We're All In The Same Boat

While it's true that the quality of the cabins on the boat differ, with some running out of food and some containing abusers, for instance, we are all in the same boat. It's currently sinking, and it requires the work of all of us to make it sea-worthy again. No matter how swanky the most majestic cabin, if The Titanic hits the bottom of the ocean, the extra gilding does nothing to save the occupants. 

Pretty grim. Also, kinda enlightening. COVID-19 has taught us how interconnected we all are, and how dependent we all are on each other for survival. The biggest heroes and heroines of the moment are not the yacht owners, but the nurses and the shelf stackers. The people we most rely upon to keep this ship afloat right now are the delivery drivers, the people who collect our rubbish, and the people who pick and pack vegetables. And the ones who most protect those vital workers are those of us who social distance, and stay home for all but urgent...

“As I was walking with a friend through a beautiful nature reserve near Malibu in California, we came upon the ruins of what had been once a country house, destroyed by a fire several decades ago. As we approached the property, long overgrown with trees and all kinds of magnificent plants, there was a sign by the side of the trail put there by the park authorities. It read: danger. all structures are unstable. I said to my friend, “That’s a profound sutra [sacred scripture].” And we stood there in awe. Once you realize and accept that all structures (forms) are unstable, even the seemingly solid material ones, peace arises within you. This is because the recognition of the impermanence of all forms awakens you to the dimension of the formless within yourself, that which is beyond death. Jesus called it “eternal life.”

― Eckhart Tolle

All Structures Are Unstable

Allow me to break down the walls of formality for a second and address you...

How To Self-Isolate During The Coronavirus Epidemic

For a full step by step guide on how not only to prepare but also to make the most of self-isolation, I have made a resource called How To Be A Happy Hermit (opens in new window) based on what I did to get through self-isolation. This is a must if you want to make the most of the situation and maintain a level of emotional stability. However, the basic guidelines for safety are as follows:

How to self-isolate to prevent the spread of coronavirushttps://t.co/4Fxk5HMHjx pic.twitter.com/y0kstkXUfa

— BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) February 27, 2020

1. Stay at home. DO NOT go to school, work, or anywhere. Have no visitors.
2. If you have symptoms, call 111 (UK) for free advice and to report that you may have Coronavirus. DO NOT GO TO THE DOCTOR. Call instead. You will not be charged as a consequence and will be taken care of. If you are sent to hospital, you will not be required to pay and if you are told to self-isolate any...

Finally, I've taken a step I've thought of taking for years. I'm now a podcaster. 

An age ago I was a podcaster on the Cinch FM network, and they gave me celebrity status there, but it went out of business and I didn't pick up the podcast thing again. However, I now have a podcast that's on all the major podcasting apps, including Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and more. You can find links to all of them if you go to 'Like a Bardess'  or just open your app of choice and type in 'Like a Bardess'. 

Should You Be On TikTok Now?

My latest podcast is called 'Should You Be TikTok Famous?' and it's aimed at teens and people in their 20s who yearn for TikTok fame but don't necessarily know what the downfalls are. There are great tips in here, whatever your age, if you seek fame or overwhelming online success. However, if you have kids who are Gen Z or young Millennials, this is a must listen for you and them. 

• What topics would you like me to...

Never before has a social network had a greater potential to win you fans AND destroy your business. The viral app, TikTok, has yet to 'age up' as a social network and is the most ageist network I've seen in terms of the userbase's insistence on icing out older people. However, if you're over 22, you still need to know about it or your business will suffer. For more on that, watch the video.

Generation Z are now coming into the adult world. The oldest are in their early 20s. You must understand their way of thinking if you plan to grow your business in the future, even if you don't work with them directly, as they will culturally impact on other generations and will alter the market you already have. The 'OK Boomer' phenomenon is a case in point. 

But first... If you're lucky enough to be seeing this blog post during Cyber Monday week, I have a crazy offer available on personal help with TikTok. If you've missed being one of the first 5, that link will still...

In September last year, I was fortunate enough to be invited into Webtalk's invite-only beta. As someone who has beta tested for everyone from Twitter to Google, I'm used to seeing the insides of new social networks before launch. It has been a LONG time since I've been inside an invite-only beta that got me this excited. 

Rather than reel off all the features and benefits of the network (you can see an over-the-shoulder-walk-through of my account in the first video below, and a bells and whistles presentation on what's in it for business owners in the second video) I'll just give you a few bullet points:

• If you're looking to become an influencer, Instagram's great but it's saturated. Webtalk is brand new. I'm the first influencer there. I'm literally pretty much your only competition right now.
• If you have a business (home business, small business, coaching or writing business, etc) there is no better place than Webtalk to meet and connect with people. You can search...

The Indiepreneur’s prayer

Divine Creator

Source of all I am and all I create

Bless all my interactions today

With others and with myself

Today I will do my best

For you

For others

And for myself

Always using my gifts

For the greatest good.

May prosperity flow to me

As prosperity flows from me

As I invest in myself

May others invest in me

As I honour my gifts

May others be inspired to honour their own

May thy will be done through me

May your divine loving kindness flow through me,

Awakening both the Divine Mother and Divine Father energies within me

So that I may awaken these energies in others.

Today, you will birth the New Earth through me

And help me to help others to birth it too

So that we may all co-create a better universe

For the greatest good.

In gratitude for all I have

And for the boundless abundance that is flowing towards me

I give thanks.

Help me to find the joy in my triumphs

Help me to find the lessons in my challenges

Help me to find your divine loving energy...

I'm running a poll on Twitter at the moment. There are a few hours to go, but it's already pretty clear why people are still gagging for traditional publishing deals. It's always been this way. I'll post a vid below of my response to this mentality the best part of a decade ago. First, the poll. Ready?

Seriously?! Rather than break down all the reasons that 'to make lots of money' is not a valid reason, open my podcast on this subject (it opens in another window) and listen to it when you've finished with this blog post. 

The more important points are the winner and runner-up: "I don't like selling" and "to feel good about myself". I'll present the awards in reverse order...

To Feel Good About Myself

Relying on something outside of yourself to cause you to feel good about yourself is something psychologists call having an external locus of identity or power. If you are dependent on anyone's opinion but your own to feel good about yourself, you're in trouble. 

I speak...

One from the vaults. The videos use my former name. I'm now Rebecca Bardess. 

Recently, I've stepped back into the author world on twitter, after focusing more on helping authors in the home and small business spaces over the last few years. I was quite shocked to find that very little has changed there since I was speaking about independent publishing, years ago. The video below is from a panel on which I sat with publishers and editors in 2011 or 2012 I believe. Can't remember. Anyhow, it was LONG ago. It's still relevant.  

In My Dot Com Days, I Started a Blog

Back before blogging had a name, I asked my tech team to give me a way to hack into my sites remotely, so I could put cool stuff there regularly and keep the sites 'sticky'. Sticky marketing was what we called attraction marketing WAY before attraction marketing existed. 

Once I had a blog, I didn't see why I shouldn't interview celebrities for it, so I did. I got my 20-something butt onto red carpets and into after-show parties. I made chums with actors and singers. Every now and then, I would interview someone who might have an intriguing 'behind the scenes' take that I wasn't seeing elsewhere. One of those interviews was with Christina Aguilera's mum, Shelly Kearns, with whom I then struck up a friendship over email for a couple of years. Here's the interview (typo's and all).

Step back two decades: Christina was a teen and her mum and I had a chat online...