10 Reasons You Need to Use Evernote In Your Business
Are you using Evernote in your business? You definitely should! Here are 10 reasons why!
Evernote used to have a tagline: remember EVERYTHING!
And because of that most people get overwhelmed with Evernote. They aren't really sure what to do or where to put everything.
Here are 10 reasons to use Evernote in your business:
1. You can store EVERYTHING related to your biz in one place. Think of Evernote as your business hub.
[This alone should be the reason you start using Evernote in your business today...but I will proceed.]
2. You can access your business' everything from the cloud via computer, iOS or android device. So whenever you have an amazing idea open up Evernote, wherever you are.
3. Don't feel like typing out thoughts, use the talk to text option...boo yah! Feeling like a girl boss yet?
4. Sign up for a challenge, but don't have time to do it live. Email it to your Evernote and get to it when it's more convenient. Saves space in your email + you can even set up a reminder of when to go and look at the email you forwarded.
5. The Evernote web clipper is exactly what you need when you're ready to steal like an artist or keep up with the Kardashians.
6. Keep track of all the post-it's, business cards, handwritten notes and brain dumping notes that you have lying around your desk, that you can never seem to find, when you need them.
7. You can encrypt text, that you don’t want a “random” person reading.
8. Connect IFTTT to save your favorite things across the web into specific folders automatically. [Even everything you screenshot on your iphone...say what? Yes girl, even screenshots!]
9. Unlike other cloud storage applications, your upload MB resets every month.
10. Communicate and share notes and notebooks with your team, clients and biz besties.
Are you ready to master Evernote for your business? Click here to be notified of when Evernote Mastery goes live. That's right an end to the backend chaos! 8 modules teaching you the ins + outs of Evernote. PLUS swipe files to get you started. Oh my!
Steal Like An Artist Business Strategy Using Evernote
Learn how to steal like an artist to up-level your business with Evernote.
A year ago I read “Steal Like An Artist: and ,” by Austin Kleon. It was a quick read, I remember reading it in two trips to the pool with the babes.
Truly gem after gem of awesome actionable business advice.
He even quotes the Bible:
“That which has been is what will be, That which is done is what will be done, And there is nothing new under the sun. ”
All to say: NOTHING IS ORIGINAL.
Now this is not a book review, although I would highly recommend you do check the book out. However, the takeaway I want you to get in one sentence + a glimpse at the image above : curate and steal from artists [we’re all artists + it’s all art] in order to up-level your business and set you apart from the rest.
The irony, eh? Steal to be different. Yup...that's the theory.
Be inspired and take action in the inspiration. No one is telling you to copy + paste. You may need to go read the book, if that is what you’re thinking.
No secret, but I adore my sissy pooh Beyonce. I am obsessed with her marketing and her interaction [or lack thereof] + marketing. No I won’t be dropping a surprise launch at midnight and announcing it on twitter. But just in case I change my mind, go follow me on twitter, I would hate for you to miss out on the in real time scoop. Anywho, I am a pop culture junkie and I study pop culture's strategies, marketing and "launches." I take the parts that I like and remix it to fit my style and business.
Say what?
Meanwhile on the lovely internets where online biz peeps and bloggers hang out, I see two methodologies [maybe four tops] being played out. It looks a little like this:
1. Work with said coach [or stalk ALLLL their free content]
2. Begin using language of said coach or blogger.
3. Business model is modeled after said person. [Carbon Copy]
4. Crickets to their offer that looks like the 545,678,787 *insert more numbers + commas as you see fit* other people hitting copy +paste of said coach.
What they need to do is hit CTRL + ALT + DELETE or COMMAND + ALT+ ESC for my mac peeps.
It's time for a reboot and a strategy to steal like an artist.
Remember, nothing is original. So the idea has been cycled over and over, before you even were exposed to it. And my friend, you are too amazing to just be spitting out sloppy seconds [ or even worse...remember that huge # we couldn’t agree on earlier].
Would you eat a piece of gum that has been chewed by just four people before you get your turn?
I'm grossed out just thinking about it. Imitation and straight up stealing other's intellectual property and website design is the same thing.
You look lame.
Your work doesn't seem as credible.
Oh and very importantly...please note you can be sued.
