Grandpa’s Johnny Appleseed career advice

My dad and me on a walk in Maui.

During a phone call with my dad about the fears and the future of my career, he gave me some advice that he used to give the lawyers at his firm. It was something to the effect of:

Each day, pick one thing that you can do, to market yourself, your business, or advance your career… Actually I’d say pick three things, but I figured if I said three they’d do one.

Then he went on to give some more helpful advice like, coming up with your idea(s) during the same time each day…

When you’re brushing your teeth, staring yourself at the mirror, showering, etc that’s a good time to think about the thing(s) you can do.

He said it’s a variation on what my grandfather told him, he calls it his dad’s Johnny Appleseed advice: If you plant one seed a day something will grow, and you’ll be amazed at how that posts dividends over time.

So I’ve been trying to put that into action. My week ahead looks especially busy because of that, but instead of feeling stressed (like I do when I have a full calendar) I’m feeling excited. Today I scheme with Ariel about our Vegas wedding expo marketing for Offbeat Bride. Tomorrow I meet with a friend about the possibility of a series of Offbeat Empire guest posts. And on Wednesday I’m REALLY excited to meet with yet another friend about possible future uber-geeky business matters.

It’s not that I’m unhappy where I am. I’m DELIRIOUSLY happy — I can’t believe that I’ve come this far business-wise. (Hell, a friend of mine whom I’ve always looked up to as a successful woman, told me that she looks at ME as a savvy business woman. What!? Awesome!) It’s that I don’t want to rest on my laurels, get stagnant, and then stop moving forward.

I’m going to start taking the advice of the (very successful) Tharpe men before me, and plant seeds and see what grows. And I welcome you to take said advice as well.