Spotlight Entrepreneur: Nicole Andrews Moore

Nicole Andrews Moore

A while ago I wrote an article titled, Hiring Your Husband: A Modern Day FairyTale? In my research I spoke with a lot of business owners including Nicole Andrews Moore. Like many women I interviewed, Nikki's perspective of working with her hubby was a positive one and one that she cherished. I was expecting the complete opposite when I started writing my story, so I was thankful to have follow up conversations with Nikki learning more about her husband Sam, their business relationship and how it made their family home improvement business, Carolina Home Enhancements, a success.  Many a tweet later we were scheduling coffees and cultivating a supportive friendship as we navigated the highs and lows of self-employment.  I realized I had a lot to learn from this woman!  Not only was she adventurous, but she loved to write about adventure. Are you in the mood for the romantic escape of Sugar Daddy? Or maybe the real journey of Kenna, Sam and Nicole's 9.6oz wonder-baby?  Meet Nicole Andrews Moore: wife, mommy, novelist, blogger, life coach, traveler, adventurer, foodie, friend and author of her latest novel, Hiding Out:

Tell us about your business and target market.
I am a novelist, blogger, and lately…shameless self-promoter.  I write stories of hope, happiness, and love.  From what I gather, my audience is predominantly female, 18-80.  Don’t believe me, the fan page says it all.  ☺ 

When did you decide it was the right time to take the leap into self-employment?
I have worked a number of jobs and potential careers through the years.  Helping others build their dreams was a means to an end for me.  It was always my intention to be self-employed.  I always wanted to be a writer.  And when I met Sam, I encouraged him to build his own company.  After a while, Carolina Home Enhancements was too busy for him to handle it on his own.  We returned from a sailing excursion Memorial Day weekend and Sam called me at work and asked me to turn in my two week notice.  On June 15, 2011, I retired from that life and we’ve been working on building our dreams ever since. 

What is the most challenging aspect about being an entrepreneur?
Leaping and hoping the net will appear.  There is no fall back for income, no guaranteed salary, no benefits, no retirement package. 

What is your #1 tip for balancing work and family?
There are agreed upon times that are dedicated family time.  We accept that our weekends aren’t always Saturday and Sunday.  We have to be willing to chip in and help in areas that we might not always want to.  I have had to mow the lawn in the spring or fall when Sam is busiest.  He has had to help out around the house more than he expected, more than he would sometimes like.

What small business resource(s) can you NOT live without?
My mentor, JB McGee.  I have no idea what I would do without her.  She has introduced me to so many people, taught me how to market, helped me to build my brand.  It’s a process.  I’m growing and learning. 

What advice would you give to a friend who was thinking about starting a business? 
Do it, but do it smart.  Make sure that you have done the research, have a plan, have a net, make sure you have the support of your family/spouse/partner.  All of that is essential.

Favorite social media site? 
Facebook.  It is so easy, so versatile, so user friendly, so interactive…

What book has been an inspiration to you as an entrepreneur? 
I read everything I can get my hands on that has to do with Kindle marketing.  I think the first and most important book I read was by John Locke’s How I Sold a Million ebooks in Five Months!  It taught me so much about how to be a successful writer.  To begin with…he didn’t sell a million books by only having one book out there.  He had many books published on Kindle.  He knew how to market using Twitter, his blog, list build, and create successful sales emails.  I had no idea there was so much involved in it.

When you’re not working, what is your favorite activity? 
When we’re not working? I don’t remember not working.  I think the difference is that we’re doing what we love so that it doesn’t feel like work.  Sam has down time, and I can write anywhere, so we love to travel.  Of course, we’ve been on lockdown the past year because of Kenna.  So…we developed new hobbies.  We planted a vegetable and herb garden.  I learned to make homemade marinara using our fresh basil and our varieties of tomatoes.  Once in a while I get to read for pleasure.  Oh, and Pinterest became my drug…and another marketing tool.

Where do you see your business in 5 years? 
In five years, I hope to be a best seller, have a few series to my credit.  I’d love to have books in production to be movies or even made for TV movies. Yes, I not so secretly want to be Nicholas Sparks.   

Enter to Win the GoodReads Book Giveaway featuring Hiding Out, or follow Nicole @thenicknick, Facebook, Pinterest. And don't forget to stalk her on Amazon!

