Before opening Visible Logic, Emily worked at several successful studios in the Chicago & Boston area. At these full-service studios she completed a broad range of design work, including B-to-B marketing collateral, annual reports and identity projects. Early in her career Emily worked in print production and as a print buyer in the book publishing industry. This foundation in print management allows her to troubleshoot the production side of projects.

“I always knew I’d start my own design firm, but I had to get the right experience before going out on my own. I got laid off in the summer of 2001 and decided it would be better in the long run to start my own business rather than search for another design job.” – Emily Brackett

What interested me most about my interview with Emily is her authenticity in reflecting that she didn’t start out with a plan to land where she did. She had always enjoyed art, color and type—but didn’t know what to do with it. Like many people, she wasn’t really aware of what a graphic designer did. So, I took the long route getting to where I am. I have a liberal arts degree, then I worked in book publishing. That’s where I realized exactly what graphic designers did and finally figured out where I belonged. Then, I went back to school at Massachusetts College of Art to get a degree in graphic design. Best decision!

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A new project by California eco-urban design firm LJ Urban aims to make giving more concrete—quite literally—by matching its sales of homes domestically with funds to build homes in the impoverished African nation of Burkina Faso.

Urban has designed a new eco-urban community of 35 LEED ND Certified homes in the urban core of Sacramento, its home town. The community is suggestively named Good, and for each home within it that gets sold, LJ Urban has committed to funding the complete training of a West African mason to build sustainable homes for families in Burkina Faso. By partnering with the Association La Voûte Nubienne (AVN), which has already trained about 60 local masons to build durable homes out of earth bricks and mortar, LJ Urban aims to go beyond just providing homes to impart enduring skills and jobs to the local community. Taking the notion a step further, LJ Urban has also opted to skip the expensive marketing campaign to promote its Good community, and to use that money to train more African masons instead. So, for every 100,000 people who visit LJ Urban’s new, dedicated website by July 1st, the company will fund the complete training of another local Burkina Faso mason—up to 20 in all through this viral approach.

The Good project was inspired by Toms Shoes, a project that donates a pair of shoes for every one it sells. “[That] approach captivated us because it broke through the ‘charity fatigue’ all of us have felt at one time or another,” LJ Urban’s team explains. “The question then became: ‘What if we could do something like that with our houses?’…” The project is also reminiscent of One Laptop Per Child’s (OLPC’s) “Give One Get One” campaign last year through which consumers could donate a laptop and get one for their own use at the same time.

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“As three women in a male-dominated industry, we took a risk by starting a company together. My partner Rae is a single mom of three children (one severely handicapped) and I have a speech disorder that makes it difficult for me to communicate, statistics say we probably should have kept day jobs.” — Lisa Barone

Starting a business during a recession is a risky thing to do, but also the optimal time for new ideas, better services and plucky folks to connect. Top of mind for this crew is empowering others to take smart risks. “We did it and we want others to know they can do that too.”

Behind The Scenes

Rae Hoffman	Rhea Drysdale	Lisa Barone
Rae Hoffman is Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Outspoken Media, Inc. In 1997 Rae started a small website about her son and his medical condition that became one of the first international support groups on the topic. It earned national media coverage and helped further medical research in the field… More about Rae Hoffman	Rhea Drysdale is Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Outspoken Media, Inc. Since 2004 Rhea has grown her understanding of on-page optimization, online reputation management and social media with both in-house and agency positions. Rhea loves working with clients… More about Rhea Drysdale	Lisa Barone is Co-Founder and Chief Branding Officer of Outspoken Media, Inc. Lisa has been involved in the SEO community since 2006 and is widely known for her honest industry observations, her inability to not say exactly what she’s thinking, and her excessive on-the-clock Twittering… More about Lisa Barone

OutspokenMedia works with clients to develop marketing strategies that encourage them to do great things and to care about their niche communities. The Outspoken blog was developed to prompt action in the community as well as teach. Outspoken presents How Tos to small business owners helping them market their own businesses and get more from online.  The recession has given entrepreneurs an even larger opportunity to go out on their own and succeed. It hasn’t taken it away.

