Together 24/7 With Barry & Catherine Cohen

A little about our guests. John and Jeanette hail from California. John’s love for cooking came at an early age. In an Italian and Jewish household, food was most important. Jeanette met John as a result of a setup by her aunt, Nancy. It was not love at first sight according to Jeanette. In fact, the exact opposite was true. Another date or two later and Jeanette was convinced. They have been together over 20 years and share their love with their fur-babies. A little about their business. Chef John started his catering business part-time in California, where he met Jeanette. After a few months, they fell in love, got engaged and moved to Arizona so they could devote more time to building their business. It wasn’t long before Jeanette started helping Chef John with their catering company and about 16 years ago they decided to become full-time caterers. Chef John and Jeanette are award winning and Chef John is a James Beard Nominated Chef. Together, they create culinary masterpieces for 2 to 2000 people at any

What happens when the business you built no longer fits your lifestyle? Make a graceful exit. What that means is going to be different for each person and each business. Burnout can happen for any number of reasons. Industries change and grow. People change and grow. New technologies can cause havoc or make your business so simple, you need something more to do. Whatever the reason, honor the fact that you are burnt out. Take stock of your company. Can it be sold or transferred? Can it or should it be closed down slowly? Who will take care of your customers? Unless you just won the billion-dollar lottery, you’ll need to start another business or take a position in a company. The strongest way to do that is to make your exit clean, strong and without burning bridges. Creating a new business can be an evolutionary move for you or it can be just another “thing” you try and decide against. Don’t be a flake. Stick with what you chose to do long enough to gain a great reputation, become a leader and then you can mo

A little about our guests. Brandon and Shelley are wonderful examples that we can have “do-over’s” in life and that you can find joy in everything. Brandon is the previous entrepreneur. He has created and sold several businesses, some wildly successful, some not as much. Brandon has a certification from the State of Florida in Criminal Justice and recently completed his training as a Certified Life Coach. All of his other training comes from mentors and experience. He has vast and varied experience in business, which, with Shelley, brought him to co-creating Best Life. Shelley’s the corporate one, with 24 years working for the Hartford Insurance Company as a Gerontologist (you’ll have to listen to the interview to find out what that is). Shelley is the super organized one, down to getting into bed at night in a made bed. Shelley released her book, Ready. Set. Connect. 10 Easy Ways to Create Joy in Your Life in November 2015. Brandon and Shelley are the proud parents of fur-baby, Champion. He’s a small dog who

Costco During the Day One of the coolest things about being self-employed is that, as the magnet on the refrigerator says, we can choose which 20 hours a day we work. But when you work smarter, you can actually plan your days and your life around you and not the 9 to 5 punch clock. But it requires balance and discipline. And while we don’t have the routine completely perfect, our time freedom allows us to go to Costco during the day where there are plenty of samples and fewer crowds, to taking vacations, to simply enjoy an extended lunch together. If you are just getting started in your business adventure, together or not, or if you have been doing this for years, take advantage of the fact that you are the boss. We’re not saying be a hands off boss or an absent owner. Listen in for some ideas that help break up your day and in the end, make you more productive. Get in Touch with Us http://www.Together247.netTogether@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook – RealTogether247

A little about our guests. John and Connie have been married for 34 years and have seven children, ranging in age from 15 to 32. Connie homeschooled all the kids while John worked in the service industry as a pool builder, then later in concrete, electrical and plumbing. John and Connie and the kids still at home live on an acre property where they raise some animals and enjoy farm life. Four of the seven children work in the family business. Three are handymen and one works in the office with Connie. A little about their business. After a number of years working as a pool builder, mobile home park manager (where he became licensed in electrical, plumbing and concrete to add 100 spaces to the park, landscape contractor and the part-time in a hardware store when the economy took a down-turn, John started Use My Guy Services at the suggestion and with the support of his wife. They created the business part-time 5 years ago while John was still at the hardware store. Being consistent and giving great service has

If breakfast is the most important meal of the day, then your morning routine is the most important time of the day. What you use to fuel your body and how you start using your mind shapes your whole day. How do you start your day? Do you look at emails and get aggravated or do you do something inspirational? Perhaps you work out or take time to learn a new language. Whatever you do, what you do shapes how the day turns out. We will talk about some things we do and new routines we have incorporated. What works and what doesn’t. Get in Touch with Us www.Together247.netTogether@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook – Real Together 247

