into your daily routine.

As promised, this time,  we are looking at foods you can snack on to help you reduce stress and calm your nerves. I will start off with a brief background to the effects of stress on your body, particular the role of the adrenal glands in helping you to cope with stress. Then I will offer you five easy to prepare foods you can cook or buy as a snack to boost your immune system.

Please feel free to email me if you wish to find out more about the effects of the foods you eat on your stress levels: ntathu@yogainspires.co.uk

Effects of Stress on your Body

 Food plays an essential part in our lives and  in times of stress and upheaval it is easy to forget to eat or eat foods which make it harder for our bodies to cope. In yoga, you are encouraged to eat foods which have a positive effect on the body and mind, and least negative effects on the environment and other creatures. 

Stress plays havoc with your body’s immune system. When you are stressed, your body undergoes many changes. These include an increased heart rate, migraines, and digestive disorders. Your body has an amazing ability to heal and repair itself form stressful situations. However, during periods of intense stress and uncertainty, the foods you eat can hinder or help you to respond to stress in a more relaxed and positive manner.

Role of the Adrenal Glands to Fight Stress

The adrenal glands are responsible for producing the body’s stress hormones norepinephrine and epinephrine, which regulate the fight or flight response in the body.

During stressful times, your body produces an increase level of these stress hormones which can lead to nutritional deficiencies and an exhausted adrenal gland. When your adrenal gland is exhausted, you can suffer extreme exhaustion and fatigue.

To help your adrenal glands work better when you are under stress, it is vital you eat foods which enhance and support their function and; contain properties which help the body to deal better with stressful situations.

5 Foods To Eat To Help You Cope With Stress

If you are going through a stressful time, try to include the following foods into your diet.

1. Sunflower Seeds – Sunflower seeds are rich in protein, fiber and B vitamins and zinc minerals which have an important role in keeping your adrenal glands healthy. You can eat sunflower seeds as a snack or sprinkle them on breakfast cereals, salads and vegetarian dishes.
2. Cabbage – an excellent stress-busting food. Cabbage is an excellent source of fibre, vitamins (especially C, K, E, B1 and B9), minerals (including iron, selenium and potassium) and beta carotene. Green cabbage is especially rich in these nutrients. The combination of these vitamins and minerals all help to boost your energy in stressful times.
3. Avocados- a rich source of vitamins, especially B2, riboflavin, B6, C and E and the minerals iron, potassium and manganese. The high vitamin and mineral contents in avocados aids in red blood regeneration and prevention of anaemia. Anaemia causes fatigue and lowers your ability to deal with stress.
4. Almonds – almonds are an excellent source of iron, potassium,magnesium which helps support adrenal function. Low levels of magnesium can increase your feelings of anxiety, irritability and sleeplessness. Almonds are also a good source of protein especially when combined with other plant based foods, for example whole grains and pulses.
5. Wholegrain brown rice – is a good source of fiber, vitamins, including B group and minerals (iron, calcium and phosphorous). Rice provides a slow-release energy which helps the release of the chemicals serotonin. This helps to boost your energy and has a calming effect on your brain. Brown rice contains protein which when combined with other vegetable protein aid tissue growth and repair, which is adversely affected during stressful times.

As you can see, it is possible to work with your body and eat foods which help you to reduce stress whilst strengthening your immune system. If you are in the habit of snacking on highly processed fast foods, aim to include at least 2-3 of the stress-reducing foods in your daily diet. You will feel lighter, healthier and in the long run more equipped to cope with stress.

Finally, in next week’s blog, we will take at the effect of stress on your skin and offer you five simple remedies you can do at home to reduce the ageing effects of stress on your face.             

 Thanks so much Ntathu, providing huge value again, it is most appreciated. I know I am relieved to know more about the foods which can help relieve my stress levels! Thankfully, I love avocados and almonds and brown rice! I love cabbage but I do love less it’s affect on me, making me rather anti-social

I am sure you are looking forward like me to her final post on her top tips for natural skin care, as I know that I no longer use skin products full of chemicals as I just do not feel that they are doing me any good, at all.

Any questions as ever, please direct them to: carrie@theblondemarketinggoddess.com

Any questions or feedback for Nthatu Allen please kindly direct them to: ntathu@yogainspires.co.uk  Or do visit her website: www.yogainspires.co.uk

Namaste, giggles & light,

Carrie Eddinsxxx

Dear WiRE ladies,

Stress Relief for Female Entrepreneurs

I trust you are enjoying the series of guest posts that I have personally organised for you, from people I like, know and seriously trust! The next series of three blog posts, are from Ntathu Allen, a lovely Yoga teacher who helps people from all walks of life use Yoga to relax and align with their own energy, their own goals and ideas and of course with their own business success. The first of the three posts are to offer you ladies some hot tips on how to build relaxation and stress relief tips into your daily life.. over to you Ntathu!

Hello Ladies, Carrie has invited me to share with you some of my top tips to help you relax, reduce stress and find more ways to build relaxation into your daily life. Like you, I know how busy life is; especially when you add the emotional and financial challenges to grow your business as well as be there for family and friends and have Me-Time.

With so many tasks to do in a day, it is easy to feel overwhelmed and stuck. When you feel like this, it can be difficult for you to think clearly and make informed decisions. How many times have you missed opportunities or left important papers at home, failed to return business calls, because you were so pre-occupied with the day to day concerns of caring for your family.

Your time is precious. You can’t afford to waste time feeling confused, stuck and not sure what to do next. To manage your time effectively, life is easier when you are able to solve problems easily and smoothly. I am not a fan of “systems” or “sticking to routines” but, over the years I have found by sticking to a simple daily yoga practice I find it easier to mange my affairs in a more orderly way. Sure, there are days, weeks even, when every goes topsvy turvey and I run around like a headless chicken. But.the beauty of having a daily yoga practice,  is it gives me the head space to come back to centre and view life through fresh eyes. When you have a growing family and wish to develop business it is so important to have a clear head and keep your perspective.