Here is a bit from my interview with Lisa from OutspokenMedia.com…

When did the idea for starting your business come to you?
Having my own business was never something I was aspiring to. I was very much content in the stability of being an employee and receiving a steady paycheck. However, in January I was three months into a new job (a job I had moved from CA to NY to take) and came to a point where I knew in my heart it wasn’t going to work out. So the decision was to stay in a job I wasn’t comfortable in to keep a paycheck or venture out on my own in a bad economy.  It may seem crazy to some but, I chose the latter option.

Luckily, it didn’t take more than a few chats with my then-friends, now business partners, Rae Hoffman and Rhea Drysdale to be confident that we could do something together. So really just like that, we formed Outspoken Media, a new kind of Internet marketing company.  Deciding to start the company was probably one of the hardest decisions I’ve had to make. Committing to myself to something that huge was an enormous undertaking for me. But I’m very glad I did it.

What do you do?
My official role at Outspoken is that of Chief Branding Officer, which to me means that I’m responsible for starting conversations. Whether that’s for us or for clients, through the blog or on Twitter, or through any other medium, my job really is to build brands and conversation through communities on the Web.  I help people their evangelists and build bridges.

What’s the biggest challenges you’ve had to overcome to start your business?
Learning how to wear so many hats.  Before I’ve always had very specific job descriptions. When the business is your own, you find yourself taking on tasks you never imagined.  There’s a constant learning curve.

What’s the most satisfying thing about running your business?
The freedom to do what I feel is right.  I’m a blogger and a bit mouthy, so working for someone else always meant that I had to temper that. I had to watch what I wrote, watch what I said, pick my battles, etc.  Now I get to blog as me and for me, which I think makes my blogging more genuine and more engaging for readers. It probably doesn’t sound like that big of a change, but to me it’s been night and day and something I’m incredibly grateful for.  I can’t always say what I want to in real life due to my speech difficulties, so having total freedom of my written voice means everything to me.  It’s empowered me.

Has running your business been what you expected it would be? How?
There’s a lot more to it than I ever thought. I knew that it would be long hours and that it’d grueling at times…I just thought at some point that would stop and that I’d have a day to catch my breath. That day hasn’t hit yet. My biggest lesson has been that it just never stops. There’s always something to do, something more than needs tweaking, an email to respond to, a blog post to write, someone to reach out to, etc.  I’ve learned that running your own business really is a 247 job. I love it. It’s been great and incredibly rewarding, but there’s so much more to it than I ever knew.  Every so often a crisis will break out and I’ll turn to one of my partners and say, “someone should really take care of that!”, and then I remember that I’m that person. If I want something done, I’m the person to do it.

How did you fund your business in the beginning?
I think that’s the beauty of the Internet, you can start a business with very low capital.  Because we’re a service-based company, the only initial costs we had were those involved with skinning the Web site. The domain was already bought, we had hosting, etc. From there the “cost” really is time. It’s been working to build the brand, getting our name out, letting people know we exist, and taking on clients.

What is your passion?
Using my voice in a way that helps others.  I love that the blog allows me to share advice, concerns, issues, etc, with people and to have an impact on their day or to touch them in some way. There’s no greater feeling than that.

What makes you get up in the morning?
My business partners and knowing that we’re capable of doing great things for clients, in a style that’s true to us.  It’s nice believing in what you do and the way you do it.

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Maybe I should pick up some Obama Red to wash down my Freedom Fries…

From Speigel Online:

French Vintner Creates ‘Obama Cuvée’

While Germany opted for creating the dubious Obama Fingers, France has gone a more tasteful route. A female vintner, originally from Africa, has created an Obama wine — and is donating all the profits to an NGO in Darfur.

France has come up with a brand new Obama wine.

The culinary world decided to celebrate the election of Barack Obama as United States president with some strange and possibly questionable products, including the Obama Fingers fried chicken snack, but now the rarefied world of wine is trying to get in on the act.