A little about our guests. Steven and Paul met 19 years ago in the wild and wacky world of New York City ad agencies. Paul was born in Pisa, Italy and moved to Boston, MA when he was just 7 years old. Paul joined an order of monks when he was 18 and studied with them at Iona College before going to New York to work in advertising and study at the School of Visual Arts. He continued in the advertising world, including starting his own agency. Paul was married and has 3 children. One of whom works with Paul and Steven at Villa Cappelli. Steven was born in a small town in Texas. He moved to Austin to attend the University of Texas with degrees in both English and Advertising. After graduation, Steven moved to New York to become a copywriter and worked at several of the larger agencies in town. Steven moved from the advertising world to the magazine world. A little about their business. Paul’s mother is from Terlizzi, Bari, Italy and he grew up surrounded by family from Terlizzi. Around 2008, as the financial wor

Research is vital before starting a new project, a new business, even a new relationship. But when does researching become a crutch you use not to get started? Sometimes, going back over something you just did the research on and looking for even more information can be a fine line, easily crossed and not realized right away. Most times, you know you are just wasting time, avoiding the next step in your evolution as a person, entrepreneur or a business. But how do you get past it? Just move forward. Get In Touch www.Together247.netTogether@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook – Real Together 247

A little about our guests. Kenny & Brenna are together more than 20 years, married and have 3 children, 13, 11 and 8. All three children help out at the Farmer’s Markets and even have their own customers. They are self-described foodies and love cooking and enjoying meals together. Kenny started commercial fishing in Alaska in 1996 and an early date with Brenna was spent working and living together on a commercial fishing boat. Surviving was the sign of true love. Kenny has been an entrepreneur since high school. Brenna has a Bachelor’s degree in Economics and an MBA in Global Management. She is the accounting and finance person of the team. In addition to working together and being together 24/7, Kenneth and Brenna also homeschool their children. A little about their business. The term “Fish Hugger” and the name of the company came as a play on words (Tree Hugger) to explain to a customer how wild caught fishing was far more sustainable and better for the environment and the humans that consume the fish

Let’s talk about that fear that sometimes overwhelms us and other times is just an annoying voice in our heads. Impostor syndrome, the feeling that you’re not qualified, old enough, young enough or whatever enough to be doing what you are doing. Impostor syndrome happens to everyone, even the most confident people in the world. You just have to learn to handle it before it handles you. We’ll talk about what it feels like and ideas we’ve used to get past the feeling and assure ourselves we are in the right place doing something we are well qualified to do. Get in Touch With Us Together@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook – Real Together 247

A little about our guests. David and Tina live the mobile lifestyle. With their son and daughter, they call Florida, New York and Costa Rica home. Tina grew up in an entrepreneurial family. Her parents owned a retail store and they lived upstairs. She started answering phones at 4 and going to trade shows at 6 (who can resist a cute kid?) David starting learning about being an entrepreneur through Tina. David comes from a more traditional corporate background in the technology sector. He loves being a dad and is passionate about the environment and sustainability. The ability to work from anywhere has given Tina and David a real opportunity to be together all the time, not only with each other, but with their kids too. It has also shown them that while they enjoy being together 24/7 and they still are, David doesn’t enjoy the entrepreneurial life. And so they are changing things up a bit – being together, but not in business together. As they say, been there, done that, got the T-shirt. A little about their b

All About Networking Let’s start with the introduction of pullets (adolescent female chickens) to the hens in the coop. Somehow, we’ve managed to connect that to networking. We get to the basic of networking to help you increase your sphere of influence, business relationships and your customers. Who should network and where do you network? Networking is a skill that needs to be practiced. You don’t want to be a wall-flower, but you don’t want to be an aggressive, annoying pain either. There is a balance, protocol, and of course, etiquette. We talk about building relationships and power partners, not doing a sales pitch to every person you meet. There’s business cards and follow up and connection and the all-important rolodex. If you have never networked or have had minimal success, this will get you back on track. http://www.together247.net

A little about our guests. Linda and Julia originally met in a theater group in Phoenix. Both enjoy singing and acting and they love playing with their fur-baby, a 13 year old dog named Abby. Linda is a self-proclaimed nerd. She loves Phoenix Comicon and with Julia used to run a Phoenix area tour group called Ghosts of Phoenix. Julia is a scuba diver who also enjoys cooking and playing the ukulele. Julia is also Aunt of the Year each year to her 6 nieces and nephews. A little about their business. Julia has been in real estate for 11 years. During some of that same time, Linda was a teacher in Phoenix Title 1 schools. Julia would help in the library at Linda’s school and Linda would return the favor by helping in the real estate office to the extent she could. When Linda decided to get out of teaching, she worked with Julia to get her real estate license and went to work at another real estate office. Several years later, Julia became a Real Estate Broker and Linda came on board as a Broker in her office. One

