About Me

At the core of my existence is one idea: that the power of creativity combined with the power of communication can not only change your life but change the world.

I’ve been finding different ways to exercise my creative muscles in many ways for many years.  My background is as diverse as my ideas, ranging from photographer to wine educator to world traveler.

I’ve been in the wine business since 1996, but also have owned and operated a successful photography business on the side with my wife Angela.  We were one of the first in the country to shoot weddings with the now popular “journalistic” style, and insisted on shooting only black and white (this was pre-digital photography days, when you had to take a stand on your film choices).  Operating that first micro-business showed me first hand the power of a little sideline operation, and income from the photography business allowed me to make a career leap in 2001, when I entered the wholesale side of the wine world.

While in the wine world, I saw an opportunity: more and more people were drinking and enjoying wine, but often with confusion and mis-information.  So I founded another micro-business, Twin Cities Wine, a local source for wine classes and private events.

Just like with the photography business, having a little income on the side that was all my own allowed me to make another daytime career leap in 2010, leaving my previous job without a parachute, safety net, or another job lined up (all of this during a major recession).  How?  Because I knew I had my little micro business on the side well developed and well networked.

And that brings us to this site: a home for discussions on social media, communications, self-promotion, personal branding, micro-business development, and more.  Throw in some travel ideas and the goal of living your life on your own terms, and you have some powerful stuff.

What this is about

The ‘Game Changing Ideas’ of this website are a collection of my writings on how to achieve some pretty incredible things in a short amount of time.  Namely:

• How to discover and use  your own bases of knowledge and experience to form micro-businesses that will make you more income.  These micro-businesses, when designed correctly, can scale in the future into a full time income with part time hours.
• Leveraging and scaling your new micro-businesses to achieve more success, efficiency and happiness in your day job.  This is not a site in which you will hear “Just quit the day job!” endlessly, because I firmly believe there is more stability and ultimate happiness in developing your own job within another organization. Being able for shape, form, and develop a job within a larger group offers stability and opportunity not available to those going at it alone. Think of it as “internal entrepreneurship.”
• Establishing clear, realistic goals that can be reached in a shorter amount of time than you think.  The process of goal-setting is a very powerful tool, but many people abuse it to simply look for the ultimate dream, or focus on the wrong steps during the goal setting.  At this site, we’ll talk about effective tools to plan those goals, making them achievable in an efficient manner.
• Most importantly, using you new found energy, money, and influence to help others. Giving is more imporant than getting, and we’ll discuss the ironic relationship of giving more than you get to get more to give (say that ten times fast).
  
• And all the while traveling around the world for less money than you think, and drinking great wine along the way.  Call me crazy, but that’s what I do.

Sound nuts?  It’s not.  Is this a ‘get rich quick’ scheme?  Quite possibly, if you consider your personal happiness a form of wealth.

This site is for people that want to read about, share ideas, and build community around the central idea that the best security you can have in your life is based in your own knowledge, experiences, and creativity. It’s also for people who are interested in travel, creativity, and business theories (especially as they relate to the “new media” and Web 2.0).  There is no ‘central theme’ here.  Rather, it’s a confluence of ideas that all relate to simply living a good life on your own terms, while determining your own future.

The proclamation

I think the grand majority of people follow the status quo for reasons they don’t understand or question. Moreover, these are the people that will complain endlessly about problems and faults in their lives and try to bring you down to their level of sorrow and woe.

I believe there is a better way, a path in which your own interests and loves can bring you security and income. Many people find this idea threatening, refusing to believe you can ‘have your cake and eat it too’.  Well you know what?  If I baked the cake myself then not only do I have it, but I can eat it when and where I please.  Sometimes I eat my cake in Paris, sometimes in Venice, sometimes in San Francisco.  Cake tastes good everywhere!

I know that when careful attention and energy are applied in the right direction, amazing momentum can develop to take you to places you never thought possible. But to do this you have to be open to some new thinking, and some challenging ideas.

However, the payoff is a life in which you do what you want, with whom you want, when you want, all the while secure in your own finances, beliefs, and plans. If this sounds intriguing to you, please join me on the journey!