French winemaker Angela Bousquet-Keita, who hails originally from Guinea in Africa, has created the Obama cuvée (or vintage wine) to celebrate the election of the first African-American to the White House.

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Traditionally, companies that “do good” are generally non profits, and when people find out that a traditional small business is also “doing good” they feel like somehow the company must be taking advantage of the community it is serving if it is also turning a profit. I do not believe this to be the case and formed my consulting company based on the premise that small businesses would contribute to a triple bottom line if they knew where to find it.

Creative Capitalism has been around for a while. Formerly known as social entrepreneurism, it is a concept newly labeled by Bill Gates, Warren Buffet and other market leaders and the premise is that “we should attempt to stretch the reach of market forces so that more companies can benefit from doing work that makes more people better off.” The book is available on Amazon (unsure of where the profits go). So far, it’s a pretty foreign concept to most bottom-line discussions. Having spent time reviewing the giving trends of big tycoons in the past (land trusts, libraries, parks), there is something different about the timing of this idea: the generation that is receiving it.  

The 30 and 20-somethings have grown disillusioned with where the 1980s consumption and 1990s holding on behavior have gotten us. Those that have the means to get out and travel, see the disparity in the world, come back and want to do something about it. With technology to reflect back their experiences they are twittering, facebooking, myspacing and texting what they are seeing to one another – and a small group are doing something about it.

Why profile TOMS?

Two reasons: 1) Anyone who has seen true the true spirit of leadership in play knows it is the eagerness to lose oneself in the group for the good of the group. This quality is best exemplified in Blake Mycoskie for the simple reason: that is where the heart of his business began. One for One, from day One. 2) Any size business should learn that a social model (something that takes into account the community in which it survives) thrives 10-fold compared to businesses that have tunnel-vision on bottom line sales. There is something to be said for karma.

About the Company

TOMS Shoes promises to give to children in need a pair of shoes for each pair it sells. The company  has given over 140,000 pairs of shoes and expects to give more than 300,000 pairs this year.

TOMS Shoes launched in Venice, California and sold 10,000 pairs during the first year in business. As a result, Blake returned to Argentina in October of 2006 with family and friends and unveiled the second phase of his business plan: the Shoe Drop Tour. To meet demand, TOMS now offers Shoe Drop Tours throughout diverse regions of Argentina. These are volunteer opportunities where TOMS Shoes supporters hand-deliver shoes to children. Since its beginning, TOMS has given over 140,000 shoes to children in need around the world. 

Here is a bit of my discussion with Blake:

Why shoes?
BLAKE: Walking is the primary mode of transportation in developing countries. Children walk miles just to get food and water, to make their way to school, or to reach medical help. In some communities, children can’t even attend school unless they have proper footwear. And the leading plague in these countries is soil-transmitted parasites. Shoes are such a simple answer to these problems children face every day.

See TOMS educational videos: One Day Without Shoes and Why Ethiopia (warning on the second video for graphic images)

Technology is required in today’s job market. Is TOMS Shoes looking to attract a blended workforce, or does the average age of the workers in the company reflect a standard .com?
BLAKE: For the first few years, our staff reflected the young, evolving company that we were. But as we grow, TOMS is definitely looking to attract a diverse workforce. We’ve become much more aware of our needs, and therefore able to hire individuals with specific skill sets, relevant experience, and worthy knowledge. I am still the CEO and Chief Shoe Giver, and I continue to immerse myself in TOMS because it’s my passion. I have creative ideas and feverish curiosity, and my team is receptive to that. But I definitely have trust in those who are facilitating the every day, drafting direction, and establishing strategies.

Your company is for-profit. What sort of profit sharing model exists for the employees and how did you arrive at the decision to not do a nonprofit?
BLAKE: My earnings from other businesses I had started before TOMS are what kept us afloat in the earlier days- TOMS was not funded by an outside 3rd party. I never had to present a business plan or get approval, I just had trust in myself and the One for One concept. Of course people laughed when I said TOMS would give a pair of shoes away for every pair we sold, but now TOMS is proving One for One as a viable business model. Our customers have been amazing supporters since day 1.