“Good artists copy, GREAT artists steal”
To be great and to steal like an artist, you take the element and embrace it with everything that embodies YOU.
So all of your life experiences, the way you think, the things you like, the things you love...everything that embodies you.
Apple was not the first company to come up with the concept of a computer tablet. Toshiba was. Apple took the concept and built upon it and created the game changing iPad.
“Start copying what you love. Copy copy copy copy. At the end of the copy you will find your self.
”
In order to keep up with all this stealing, I use Evernote. In Evernote, I created a stack SLAA [I pronounce it slay! as in yass girl yass slay that into something amazing!]
A stack in Evernote is basically a file folder to group together your notebooks to keep things organized.
SLAA Notebooks I have:
- Copy Swipe
- Email Copy Swipe
- Facebook Ad Copy SLAA [SLAA is behind this as I have another folder specifically for my facebook ad’s copy]
- Launch Swipe
- Opt-In Swipe
- Sales Page Swipe
- Set Up
- Welcome Emails
Copy Swipe - If I’m on a website and see copy that just stops me in my tracks. Like wow, did you just seduce me with words. I clip it into this folder, so I can evaluate why was it compelling + what made it stand out.
Email Copy Swipe - I receive an email, that I actually read all the way through. High five for keeping my attention and passing the scan test + making me go back to the top to read in detail. These get forwarded to evernote by my email.
Facebook Ad Copy SLAA [SLAA is behind this as I have another folder specifically for my Facebook ad’s copy] - I have ad blocker on my computer, so I rarely see ads. However, if I’m on facebook on my phone and see an ad that made me stop and look...I’ll take a screenshot and add it to this folder by creating a note or adding it to an existing note.
Launch Swipe - You know how you see something really cool, but forget about it when you want to tell someone else about it? Yeah. This folder exists for that very reason. Whenever I see amazing launches going on and I receive emails or see website pages that absolutely rock my world; I clip, screenshot or email them to this folder.
Opt-In Swipe - same premise here as the other folders. If I receive a really amazing opt-in, I forward that baby right here.
Sales Page Swipe - My sales pages are pretty awesome, if I do say so myself. However, I love the dynamics + psychology behind sales pages. You know the nerdy not so cool reasons of why do people buy. So when I see a unique page that doesn’t look like the million others BUY NOW, I save it in this here folder.
Set Up - there’s absolutely nothing in this folder. nada. zilch. I’m sure one day I’ll remember why I created this folder and then I’ll probably use it. [Sorry about this]
Welcome Emails - you guessed it...if I receive an amazing welcome email, it goes in here for me to analyze at a later date.
The truth of the matter is, I don’t clip or email or even screenshot weekly, but when I do see something striking, I send it to SLAA. When I’m uninspired or knew I had a good idea, but couldn’t quite remember what that idea was, I take a look at my SLAA folders.
An excerpt from Steal Like An Artist
Don’t just steal the style, steal the thinking behind the style. You don’t want to look like your heroes, you want to see like your heroes. The reason to copy your heroes and their style is so that you might somehow get a glimpse into their minds. That’s what you really want — to internalize their way of looking at the world. If you just mimic the surface of somebody’s work without understanding where they are coming from, your work will never be anything more than a knockoff.
Never do I copy + paste, but I find a way to remix the element or elements so it is my own. I evaluate what made me notice it, so I can create something that would make you stop and notice.
It’s so easy to scroll past the same meme and image because we have been exposed to it over and over and over again. Our mind doesn’t even register it anymore.
So the first time you saw it, that person did their job in grabbing your attention.
And since nothing is original, it’s your job to create strategies and systems to help you to keep your lady focused. How do you steal like an artist?
Being cheap can cost you a lot of time & money
Being cheap can cost you a lot of time & money.
Being cheap can cost you a lot of time & money
I grew up in an upper middle class family. I always thought we were filthy rich. Funny thing though, my dad is ridiculously cheap. I mean like drove past 6 gas stations pushing E until we get to where he swore the gas was the cheapest and drive back to third gas station cheap. This was before gas apps. Do you how much time was wasted?
A-L-O-T!
Not to mention the gas of driving around to save pennies.
Do you remember the marketing days when companies would send discounts for leaving a particular company and joining their company? Usually cable companies or telephone companies. The catch was, you had to call your company and cancel. Daddy would switch ALL the time for a measly gift card or some savings.