Sometimes, when the pressure is really on and you feel frustrated and stressed, then a few minutes stretching helps to clear negative thoughts and ease the underlying tension stored in your body.

Here is a simple sequence you can practice, at home, sitting at the dining table or even at work.

.

1. Seated spinal twist – sitting on your chair, cross your left leg over your right.  Place your right hand or elbow on the crossed knee.  Gently turn your body to the left and look behind you.  Stay focused on breathing gently and deeply through your nose for 3 – 5 rounds of steady breathing.  Relax and return your body to the front.  Inhale and as you exhale switch legs and turn the opposite direction.

2. Arms above your head – sitting or standing, raise your arms straight above your head.  Interlace your fingers and turn your palms upward.  Take three – five rounds of deep breathing as you keep stretching up.  If you can, try and keep your elbows beside or behind your ears as you stretch.  Slowly separate your fingers and gracefully lower your arms to your sides.  Repeat twice more.

3. Hand stretches – shake your hands vigorously for 30 seconds.  Relax and squeeze your fist tight. Hold for 3 – 5 rounds of steady breathing.  Relax.  Next, stretch your fingers out wide and make pretty patterns as you wave and rotate your hands. Then sit still, take a few deep breaths and rest your hands quietly in your lap.

Although these yoga exercises are simple, they help you to relax and take your attention inwards and away for a while from the stresses and strains of your daily life. This enables you to return to the task in hand feeling refreshed, energised and more able to cope with any ongoing difficulties.  Try it and see.  I would love to know you how get on.

In next blog post , I will share with you foods which you can easily snack on to help reduce stress and calm your nerves – without grabbing for the nearest chocolate bar, sticky bun or cup of coffee!

Ntathu Allen

Email: ntathu@yogainspires.co.uk/www.yogainspires.co.uk

Wow, thanks Ntathu, I love those tips so easy to grasp and so practical for all of you ladies on the move too!

Any questions, or suggestions or feedback ladies do email me : carrie@theblondemarketinggoddess.com

Until then, I wish you every success! Keep going, no matter what, you can do it, you can become the success you desire to be:)

Namaste, giggles & light,

Carrie Eddinsxxx

Dear WiRE ladies,

PR for Women in Business

I trust you are well and adapting to our autumnal climate.  It’s now a matter of putting the heating on a little bit in our house as it is getting quite chilly, even with cardigans and warm slippers…It’s all good though, I happen to love wrapping up in my woolies, it’s my favourite time of year

Here is the final part of three by the lovely Louise Thornton to help you with your PR in your business, which is effective free advertising and marketing for just a little effort. Once you get started with your PR activities, and you get the attention of your targeted media, more and more media will come after you, and that is how it works. But, what if you are without a hefty budget for your PR activities and are a little unsure regarding the mechanics of a basic media-attracting Press Release? Aha, well Louise has written a post below to help you to produce your own press release which works, which works to attract media coverage for you and your business.. yah!

Over to you Louise…

Producing a Press Release that Works

When you’re writing a press release for your business how do you go about it?  If you’re solely aiming to pitch a product then it might be worth rethinking it!

There are millions of businesses in this world all aiming for the same thing – maximum coverage for their product or service but with little or no outlay.  Issuing press releases regularly is great for building credibility for your business but not so great if you constantly plug your own products or services but without offering anything of value to your reader.

So how do you produce a press release that works?
1. Start with the end in mind.  What do you want the press release to achieve?  Are you looking to inform people about a new product or service or are you simply aiming to build credibility for your business?
Be very clear about your outcome, it will be a huge help when you come to write.  When you write with the outcome in mind, you should manage to pitch it in the right tone.
2. Ensure that you include information that’s relative to your business without it being directly related. 
For instance, one of my clients was looking to promote her public speaking business, instead of focusing solely on that we included relative information about the fact that public speaking is one of many peoples top fears and how learning to speak effectively helps them to overcome this issue.
3. Sometimes a little sweetener is a great incentive.
If you specifically want to promote your product / services then it’s a good idea to ensure that you offer a discount or a free sample to the readers.  When you send your press release to magazine staff include sample sizes of your product – if they like it, then they are much more likely to feature it. 
4.  Make sure your information has substance.
If you quote facts and figures make sure they are correct.  There are plenty of people who will take great pleasure in pointing out your mistakes – don’t give them the opportunity!  All it does is reduce the credibility of you and your business.
5. Be creative, but be authentic.
By all means think a little outside the box when it comes to promoting your products / services but remember one thing: be authentic.  People like to buy from people.  Write from the heart, the more human interest you can inject into your release the better.

For the month of October I have a very special offer running on my site where you can try our services for a much reduced cost, as well as benefitting from discounts until the end of 2011!  To find out more then click here http://bit.ly/ltoffer

Wow, that’s very useful Louise, and I know there are quite a few ladies in WiRE who  I am sure will benefit from this particular blog posts as often we can all get overwhelmed especially with Social Media, and the  instant access of the Internet with so many activities to do that we often forget just how powerful Press Releases can be, don’t we? Of course, someone might still network with you, via Twitter, your blog, your website or even your facebook fanpage, but still, Press Releases do work and once you have once sorted they do not take too much time, money or effort.

Any further questions for Louise, then she can be found on facebook at: http://bit.ly/ltedsvs

Go for it ladies, I look forward to hearing how you have got on with them and as always, I welcome any questions you might have at: carrie@theblondemarketinggoddess.com

Namaste, giggles & light,

Carrie Eddinsxx