faulker076

Maybe I should start wearing a tie. March 20, 2012 I sort of anticipated this would come up eventually.  It has definitely come up in the past; when I was running a catering hall, when I was designing culture-specific events; every time I organize a beauty industry event; when I work with (esp. older) Latino men. My sex has managed to come up, directly or indirectly, in some, subtle or not, way. Now, as a full-time entrepreneur and CEO, it feels like my womanness must be showing even more.  Even though I have dealt with... sexism? a lot in the past, the most recent instance got to me. When dealing with a venue promoter (for one of the most popular spots in Miami,) I felt like I got set back a hundred years.  You Need a Drink: If you know me, you know that I take my work very seriously. When I get into “work mode,” people know that I enter a state of business-Zen where all I see is problems to be solved, and from which I cannot be retrieved until the task is complete....

March 11, 2012 Can a successful entrepreneur simultaneously sustain a successful relationship? Well?! Don't expect me to answer! I'm new at this! Can I have it all? Is that selfish? The bright side: Another part of this road of transition has involved my romantic life. This is the part of entrepreneurship that most of the incubators and SBD resources I have come across don't talk about. In the last few months, I have seen the advantages and challenges that come with working for yourself, as it pertains to being in a relationship.  Not having to report to anyone means that I can “work from home” with my beau by my side; I can take pop-up vacations like the one we just had in Vermont, and get work done from my laptop; and leaving work "early" to catch dinner or lunch is never really a problem. More recently, however, I have started to weigh the challenges a bit more and I have been getting nervous. My boyfriend and I have been together about six months but (cheese a...

February 29, 2012 If anyone were to ask me what I have learned in the first part of this full-time entrepreneurship journey, I would say, stay open and think impractically .  Practicality is so stifling! I am just realizing that every client I have landed and every life-altering moment on this road has been the direct result of surrendering rationale, making impractical decisions and taking actions that make me uncomfortable. Yesterday was a great example of it: I have a good friend in the music industry who recently got signed. The launch of her new single will be taking place in Miami in a few weeks, in the company of many high-level industry execs and celebrities. She invited me to attend and the first thing I started to do was worry calculating the cost of a flight, hotel, meals, cabs, time, new outfit, etc. Now that I don’t have steady income anymore, it didn’t seem to make sense to drop hundreds of dollars on a two-day weekend trip. I spoke to a friend and a stranger abo...