Tag Archives: Start Big

While on the subject of Feedback


Posted by Amy Diederich

My sister has these words hanging on her wall:
If a child lives with criticism, he learns to condemn.
If a child lives with ridicule, she learns to be shy.
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.
If a child lives with shame, she learns to feel guilty.
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be patient.
If a child lives with encouragement, she learns confidence.
If a child lives with praise, he learns appreciation.
If a child lives with fairness, she learns justice.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have faith.
If a child lives with approval, she learns to like herself.
If children live with acceptance and friendship, they learn to find
love in the world.
—Dorothy Law Nolte
I often find myself reflecting on these words in parenting. Lately I find that I reflect on these words for more than just my kids but also in all aspects of how I live my life. I was reminded today to Thank People! What a great reminder. I am also reminded to praise people to help them live in appreciation. Who are you appreciating today?


Tools to Help You with Your Website


Posted by Amy Diederich

Happy Fourth of July!

Many entrepreneurs ask me questions about SEO and websites. This weekend while celebrating the Fourth I gathered with some fellow entrepreneurs and we discussed our websites. While I am no expert I love to share what I know and the tools I have found helpful.

One tool I love is Hubspots’s website grader. http://websitegrader.com.  This free site gives you up to date advice in how to improve your site. It assigns a “grade” which being a type A personality I love to follow the suggestions it provides to improve my grade.

Another site I like is backlink watch http://www.backlinkwatch.com. This site is also free and provides you with details on what backlinks you have and the page ranks of these back links.

Also check out www.Alexa.com. Downloading the Alexa toolbar allows you to see your traffic rank. It is a free tool that not only lets you watch traffic ranks for your site but others as well.

For  Ipad users and owners you should check out all the great SEO apps! For less than five dollars each you can get some great stats on your site. I love SEO Ranking. It tells me my keywords and how my site is doing for those words. There is also an SEO course. It contains short videos to help educate you quickly on how to improve your position in search engines.

What tools do you like? Please share. As entrepreneurs we often have to wear many hats. I know for this entrepreneur I am loving my new role of understanding SEO.


Jack and The Magic Beanstalk


Posted by Amy Diederich

The Beanstalk

Recently I was one of a “select group” to be invited to attend a webinar on starting your own business. I received a barrage of emails about the magic steps to success. I was intrigued and stayed tuned in until it came time to buy. The cost of the webinar? $1495.00.

Why did I not enroll? Not because of the price but because of the promises! The webinar stated if I followed the steps I would get rich quick! This was a giant red flag for me. I know from starting my own business that there is not one magic bean that will grow the giant beanstalk or one magic step to entrepreneurial success. It takes work!

You will notice I did not say hard work. The one thing I learned from my dad and had drilled into my head from early on is.. “What will make you successful is doing what you love with those who you love.”  I say almost the same thing to my three kids, but I say it a bit differently. I say, “Success is doing what you love with those that you love.” I work long hours but I love it! I am always thinking about my business because it is my passion.

I am blessed to be in a business that helps other people. Get Your BIG On helps connect those who have expertise to share with those seeking that expertise. I receive emails, Facebook messages, calls, and twitter messages almost daily from people who want or need help. Sometimes it is someone looking for information other times it is someone wanting to share information. What a great business to be in! What a great life to live!

Next week at www.getyourbigon.com we are featuring a class offered by Tara Alemany and Rick Swartz from Building your Biz called Getting a Rush from Your Follow-up. In this class they talk about the joy of building your business. They use an analogy to working out. In building your business you get up, work out and repeat day after day to see results. Those of us who love our workout routine know that the only way to do this is and keep it up is to do what you love.

So when you get those ads promising you the magic bean that will grow the magic beanstalk be wary! They may have information that helps but unless you find your true passion.. work will be hard work! My steps for success are do what you love and learn all you can to be the best you can!


Love and Business


Posted by Amy Diederich

Move fast and break things. Unless you are breaking stuff, you are not moving fast enough. ~Mark Zuckerberg

This quote leapt off the page for me because last night I broke my website…well, at least the homepage. I found Mark’s quote reassuring as I wait for my webmaster to contact me with the fix for my missing home page.

After reading and fixating on this quote on Valentine’s Day of all days, I realize I might be in love with my business! Read more and see what you think?

According to “love experts” you know you are in love when:

1. When, at the beginning of the day, you are already filled with thoughts of the other person: what he/she is doing, how he/she looks. I woke up this morning with the very first thought on my mind did the webmaster fix my website? will I see my beloved home page again?

2. You become selfless. And you start thinking more about what would be good for the other person, than what would be good for you. I have a ski trip scheduled for the holiday weekend. I had to give up a speaking engagement to go on the trip. I found myself wanting to cancel my trip to stay home and be with my budding new elearning site.

3. You start to think of how it would be to be with this person forever… and you relish that dream or feeling. The thought of spending the rest of your lives together is not seen as being stuck with another person, but is considered to be a very wonderful idea. Recently on a daily walk with a friend she expressed she is having trouble deciding what to do in her fifties. I told her she needed to find her passion and her calling…like I had.

4. Even if there are other people who are more beautiful or attractive, you still choose to be with this person. This means your commitment to this person is absolute. You have fully and undeniably decided to be with only him/her no matter what. It is not only love, but also devotion. I was approached recently about taking a six plus figure job at a well known corporation. I did not even entertain the idea.

5. There is passion and fireworks, even after the infatuation period of six months. If you have been together for such a long time now, but aren’t bored out of your minds yet and can still feel the fire burning – simply because you keep it burning (and this requires dedication and effort), is a clear indication that love is still shared between two people. I have had my own business since 1999. Sure it has grown and evolved. Building the new e-learning website has added a new passion and a new sense of purpose. I can not imagine doing anything else.

6. There is a desire to understand each other, even at the biggest of arguments. You continue to communicate openly and do not harshly judge each other. You accept each other’s faults and shortcomings. Last night I was ready to throw my computer against the wall but instead I stayed up late trying to understand Joomla.. the software that supports my website.

So I don’t know:  is it love or just business?

Are any of you out there in love with your business?


Invention and Innovation


Posted by Amy Diederich

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” ~Steve Jobs

Innovation comes from the Latin word innovātus which means to renew. Innovation can therefore be seen as the process which renews something that exists. It does not mean, as is commonly assumed, the introduction of something new.

Innovation requires people to change the way they think, they must choose to do things differently, make choices outside of their norm. So innovation must be seen as something that does not something that is

On a lower level, innovation can be seen as a change in the thought process for doing something, or the useful application of new inventions or discoveries. It may refer to incremental, emergent, or radical and revolutionary changes in thinking, products, processes, or organizations.

My dad has always been my inspiration as he is both inventive and innovative! Today my father sold my family home. He is preparing to journey to the next stage of his life. Even as he prepares to move to a “retirement” community, he still pursues life long learning. He is now on Facebook!  So whether you are an innovator or an inventor, I challenge you to continue life long learning.  In watching “The Talk” yesterday I heard Debbie Reynolds speak of her daughter, Carrie Fisher. She explained Carrie is brilliant and reads a book a day!

Today I vow to pick my next great book to read.  What will yours be?