What’s In This Episode:

Jill and Brad are still talking about taking time off, 'cause business owners NEED it. They ponder the longest they went without taking a vacation. For Jill, her longest span was 2 years. Brad went 4 years without taking a bonafide vacation. If it's been more than six months, please, please, please book a vacation (or a staycation, or just a break where you don't do work). You need it.

"If you start small, you might accomplish all of the things you want to do." - Jill

Amelia Forczak of Pithy Wordsmithery calls in and has two related problems. She wants to be able to help the clients who reach out, but who can't make the investment that ghostwriting a book calls for. Secondly, she needs to figure out how to make her business scalable. She's thinking of starting a course for people to write and edit books on their own, but she doesn't quite know how to begin. Jill's advice: start small. Brad says that if she coaches clients to do the work, then that serves as practice for the eventual course Amelia wants to create. Overall, though, she needs to decide what market she wants to serve.

"I hope you get rich. And when you do, send us 5%." - Brad

Jill and Brad then discuss the top 5 excuses for not taking time off:

• There's too much to do. But remember, you're the boss. Set deadlines for things in the future, and go.
• Time is money, and there's never enough. Starting a business costs money, we get it. Stay with a friend, and take a break.
• DEADLINES. Once you meet your deadline, THEN you'll take a break. But there's always one more thing... But again, you're the boss. Go away.
• "When I'm rich, I'll take a big vacation." You can't just wait... do it now.
• And then there's that mentality that all business owners have...

Guest:

• Amelia Forczak is the founder of Pithy Wordsmithery, which provides strategic ghostwriting, marketing, and consulting for authors and businesses. She is the ghostwriter of five published books, including two best-sellers. She has served as a content strategist or editor for a handful of other successful books. Amelia’s background in corporate marketing enables her to go beyond transcribing conversations with authors and putting commas in the right places. She partners with authors to truly understand their business, serving as a dedicated book-writing consultant.