Crafts For Your Business

I wanted to share with you two fun, simple and inexpensive crafts to use at your events. Adding a craft is a great way to get a reduced booth fee or gain entry into an otherwise closed event.

Enjoy!

This little book is so easy to make and doesn't use glue, tape or staples.



This origami bookmark is so simple you can teach children and adults in less than a minute. If you won't be standing at the craft table, you can make a "how-to" by having a mock up of each fold.
Note - You may want to turn the sound off for this one.

Do you have a favorite craft to use at Barefoot events? If so, let us know!

The Winner is...

My display at a monthly street festival held in our small city.

Amanda Courtright who said,

Hi Richele - so glad to meet you virtually :). I too am under Karen who is such a great helper! I've jumped right into this business and she has been there to support me 100% of the way - by allowing me to borrow stock to do an event!! I am super excited about all that Barefoot has to offer and soo excited to come to conference and meet more people with the same passion!! Hoping to get a chance at that $75 worth of stock - every bit helps!!

Congratulations Amanda and it's great to hear about your passion! I'm looking forward to meeting you and Karen at the conference as well.

Thank you all for your comments and see below where I addressed the most popular topic of getting started and acquiring inventory.

Slow and Steady

Photos from a booth that fellow ambassador, Tricia Santos, and I set up at a yearly holiday craft fair. We both started small, building our inventory in order to attend larger events.

My Mac just returned from the computer hospital and I'm officially back on-line. Now, where were we...

Most of the emails I receive have to do with getting started and building an inventory. Since there are so many new team members, I want to direct you to an oldie, but hopefully a goodie, post entitled Inventory and Money.

It has also just come to my attention that Barefoot's "Getting Started" training calls are not taking place for the time being, so this is your official invitation to schedule a call with your leader or up-line leader for a personal call. I'm happy to work around your schedule. If you would like to set up a call with Barefoot's Group Training & Development Manager you can do that as well by writing: help@barefootbooks.com

Either way, via the website, email campaigns, calls and blogs, we want you to get the information you need.

Team-members, you have until the 9th for a chance to win that book give-away below!

Introduction and the beginning of the Give-aways!

Hello. This is me barely able to lift my fork to my mouth after seven hours, three parks, one zoo and one museum on that trip to NYC I emailed you about.

Our team has exploded (in a good way) in recent months so it's time to pick this blog up, re-introduce myself and have some fun with a team give-away.

My name is Richele and I'm a bookaholic. You too? Also, I've never stopped reading children's books and, well, I'll bet you haven't either. I'm a working mom. Ditto? I'm in the midst of spring cleaning as well. Which room are you currently de-cluttering?

If you noticed that I'm wearing my wedding ring on my right hand, it's because I'm married to a Russian man and that's what they do - just a wild guess but I'm thinking you're not. Besides reading, I love to write, cook, bake and eat (not necessarily in that order) and am a bit gaga for all things Charlotte Mason, a British educator who believed children should be taught as whole persons through a wide range of living books, firsthand experiences, and good habits.

As for my official Barefoot life, you can check out my Barefoot profile for that. In addition, those on our team that work with me closely can tell you I am like a mother hen when it comes to my Barefoot team. I cluck, I brood, and I worry that I am either doing too much for you or not doing enough. It is hard to strike that balance.

My passion is helping you reach your goals in your own business. Coming up on five years in this Barefoot life, I've done about any type of event you can think of. I now spend my working time by answering your emails, working with other leaders and the office to further the Ambassador program, giving presentations and teacher trainings using Barefoot books, and handling my key accounts.

Enough about me, what about you? How can I best help you achieve your goals?

If it's team building and you have a blog, please send me your link and I'll post it to the right. Our many non-team visitors can check out your blog and sign up under you.

If it's inventory building, leave a comment (team members only) and you'll be entered into a random chance drawing to win $75 in Barefoot.so.beautiful.you.could.lick.the.pages books.

You have two weeks to think and comment as the drawing will take place Monday, May 9th.

Barefoot in February...brrr!

Not much has changed here...our boys still love to read in front of the wood stove. Max's "Thinking Cap" is a new addition, though.

Busy 4th Quarter followed by a short break and then a jump into taxes. I'm working on a newsletter to get out to all you lovely people as Laurie and I are still playing around with how to reach those that want to be reached in the best manner.

Most exciting, of course, is team member Robin Muskin's win of a hybrid car. Word on the street is the Honda Insight is her choice. Hmmm, how many books fit into one of those anyway?! Congratulations, Robin!

Anything special you'd like to know about for 2011? Leave a comment and I'll feature it in the next post.

Almost to the Finish Line

Well, I've been biting my fingernails for the past month and realized you may not even be aware of what is happening on our beloved team:

Robin Muskin has blown by Mile Marker 3 of Barefoot's 4th Quarter Challenge and is currently in First Place as the top seller! The top seller will win a one-year cash allowance toward the purchase or lease of a new “green” vehicle, or toward their existing payments on a hybrid or electric vehicle. Robin has already won a framed piece of original art specially commissioned by one of twelve Barefoot artists. Congratulations, Robin, and you'll have to let us know which artist you picked!

I briefly introduced you to Robin in a past post as our newest Barefoot Leader. Once everything has calmed down, we hope to have a guest post where she will let us know just how she does it. Until then, you can learn a bit more about Robin here. Please join me in rooting Robin on the last two weeks of our 4th Quarter Challenge!

Team member Carie Miele has already won the Mile Marker 2 prizes of a ten different signed Barefoot Books:

* Clare Beaton, Mother Goose Remembers
* Alison Jay, I Took the Moon for a Walk
* Sophie Fatus, If You're Happy and You Know It!
* Debbie Harter, The Animal Boogie
* Nicoletta Ceccoli, The Barefoot Books of Fairy Tales
* Carol Ann Duffy and/or Rob Ryan, The Gift
* Laurie Krebs, We All Went on Safari
* Hugh Lupton, The Story Tree
* Stella Blackstone, My Granny Went to Market
* Miriam Latimer, The Prince's Bedtime

PLUS a Barefoot-inspired Haba Footprint Rug. Congratulations, Carie! I'm hoping Carie will also write a guest piece as she made Leader in one year. You can read more about Carie here.

Congratulations to all of you that have won the $100 spa gift certificate. I'm sure we'll all be needing a good foot soak after the holiday season.

We'll talk soon!

Are You Missing Out?

One of the things I love about running a Barefoot business is the flexibility. For example, a few years ago we were faced with a very large and very unexpected bill when our water pump went out. A few extra events were added to my calendar and the bill was happily taken care of.

The flexibility of your Barefoot business works the other way as well. Whether your military husband has been deployed or you've just experienced the birth of your second child, your Barefoot business will be right where you left it until you are able to pick it up again.

But wait, even in this period of inactivity did you know you may be missing out on a team commission? As a team leader, I review the month's activity and send friendly reminders out to those who may not have noticed potential earnings. Laurie M. has gone a step further to show us the math in her blog, Marketing Barefoot. So, let's take the jump to answer the question: Are You Missing Out?