About the author… 

Nicki has lived in Charlotte, North Carolina with her children for the past eleven years and her husband for the past three years.  Her journey has barely begun and she loves every minute of it.  Every day of her life seems to bring new adventures, some bigger, better, shinier and prettier than others.  She's still getting used to that new life smell she's experiencing, a combination of hope, love, and happiness.  (The perfect scents to build a new life on...)

For fun, she spends time with those she cares about, cooks, reads, writes, and especially lives to travel.  The current travel goal: visit every Margaritaville.  Two down!  (Eleven to go?)

In addition to writing on Suddenly Single Journey, Nicki is a contributor for Project Underblog.  Her writing can also be found on Shine, where she is a Shine Parenting Guru and an award winning Yahoo! Contributor on YourWisdom as the relationship and dating expert.  And she has been published by McClatchy News in their syndicated papers.

www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com

Spotlight Entrepreneur Round Up 2012

Susan Cannella, Gardening Gals

Helen Denny, Gardening Gals

This year we had the pleasure of introducing you to 12 entrepreneurs harnessing success in 2012.  Did you identify with any of their challenges? Did you take any of their inspiration and apply it to your own business?

We look forward to continuing this series in 2013. If you would like to nominate a Entrepreneur for Spotlight- please email us today!  sleeveshirt (at) hotmail (dot) com.

Amanda Haddaway, Author of Destination Real World: Success After Graduation

Shelley Oppedisano, Co-Editor and Co-Publisher of Macaroni Kid

Barbara Goldberg, Back on Track Solutions

Kelly Mistry, MyFairyTaleBooks

Candy Tolentino, Marry Me Already and Earth Cafe Living Foods

Jill Salzman, Founding Moms

Monica Wreede, Connectz

Jody Mahoney, Jody Mahoney Photography

Jenn Furr, Picture That Sound

Tangela Craft, Inventor of GoPillow!

www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com

Spotlight Entrepreneur: Barbara Goldberg of Back on Track Solutions

This month I'm pleased to introduce you to a fellow entrepreneur who I recently had the pleasure of meeting in person!  When you visit Barbara's website, you'll see she has an affinity for racing.  The NASCAR Hall of Fame is what brought me to Charlotte, so it seemed the perfect venue to sit down and get to know Barbara and her business, Back on Track Solutions.  It's such a fitting name, because usually her client has found themselves off-track with their business processes and in need of some course correction.  Barbara works across many different industries, but what remains constant is her ability to take a step back and see the big picture, and break it down into easy, actionable nuts and bolts. 

Do you feel that most small businesses overlook the need for business processes?   
Yes I do. They tend to deal with the most immediate need and ignore the other pieces that may help their business thrive.

Tell us a little bit about the audience you serve with your company Back on Track Solutions.

I work with mom and pop type small business owners who have 10 or less employees as well as Solopreneurs. Having said that, I will always make myself available to any business that feels Back On Track Solutions can be of service to them.

What for you, on a day-to-day basis, is the biggest challenge of being an entrepreneur?

Juggling the many hats of a solopreneur. I’m in the process of looking at outsourcing some work but so far I’m still doing everything myself which stretches me thin.

What advice would you give to a friend who was thinking about starting her own business?

I would definitely encourage her but also advise her that there will be bumpy roads in the beginning and not to get discouraged. I would also tell her to build up a team around her that can provide feedback to her and allow her to keep the big picture in mind.

What small business resource can you NOT live without?

Dropbox – It has made sending files to clients and colleagues so much easier. I no longer have to be creative in finding ways to send them big files. SKYPE is a close second. Having that face to face contact makes a call more personable then a regular phone call.

Barabara should be your first phone call if you need to take a deeper look into business process improvements, such as:

• Operations Management
• Resource Management
• Time Management
• Inventory Management
• Creation of Policy and Procedures Manual, Employee Handbook and User Guide
• Employee Training and Development
• Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Planning

Reach Barbara at her website, her Facebook fan page, on Twitter or on Google+, and get yourself to the checkered flag!

www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com

Spotlight Entrepreneur: Jill Salzman of Founding Moms

Are you ready to be entertained?  Meet Jill Salzman- sassy CEO of Founding Moms. A graduate of Brown University and law school after that, she ditched bankruptcy law to begin her entrepreneurial journey with two successful companies; Paperwork Media LLC and the Bumble Brand LLC.  Her third venture, Founding Moms is focused on connecting mom entrepreneurs around the globe.  Jill brings great advice to this Q&A with lots of humor.  Enjoy!

