Grinder's Grumblings

I was away from this for a bit longer than I had originally intended, but the few days over the holidays were still quite productive. I was able to sort out many ideas for projects that I would like to do over the month of January. I still have to sort out more details on that. I think that from now on this blog is going to take on a more "professional" voice. It'll still be quite informal, but I'm going to use it as a tool to keep the wheels turning at Grinder Productions, both my own and others. I hope this will mean a lot more people will be interested in reading this blog and adding comments to it. Tomorrow I will make the first posting that will set a lot of things in motion. Until then, take care. Grinder

This is my last posting for a few days, as we get swamped under with Christmast activities and closed internet cafes. I may sneak in a couple of posts here, but not likely. Food on Thursday - lunch was the last of my leftover mashed potatoes, then supper was spaghetti and sauce, with two pieces of toast with peanut butter later on. Really need to get some protein in there somewhere. On the monetary front, I think I've got things sorted out. At least my usual $40 Christmas Shopping Budget looks like it will still be intact. As for the rest of it, I'll have consolidated as much of the debt as I can by January 1st, and we can start chipping away at things from there. All that remains is for me to get some string of successes built up. What that first project is going to be is still uncertain - I highly doubt The Blue Room will be going up on schedule, but at least I now have the time to make ready for it. Something about the third week of January would be nice. Not a good d...

Well if yesterday was rock bottom than today must be my new beginning. I know things mayb be a little out of order here, but it's all random now, much like my life. Anyways - yesterday's food. No Breakfast. Lunch - Two pieces of toast with peanut butter, apple pie for dessert. Supper - Ham steak, corn and boiled potatoes, ice cream and apple pie for dessert. Snack - some chips. Now, as I said, yesterday was rock bottom. Today is better, if only because last night I got to the point where I could sit down and figure it all out. I think I have the money situation under control. I know what I need to know from whom, and I know when I will be able to do what. The long and the short of it is that I know that it is now possible, and that's something I couldn't say before. Now I will still need a couple of lucky breaks if I want to have heat in January, but at least there's a chance, a chance now, that I can make a go of things this winter. Now the next step becomes ...

It’s Wednesday (this will show up on Thursday) and so far all that’s clicking is my furnace as it uses up the last of my propane supplies. I think I’ve hit rock bottom. It’s not a particularly exciting spot, not very dramatic, and not all that different from where I’ve been before, but today was the day the little money I had ran out. I would have to scrap together nickels and dimes now if I wanted so much as a cup of coffee. So what is my next step? How do I do anything from here? I cannot think. I can barely write. This is life at rock bottom. Certainly there are a lot of things that are going my way. The summer looks promising, and I believe I’ve discovered a new marketing truism that should attract customers. But how to put it all together and, more importantly, how am I going to live in the meantime? There must be no compromise. Entrepreneurs don’t ever give up. That’s the mantra. Change tactics if you must, but don’t ever give up. I’ve got a b...

Didn't get a chance to prepare this last night, so we'll have to work through the fogginess of morning before coffee kicks in. On the food front, here was yesterday: Breakfast - None. Lunch - Chef Boyardee. Supper - Roast beef, potatoes, a salad and gravy, with applie pie and chocolate tart for dessert. Had a beer (can you tell I was at a Christmas party) Snack - leftover applie pie I guess today is all about recovery from that large amount of eating. I think I'll have a salad for lunch. As for the rest of it, still nothing. I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop in my life, and it hasn't happened yet. I'll be completely out of money by Friday, and I'm not sure what I'll do after that. I have no concrete idea about anything right now, and that is both quite refreshing, quite annoying, and more than a little frightening at times. I have no shortage of ideas (I even think they're pretty good ideas) but somehow something's still missing, and I h...

Monday Food Diary: Breakfast – None Lunch – Chinese Food Special with Pepsi Supper – Slow-Cooked Chicken with peas with Pepsi Snack – Leftover Mashed potatoes Well nothing much has happened since my last posting, except for me to confirm that yes, I am indeed in a rut. I suppose that’s nothing to get too concerned about, except as it affects the monetary situation. Been trolling around the craigslist postings for writing jobs, there’s a lot of stuff out there, I just don’t know whether or not I’m in any degree qualified for it. I’m sure I could come up with something, but I don’t know if I can bring myself to that low. I would really love to know if I’m going to be able to produce a show in January, The Blue Room, but I don’t know the director’s mind on that right now, and I won’t move forward unless she is willing. If she’s not on the go, then where do I go for January onstage? I really don’t know much of anything anymore. Here’s hoping that something clicks t...