Again time wasted on the phone cancelling with one company to get on the phone with the other phone to register and get your FREE gift.
The prehistoric days before the internet, just seem like time sucks.
Thank God for technology and smart people.
I probably could tell you a story every day until mid 2016 about how cheap my daddy is. He truly acted as if he had no money. And that’s the funny thing, he has money, lots of it. I mean serious #moneygoals when I look at him minus his cheapness.
When I first started in business, I fell in love with the free tools. Even now some of my faves are freemiums [Trello, Asana and Evernote]. I started out with Evernote’s free option and quickly upgraded to the premium version. I didn’t have time to wait for my storage quota to reset each month. $4.15 was holding me back. Sounds so silly, but I did not want to pay $5 (monthly fee) since the service was free. I had the $5 but I just did not want to pay.
What do you need, that you just don’t want to pay for?
In the initial assessment session, I have with my lady friends [clients], we always discuss what can push their businesses forward. Whether that be a tool or a service they need to invest in. Leadpages and Clickfunnels are amazing tools that save time & automate marketing for many entrepreneurs. Yet the monthly/yearly fee holds people back. Of course they can create the landing page in Mailchimp, but it takes more time to set up.
How much is your success worth to you?
Think about all the things that you buy and all of the things you don’t buy. Think hard. Starbucks or coffee is always an example given. If you can pay $5 for Starbucks then you should be able to pay for XYZ. You pay for Starbucks because you want to and you enjoy the benefit. Starbucks has proven to you time and time again that the latte is worth it. XYZ just hasn’t quite done it for you yet. That’s fine.
You need to create a ‘throw away money’ budget. Which simply is- at this price I’m okay if the investment does not yield me immediate results/gratification. You aren’t throwing away money, because you make amazing choices, but shifting how you view investments.
My throw away budget is usually under $100. I used to pay $20 a month to get my eyebrows waxed.
Never trust anyone with bad eyebrows.
I love a beautifully framed face with nice eyebrows. About two months ago, I went to a new guy. I never asked his rates, just hopped on the table and let him do his magic. He took his time and there was no pain involved. The room smelled sweet like vanilla and jasmine. He gave me the mirror and I was in love. My eyebrows were amazing! The usual lady did okay, but I was always correcting her work with my Anastasia of Beverly Hills Brow Whiz. Went to the register and my eyebrows were $80. I hesitated giving him my card, but I paid. I walked out like a BOSS! Yes, I spent $60 more than I typically did, but I felt amazing. My eyebrows lasted for two months versus one and I didn’t even need my daily eyebrow prep that usually took a few minutes each morning. [I told you I love eyebrows.] He leveled me up. The experience was worth the price and the results.
I’m just going to be real. If he had told me the price initially, I would not have let him do my eyebrows. The time he spent doing his speciality saved me time in the long run. That extra $60 saved me an extra 70 minutes across two months of prepping my eyebrows.
Even with a ‘throw away budget,’ watch for money leaks in your personal and business budgets. you know those things that you pay for and NEVER use or don’t even need. For many people, gym memberships are money leaks. Starbucks may be your money leak, if you never drink the whole latte.
Evaluate what you spend money on that you aren’t using.
This way you can cancel those things and use that money towards your greatness.
Chic tips to Mastery:
Set a real budget for your business.
How much money are you willing to invest each month and year?
Include tools, coaching and services into this budget. All of these things will push you towards your desired success.
How much time are you willing to invest?
Include the time in there too. If something takes me an hour and I can pay someone under $100 to complete, I will pay it. My time is valuable and so is yours.
You’re taking too long (how long all your blog posts should take)
I have a client whom we'll call Kai. During our pre assessment, I asked Kai what was the average time it takes to write a blog post? Kai said it took her 8 hours write one blog post.
That's an incredible amount of time wasted. Her content was phenomenal, but her process was unremarkable. 8 hours for a single blog post is unproductive.
Brain surgery is completed in less time.
Babies are delivered in less time.
You can fly from New York to Milan on a non stop flight in eight hours.
The other night I asked on Facebook: What's the average time it takes to write a blog post?
