3 secrets to building a successful business
Chasing your passions can be scary because it comes with many risks. When I was 25, I left behind a job that paid $150,000 a year so I could help people understand media and technology. Since then, I’ve flourished — and I’d like to teach you three essential tips for starting a business.
Although I knew everything would work out in the end, there were many trials and tribulations. But I knew I had to follow my passion, teaching others about tech and the digital lifestyle.
Here are three lessons I wish I had known before starting. This way, you can learn from my mistakes — and my success.
1. Use credit cards
First, let me get this out of the way: Starting your own business can be expensive. Sure, it might seem obvious, but let me stress that again. You don’t know how expensive it truly will be until you begin.
At least, that’s how it was for me. That’s why I used this helpful trick. Use your credit card instead of digging into your savings and draining your bank account.
Pay as many expenses on credit cards as you can. This helps you in the long run. You’re establishing credit and earning points.
2. If people don’t grow with the company, it’s OK to let them go
When your company grows rapidly, new challenges sprout up like daisies pushing through concrete. For example, you may need your employees to pivot, take on new tasks and adjust to company changes. You might think you hired flexible people who can adapt as needed.
Sadly, this often isn’t the case. People may think they’re adaptable when, in reality, they aren’t seeing any growth opportunities. They might even grow complacent and think they’re earning their stay by doing the bare minimum.
You want employees who go above and beyond. People who can flourish under changing times are golden. As much as you might love the employees you’ve worked with, you must let them go if they aren’t adaptive. Otherwise, they might hold the company back.
3. Follow the rule of thirds
Quick and easy ways to save money shopping on Amazon
Even if you’re not an Amazon fan, you can’t deny how easy it is to find just about anything you want. That includes, of course, gifts.
There’s also account security to consider. You should remove your Amazon public profile, for one. Tap or click for five security steps every Amazon shopper should take.
The big mistake you’re making cleaning your TV
Once the TV is on and you’re watching your favorite show, you have something else to contend with: All that tracking. Yes, your TV will likely keep tabs on you and share that data. Tap or click here for the steps you can take to stop the privacy invasion.
Cities and states that pay the most for IT and cybersecurity jobs
When I say I host a national tech radio show, you can imagine the questions I get. “Can you help me get my PC to turn on?” “Why is my phone doing this weird thing?” Sorry, my friends. I’m here for all your digital lifestyle questions, but leave the IT work to those pros.
Tab overload? How to control what happens when you start your browser
Today’s tech is all about choice. There’s the classic debate: iPhone versus Android. It’s about a lot more than blue and green message bubbles. Here are things you can do on Android phones but still can’t do on iPhones.
Stop sharing your real phone number with everyone
How many people and companies have your phone number if you had to guess? Maybe a hundred? Think again.
Want to be shocked? Your cellphone and landline number (if you still have one) are probably posted online where I found mine — at a people search site that doesn’t cost a dime. Tap or click here for sites that let you search for phone numbers.
Tech tip: How to find anyone’s email address online
Keeping up with your inbox feels never-ending some days. Between work, your personal life, and all that spam, you might have hundreds of emails to sift through.
Is junk mail getting you down? Do something about it. Spending a little time once will save you from clicking “trash” all day. Tap or click for five simple ways to stop spam.
Before you start holiday shopping, do this to hide your gift purchases
The holidays will be here before you know it, and — like it or not — Amazon is an easy way to get something everyone will love.
If you have Amazon Prime, it comes with a lot of great perks beyond fast, free shipping. Tap or click for some of my favorites to get the most out of that $15 per month.
The smart trick to know when your phone’s camera or mic is being used
At dinner, I mentioned that I would like to go hiking in Patagonia. I never searched for these trips or anything like that. Yet, an hour later, I started getting ads about hiking adventures in Patagonia on my phone.
10 Google Search tricks to help you find what you’re looking for
How often do you turn to Google? Every day? Multiple times a day? If you’re focused on privacy, there are better options. Tap or click for alternatives to Google that work well without gathering so much of your data.
It’s not you. How to get Alexa, Siri, and Google Assistant to understand you better
Voice assistants changed the way we interact with technology. Why set an alarm manually when Alexa can do it for you? Siri can type up your emails.
Want to get more out of your Amazon Echo? Tap or click here for new tricks such as using your Echo as a speakerphone to finding the right wine to pair with a particular dish. What about Siri? Tap or click here for my favorite Siri shortcuts.
Hidden map on your phone shows everywhere you’ve been and the photos you took there
Google Maps makes navigating unfamiliar cities frustration-free and straightforward. It has an innovative feature that you’re probably not taking full advantage of, Street View. Sure it’s great for looking at your childhood home. But, you can use it for things like creating your own stories and even going indoors.
8 YouTube pro tricks for better searches and more privacy
Here’s a YouTube trick I stumbled upon and now use all the time: When you’re trying to learn to do something and getting lost in the steps, open the video’s transcript.
Press the three dots or the more option underneath the video’s title, then choose Transcript from the dropdown menu. You can copy it, save it, and print it. That was easy, huh? Just be careful about downloading the video. Tap or click for a list of ways you may be breaking the law online without knowing it.
Sick of slow Wi-Fi? Move your router
For how important it is, it sure is easy to forget about your trusty router that works 24/7.
Routers are crucial to sending strong, reliable internet to your devices, but when’s the last time you made sure it’s locked down from hackers? Here are my five essential router security settings to keep hackers out of your network.
How to know if someone actually read your text
The phone in your hand can do more than the computers we had years ago. It’s a communication device, a camera, a scanner, a fitness tracker, a camcorder, a GPS, a game console — I could go on.
There’s also a lot your phone can do that you would not think was possible. Tap or click for seven brilliant ways your smartphone can help you get things done, from measuring someone’s height to remoting into your computer.
Best ways to organize your cloud storage files
Think back to the days when we had to store everything locally on our computers. Thumb drives and external hard drives helped, but it was cumbersome.
Today, everything syncs right to cloud storage. Is it safe to store personal documents like your ID, financial info, or medical files in the cloud? Tap or click for the answer.
Tech tip: Get more life out of your dying phone battery
When was the last time you left the house without your phone? Me neither.
The moment your phone goes missing, panic sets in. Tap or click for a method to find your phone, even if it’s buried somewhere where you can’t hear the ringer.
Still using Facebook? 3 ways to make sure it’s not listening
I have lost count of how many times I’ve been asked, “Are my devices listening?”
I will tell you this: They are always listening for the wake word, and tech companies admit smart assistants mishear commands more often than any of us would like. Tap or click to stop your smart assistants from hearing what you say, accidental or not. By the way, Google users won’t have to use a wake word at all using the new “Quick Phrases” feature.
5-minute tech fix: Finally speed up your PC
When your computer slows to a crawl, it’s frustrating, and you want to fix it as fast as possible. Occasionally, your internet is actually to blame. Tap or click for the best ways to fix a pokey Wi-Fi connection.
If your computer is on its last legs, there’s not a ton you can do aside from buying a new one. Not sure where to start? I can help. My team and I created a laptop quiz to help you find the right model for you. Tap or click to take our 60-second quiz to find a perfect laptop based on your needs and budget.
Quick tech tip: Scan photos and documents without buying a scanner
With tech, there’s always one more thing you need. It could be one more gadget, one more app, or one more piece of paid software. That’s why I make it my mission to help you get stuff done with what you already have.