Week-end Food Diary Friday Breakfast – None Lunch – Subway Supper – ??? Saturday Breakfast – None Lunch – Kentucky Fried Chicken Supper – 7 slices of Pizza Sunday Breakfast – two pieces of toast Lunch – Chicken Noodle Soup Supper – Mashed potatoes, fried onions and cream corn Snack - two pieces of toast Well it’s been a very snowy weekend, so I have been forced to stay inside and get a few things accomplished. Here are the highlights: First off – the biggie: I think we may have a roadmap for the new direction the company is headed in. Check out this Power Point Presentation, outlining where I would like to take the company in 2008. There’s the shows I’d like to do, and how I plan to solve the major issues that are plaguing the organization at this time. With any luck this blueprint will serve as the jumping off point for a very successful 2008. My primary task this week will be to develop the “Whole Company Productivity Application Pla...

I’ve found myself at a bit of impasse. Having figured out what it is I need to do to turn the company around all that really remains are working out the mechanics of the tasks to be done. Not that this is any small feat – nay, it may be a lifetime’s work-a-day chores, but now that the “what” has been answered the “how” becomes less intrinsic to the revolution that I am undertaking. It is the product of the revolution, and has its place in productivity, it is not exactly a part of the revolution itself. So, much sooner than I expected, I am asking myself to confront some other situations that will become battlegrounds for the future of myself. First off, to re-cap all that has happened in this very short period of time. Thanks to an interruption in the day-to-day stressors that had hitherto consumed my thoughts and feelings I have, for the first time in a long time, been able to engage in some serious thought and reflection, not so much a “taking-stock” (as this was always...

Today's posting is all about Production and Marketing, the two key challenges that are paralysing the operations at Grinder Productions. I know that I was initially going to cover these in two separate articles, but the two areas are intertwined, as I am learning more and more every day. Let's start there - the medium is no longer the message - according to Punk Marketing - the message is the message. If my message is back to being the message (insert celestial praise here) then that means the message matters once again. The days of putting a cheese sandwich on the stage and having people come and watch it are over, people. Okay, maybe not completely over - they'll come the first time but they won't come back once they've learned their lesson. However it goes further than that. Not only is the message the message again, it's not the marketers that are writing that message - it's the market. They not only dictate what's good and what's not - th...

Yesterday I outlined the key areas of my life that I need to get turned around. Today I'm going to lay out the basis of how I plan to do one of those things - getting Grinder Productions back on track. What follows below is a chart of all the Grinder Productions events that I would like to produce in 2008. I've outlined when I would like to do them, what they will be, the venue they will ideally take place in, how much I should be spending on them, and, most importantly, how many tickets I will have to sell in order to make $1000 of profit on each of them (at a nominal average of $12 a ticket). Since I would like to generate $2000 a month of income I have 24 projects, but ideally I would like to be able to do more. I know this probably sounds crazy. After all, half the whole reason we're in this mess is because things got too busy for me to handle. The other half of the mess, in case you're wondering, is the fact that nobody was coming to the shows when they were ...

Well I promised you that today I'd unveil who I'd like to be. Given that this is only a first draft, here it is, a compendium of where I'd like to be by May 16th, 2008, my self-imposed cut-off date for turning things around. As to how I'll get there, well, that's going to take some figuring out... Income Minimum of $100 Daily Stable Multiple Streams Finances No short-term debts No student debts “Safety Cushion” Mutual Fund of at least $10,000 Professional Life Re-establish Grinder Productions as a success Write as much as I want to Publish all works Build things Buy a new vehicle or meaningfully repair current vehicle Totally integrate the money-making possibilities of technology Personal Life Weight problem conclusively under control Use the gym Physical prep for move into house under way Get a new wardrobe Plan for and take a vacation Skills and Acti...

Well, this is now my little piece of code in the great big blogosphere. I'm not here to make a political point, break important news or even post aimless thoughts on this that and the other thing, though I may do all three of those and more if I have the inclination. No, this blog is here to help me get my life turned around. I am 27 years old and I run my own business full-time. Not bad, right? Well, it's not all it's cracked up to be. My biggest problem is that I'm broke. Flat broke. I've had to put my company on hiatus for six months because there were just too many insurmountable difficulties in getting things done. So now I'm unemployed and broke. On top of being broke I'm overweight, out of shape, and have periods where my emotional well-being could be described as manic, at best, an extreme rollercoaster ride of highs and lows. Now I don't believe there's anything strictly medically the matter with me - nothing that couldn't be c...