The answers varied significantly but with each answer I saw who had control of their business and whose business had control over them. Majority of the Facebook responses were similar to Kai. 28 to be precise.
Stop wasting your time...if you’re part of this 8 hours [plus] crew.
Blog posts should not take 8 hours!
You're taking too long to write your blog posts. Let's streamline the process.
Chic Systems Blog Process
Research & Brainstorm
Only have two tabs (preferably one) open on the computer
Disable notifications on phone & computer
Start with the introduction for the post.
Write freestyle- just write. Don't edit misspelled words or incorrect grammar. Just write. Forget the backspace button. Just write.
*go do something else*
If something new comes to you- write it down and add to post when editing.
*Editing time- Welcome back!*
Correct the misspelled words and incorrect grammar. Hello DELETE button.
Organize the content.
Pick/create images and(or) gifs
Create related tags (SEO baby) - you do want people to read the post that you previously took 8+ hours to write.
Create a CTA (call to action) at the end of the post- Tell your reader what you want them to do.
Pick 2-3 catchy titles (1 is for the site and the others are to sprinkle on social media).
and POST!
Here's what you need to construct a remarkable post:
Editorial calendar or a content idea storage bank
Evernote & Evernote Web Clipper
Toggl if you're fancy
Time required: Two hours MAX
Here's how the process looks streamlined:
20 minutes to research & or brainstorm
30 minutes to write article
15 minutes to edit & organize content
15 minutes for images
10 minutes to create 3 catchy titles
10 minutes to create tags
20 minutes to post and distribute to newsletter
The secret to streamlining this process is when you see articles that are relevant to a topic you know you plan to write about, clip it to an Evernote folder titled Research and tag the article with “blog post idea” and a relevant tag to the topic that you will recall.
Create a folder in google drive to save images that you like and think you may want to share on your website. I have a folder for images and one for gifs.
Next time you get ready to write your blog post use Toggl and track how long it takes you. No worries toggl tracks projects spread over time if you need to write and resume in a day or so. Theres so many things you can do with the 6 hours you just saved.
Click here to get more done in 4 days than you do now in 5.
The Cat in the Hat can teach you a thing or two
Every night (okay let me be real only Sunday through Thursday) I read a story to my 3 years old. For the past two weeks he has only wanted to read The Cat in the Hat. So last night I ask him does he want to read another book. Of course he says no.
WHY?? I ask.
“Because I like the characters, they use funny timing [rhyming] words,” he replies.
Kids are simple.
He didn't care that he has an entire library of other books- to include many Dr. Seuss books. The Cat in the Hat makes him laugh and he appreciates that.
Simple.
It made me think how sometimes in business [& life] we complicate things.
Overthinking and just being the expert can definitely complicate things from time to time.
Creating systems from scratch can be beastly and overwhelming. They aren't sexy. You are, but your systems, not so much.
Keep it Simple.
When creating your systems keep them simple.
Systems are a bunch of moving parts. Systems aren't your business unless you're in the systems business.
You're in business to make money, systems simply support those efforts.
If you're a checklist person use checklists & asana or evernote.
If you're a visual person use post-it's, white boards and paper & pen. Check out Trello too.
We have a baby night time routine system based on my son's behaviors. (Refusal to go to bed because he's "hungry " aka he's learned that kids aren't sent to bed hungry or he hasn't finished a puzzle or he needs to call his mama or papa.)
Here's how it would look:
- Baby eats dinner
- Baby picks out book
- Baby gathers toys he wants in bath if different from the night before
- Baby says goodnight to everyone in house
- Ask baby does he want to call grandparents...
- If yes call grandparents
- Remind Baby that he is not allowed downstairs after he gets in bath.
- Baby has bath
- Baby gets in Pajamas
- Mommy reads to baby
- Mommy & Baby says prayers
- Mommy reminds baby that he is not allowed downstairs
- Mommy kisses baby & tells him God will protect him he's already said his prayers
- 15 minutes mommy or daddy checks to see if baby is sleep
3 Chic Tips to Mastery:
1. Vow to keep life & business simple.
2. Assess where you can add The Cat & The Hat tactics: simple, fun, & helpful.
3. Laugh more. Worry less. Laugh lines are acceptable, stress wrinkles aren't as cute.
Systems reduce the worry about money and day to day practices.