Relationship Dynamics – So you want to work with your sweetheart. You want to go into business with the love of your life. You want to be together…24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Or maybe you are doing it already and thinking “what were we thinking?” It is all about noticing and respecting the dynamics of the relationship. What works for you? What doesn’t? Are you a button pusher? Do you get your way by conniving, convincing or reaching common ground? The business relationship is an extension of your personal relationship with all the pitfalls magnified. So you need a plan to understand how to work together. Today’s episode will get you thinking about what you need to adjust in your relationship and what you need to keep on doing in order to work well together. http://www.together247.net

A little about our guests. Gina and Lora have been together 7 years and are happily married. They have no children, but are pet parents to some very adorable fur-babies. Gina and Lora are foodies and enjoy dining out as well as spending time with family. They also enjoy gardening and just spending time together. A little about their business. Gina started her company, American Project Management, in 2003. APM works with companies to help them create strategies and coordinate efforts to manage projects efficiently. Lora recently started working with Gina in APM. Lora found that working with her wife gave her the dynamic work environment she craves. And they found over the years they have complimentary skills. So it was a natural fit for them to come together. One piece of advice (the nutshell version) If you have any entrepreneurial nudge in you at all, follow your dream. Life is better when you are living the life you created and chose for yourself. Get in Touch with Our Guests http://www.APMLasVegas.com

Welcome to 2016. Now start preparing your taxes! As business owners, we can’t fill out that 1040 EZ form we did with our part-time high school job. And things are very different from just being an employee. You have more tax advantages and some pitfalls too. We’re not tax experts. But these are some of the things we do to make sure this least wonderful time of year is a little less trying. Some tips to help you through the season and start a new habit of doing a little at a time. www.Together247.netTogether@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook.com/RealTogether247 For more tax information Jonathan Bengel, JB Financial602-502-0027 or 623-245-4545www.JBFinancialLLC.com

A little about our guests. Dan & Nicole have been together for 12 years and are married for 7. They have 2 children, girls, ages 8 months and 3 years. Nicole is the health and fitness guru whose goal is to help women lead happy lives, whatever that means for them. She is a graduate of the Institute of Integrative Nutrition and enjoys creating new, healthy recipes. She is also a big fan of coffee. Dan has a passion for his family and for small business, both his and helping others with their businesses. He and Nicole formed Blissful Eats together based on past entrepreneurial and corporate experience. Dan graduated Providence College in 2004 and went to work at the Working Boys Center in Quito, Ecuador while waiting for Nicole to graduate. A little about their business. Blissful Eats started in 2011 as a local snack company. Together, Dan and Nicole built their business and now Blissful Eats is available in some Whole Foods around the country, online and in other stores regionally (Northeast US). Nicole we

With the New Year here, we all make resolutions, lists, have realizations. But nothing will move us forward unless we are consistent. And we are the worst with consistency. Over the years we have developed tricks and tools to keep ourselves consistent. From adding everything we do to a shared calendar to taking things step by step and build consistency over time. Hopefully some of these tricks and tools will keep you consistent too. One piece of advice (the nutshell version) Do one thing for 4 to 6 weeks. Then add the next new habit in for 4 to 6 weeks and so on. Trying to change your life all at once doesn’t help you keep consistent.

A little about our guests. Tom and Ariana met in college in 2002. They married in 2008 after Ariana finished up her degree in Zoology (what everyone studies to become an entrepreneur) and have 2 children, Elena and Ty. Tom is a serial entrepreneur, husband, father and avid Call of Duty player. Ariana is the Reality Checker, Wife, Mother and Chai Lover. At 4 years old, Elena is starting to help out in the store and is the star of Episode 16 of their podcast, Serial Startups. http://serialstartups.co/how-our-businesses-changes-when-we-became-parents-twice/ Ty is still too young to start working in the family businesses. Ariana has gotten Tom to finally see Star Wars and as of the recording of the episode they were looking forward to seeing Episode VII. A little about their businesses. Tom has a very varied background working with startups, Fortune 50s and everything in between. Ariana’s degree in Zoology meant that she wasn’t really looking to become and entrepreneur, while that was Tom’s focus. Together they h

Today’s Episode Getting and giving feedback when your business partner is your sweetheart is very different than getting or giving feedback to a co-worker in a corporate environment. We can become more emotional and sometimes outright nasty when dealing with our sweethearts. If you don’t set the ground rules, your business and your relationship can be jeopardized. Learn about the best ways to ask for feedback and to give feedback. Get in Touch with Our Guests www.Together247.netTogether@Together247.net602-399-7430Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/realtogether247