I created TOMS as a for-profit business to ensure a sustainable way of giving. We’re able to give shoes weekly in Ethiopia, and monthly in Argentina. I also wanted to prove that you can build giving into your business model from day one and still be profitable. We get a lot of inquiries from all types of organizations wanting to get involved with TOMS in one way or another. It’s a blessing, really, but we have to be careful in these first critical years of building our brand.

You are an example of an individual whose actions will help define the generation they are in. Your generation is described as both the “me generation” and the “giving generation.” How do you think your generation should be characterized?
BLAKE: This generation is one that thrives off of action. We don’t dream about change, we make it happen. We don’t imagine a way to incorporate giving in to our daily lives- we do it. TOMS has so many young supporters who are passionate about the One for One movement, and who share the story and inspire others every day they wear their TOMS. Seeing them support this business model is proof that this generation is ready and able to create a better tomorrow.

People connect with TOMS beyond just owning another pair of shoes. There’s something more every time you slip on a pair, every time you share the story, every time you suggest a pair of TOMS as a gift because no matter what brought you to purchasing a pair of TOMS, you are making an impact on a child’s life. Will there be saturation of cause-based marketing? Most likely, but TOMS has paved the way for other entrepreneurs to incorporate giving in to their businesses.

The One for One mission is sticking with this generation, and causing a new way of thinking. We grew up with parents who were taking those first small steps, and now we are just charging full speed ahead towards a better tomorrow. We have to. One for One is proving that you can bring closure to an issue by incorporating a conscious decision in to the actions you already take- whether its as a consumer purchasing a product, or a business looking for ways to inspire a better tomorrow. It makes consumerism and philanthropy come together full circle.

Carpe Diem!

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 (Watch me on CBS News)

I founded the company in 2003 as a 25 year old first-time mom.  I had always wanted to be a stay-at-home Mom, but deep down I couldn’t let go of the passion I had for business.  Launching Glamajama was an attempt to satisfy both my personal and professional goals and it has led me on a wonderfully fulfilling journey.   Along that journey, I have been blessed with three children that continue to inspire me each and every day.  As a full-time Mom and full-time business owner, I can relate to the work/life struggles Moms face as they seek financial success outside of the home. 

I am very excited about writing for StartupNation and looking forward to meeting my fellow Moms in Business.  Nearly 10.4 million businesses in the United States are women-owned.  Of those 10.4 million women, many of them are juggling the demands of motherhood and striving to achieve that elusive work/life balance.  With 41% of the businesses out there today being women-owned, the world of business is learning to embrace the diversity and innovation that women can bring to the table.  As the numbers of women entrepreneurs rise, business will continue to become increasingly mom-friendly.   Gone are the days of naysayer’s telling women it’s crazy to think you can “have your cake and eat it to.”  I have benefited from these trends and I am thankful for the women before me that have helped pave the way.  Five years since launching, my company is stronger than ever and I have never missed a single moment with my children.  It hasn’t always been easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is. 

My goal for this blog is to share tips and advice for starting and growing your business, pass along tales of successful Moms in Business, and to report on technology and innovations that can help you find your work/life balance a little easier.  And finally, I hope to inspire you to live your dream of “having your cake and eating it too”!

Is there something you like to hear more about?  Story to share?  Please leave a comment!

Heather Nolte is the founder and CEO of  www.Glamajama.com.  Glamajama creates glam-studded clothing for children- clothing they can wear “from the crib to the catwalk”.  The company has been featured on The Today Show, The Early Show, Oprah, Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, USA Today, Star Magazine, Parents, and Working Mother with celebrity clients including Angelina Jolie, Halle Berry, Jennifer Lopez, Angela Bassett, Christina Aguilera, Gwen Stefani, Lisa Rinna, and Jessica Alba.  Contact her at heather@glamajama.com.

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