Ever since I carried my first picket sign at age 13, I have been an advocate for a wide variety of social causes. In recent years, spurred by the 9/11 tragedy, Iraq war, and Hurricane Katrina, I’ve felt a growing urgency to make social change my full-time vocation. I spend the majority of my time these days coaching and consulting with social entrepreneurs, activists, and community leaders, writing and speaking about social change topics, and serving causes such as the Send Girls to School Project, Grameen Shakti, and the Global Initiative to Advance Entrepreneurship. You can find out more about my social change work by visiting Social Entrepreneur Coach or my blog How to Become a Hero. On this site, you’ll find a selection of my social change articles (below), details about my books and audios, and announcements of upcoming events.

I believe that each of us has a path of right livelihood — a way of earning a living that makes the best use of our talents, honors our values, and allows us to be of service to others. Since 1992, I’ve been helping entrepreneurs and professionals discover their right livelihood, as a business and career coach, author, and teacher. I’ve written dozens of articles on life purpose topics, authored the job search book Get Hired Now!, and taught classes on career transition for a wide variety of organizations. My current focus is on blogging, writing, and teaching about the intersection of life purpose and social change. You can find out more about my work in that area by visiting How to Become a Hero. On this site, you’ll find a selection of my life purpose articles (below), details about my books and audios, and announcements of upcoming events.

I have a passion for entrepreneurship that dates back to selling handmade jewelry at age 11. I’ve owned and managed several small businesses and have been continuously self-employed for almost twenty years. For the past 16 years, I’ve been helping entrepreneurs and social enterprises to succeed, as a business coach, consultant, author, and teacher. I’ve written dozens of articles on entrepreneurship topics, and taught entrepreneurship classes for a wide variety of organizations. My current focus is on social entrepreneurship. You can find out more about my work in that area by visiting Social Entrepreneur Coach. On this site, you’ll find a selection of my entrepreneurship articles (below), details about my books and audios, and announcements of upcoming events.

Since 1992, I’ve been helping entrepreneurs, independent professionals, and nonprofits become more successful at marketing. I’ve written two books and hundreds of articles on sales and marketing topics, coached and consulted on marketing worldwide, and taught marketing workshops for hundreds of organizations. You can find out more about my marketing work by visiting Get Clients Now! On this site, you’ll find a selection of my marketing articles (below), details about my marketing books and audios, and announcements of upcoming events.

When Times Get Tough and Jobs Dry Up, Consulting May Be the Ticket

An economic downturn may seem like the wrong time to start your own business, but layoffs and downsizing can create new opportunities for one breed of entrepreneur – the corporate consultant. Companies who lay off full-time workers still have many needs for specific skills, and frequently hire consultants on a short-term or project basis to fill these gaps. If you’ve been laid off yourself, working as a consultant can allow you to earn a good income while salaried jobs are scarce. (more…)

Sometimes you just have to prospect. While it’s true than networking, referrals, and other relationship-oriented marketing strategies are superior ways to build a professional services business in the long run, the problem can lie in that word “long.” It takes time to build a network and generate referrals. If you’re new in business or your pipeline has gone dry, you may not feel as if you can wait for those budding relationships to mature. (more…)

There’s a quiet revolution going on in the world of business. A 2005 survey by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce reported that 81% of business executives believe that “corporate citizenship” should be a priority, and 75% report their businesses are actively involved in bettering their communities. In a 2006 survey of MBA students by Net Impact, 81% thought businesses should work toward the betterment of society. (more…)

Every spring in my household, we experience a period we have come to call Groundhog Day. I’ve always loved the Bill Murray movie of the same name, a sweet fable about an egocentric, mean-spirited newscaster doomed to live the same day over and over until he learns to care about others and enjoy the simple pleasures of life. (more…)

Building a Culture that Supports Women Entrepreneurs

Supporting entrepreneurship in the developing world has long been considered one of the best approaches to “teach people to fish” and build sustainable local economies. In recent years, studies by the United Nations, World Bank, and others have shown that women entrepreneurs are more likely to contribute to community development than men, and are therefore better candidates for support programs. (more…)

In the wake of disasters like the Sept. 11th attack on the World Trade Center and Hurricane Katrina, there are many question marks in the air. When a tragedy strikes, I hear clients, students, colleagues, and the people from around the world who correspond with me asking many things, of themselves and others. (more…)