Jill Salzman

What made you decide to take the plunge into self-employment?

I’d just graduated from law school and knew that I was not going to practice law.  I also knew that I wanted to create an environment where I could be home with the kids and making money at the same time.  Child labor laws prevented me from going one route, so I opted to launch my own business instead.

What is the biggest challenge that you face as an entrepreneur?

It depends on the day.  One day it’s accounting, another it’s legal, and most days it’s marketing.  Finding customers and clients is a pretty big one.  But for the most part, figuring out how to get my work done and feed my family all in one day takes the top of the cake, most of the time. 

If you had to give a piece of advice to a girlfriend that was thinking about starting her own small business, what would that be?

I’d ask her to sell me on her idea.  Then I’d tell her to go out and find friends, family and strangers and pitch her product or service to them.  My first piece of advice for anyone is to figure out whether there’s a market for what they’re selling.  Too many people spend far too much time planning, thinking, planning, waiting, wondering if it’s the right time, creating a laundry list of worries, and then planning some more.  I’ve seen a lot of entrepreneurs spend upwards of 2 years prepping their product launch only to find out, post-launch, that no one is interested in buying it.  I’m very much a dive-in-first-and-then-plan kinda gal, and since it’s worked for me three times, I’m confident it’s going to work for someone else, too.

What small business resources can you not live without?

Twitter.  And Tadalist.  And LessAccounting.com.  And Google Docs.  And Wordpress.  And Evernote.  And Skype.  And most importantly, My First Ticonderoga #2 pencils.

Tell us about The Founding Moms and how mom entrepreneurs can benefit from joining.

The Founding Moms is a collective of meetups and educational resources for mom entrepreneurs.  We’re in 30+ cities to date with 2,500+ members around the world, including cities in Canada and Australia (and soon Germany, too.)  We host kid-friendly meetups each month where we come together to help one another through education, advice, speakers and networking to better build our businesses.  We’ll be launching an online platform soon and there’ll be a lot of benefit to each of these members in their cities connecting with members outside of their home area.  Very exciting.  The benefits to joining?  There’s the practical stuff, like advice and tips on all areas of entrepreneurship that you can write down, go back to your office and put into practice.  There’s the intangible, like the networking and brainstorming that happens at each Founding Moms’ Exchange (which is what we call our meetups.)  But then there’s the real gold:  the inspiration and confidence that you get from connecting with other like-minded women.  Every month I head back to work after an Exchange and feel even better about what I’m doing.  It’s indescribable, really, but outstanding and happens each and every month.

You just published your first book: Found It: A Field Guide for Mom Entrepreneurs, tell us about the book and how we can purchase a copy!

Sure!  I wanted to write a quick-read guide for women who were interested in launching their own businesses, or who were already running small businesses but wanted to grow bigger.  I knew a lengthy, well-researched book was not really up any mom entrepreneur’s alley, so I gunned for a bathroom read and put together 51 short, to-the-point chapters that you can read and refer to again and again.  The first half of the book is all about starting up and sustaining a great company.  The second half is about how to do all of the first part’s bits with kids in the mix.  Humorist John Hartzell of MiddleAgeRiot.com agreed to do the illustrations for my book, and we made them black and white so kids could color them in.  The last part is not true but I just figured out that crayons would totally work on them. 

You can purchase it at http://www.bit.ly/jillsbook1 which is the only place to get a signed copy.  It’s on Amazon, too.  The e-book is available through BarnesAndNoble.com and it’s in Barnes & Nobles’ stores nationwide.

    When deciding to write your book, what was the biggest stumbling block?

The writing of the book was the easy part.  The chapters almost fell out of my head and onto paper and I completed it in literally 6ish weeks.  The hardest part was figuring out whether to self-publish or to find a publisher.  I spent much too long waiting for my agent to nab a publishing deal, when in reality most pub deals are pretty bad these days as the industry struggles.  But when I decided to self-publish, there were so many new challenges that I didn’t even know to know that it held things up for a bit.  Which printer?  How to distribute?  What size book?  Who would design it?  Those things.  Fortunately (and clearly) I figured them out and here I am!

My thanks again to Jill for a wonderful interview. To learn more about Founding Moms or to contact Jill directly, please visit:

http://www.FoundingMoms.com

http://www.twitter.com/foundingmom

http://www.linkedin.com/in/foundingmom

http://www.facebook.com/foundingmoms

www.sleeveshirtconsulting.com