$400 haircuts

If only I were running the hotel salon that gave these haircuts, I'd be a very rich business owner! There's a price to pay for convenience!

As the article states:

There's a problem here, though. When the media spends time covering "issues" like a candidate's haircuts it blatantly overlooks what's really at stake: Whoever sits in the White House has enormous power to change things for America, for good or bad.

And of course, so do entrepreneurs.

Corporate America and Rosie O'Donnell

Last September, morning TV got a boost as Rosie O'Donnell gave the dismal daytime chatfest The View something to actually talk about.

But that relationship ends this June as O'Donnell announced Wednesday on The View that she and ABC were unable to come to an agreement.

"I will be coming back and guest-hosting," said O'Donnell. "I'll be doing one-hour specials on autism and depression and stuff I'm interested in. I'm just not going to do the everyday thing."

O'Donnell says it was a contract issue, but you know the haters -- i.e. Bill O'Reilly and his ilk -- will suggest O'Donnell's views on gay rights, her anti-George W. Bush opinions and the public feud with billionaire bully Donald Trump somehow harmed ABC, which is owned by milquetoast Walt Disney.

What do you think? Agree or disagree? Read more here.

Four Women Established Businesses Made To Last

The past 20 years have brought tremendous growth in Arizona and with that, endless opportunity.

Success stories can be found in every niche, leaving little doubt about the crucial role women play in our entrepreneurial scene.

Last year, women were the majority owners in more than 133,000 privately held businesses statewide that generated a combined $20 billion in sales, according to projections by the Center for Women's Business Research in Washington, D.C., based on 2002 data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

These companies accounted for 30 percent of the state's privately held firms.

Here are four Arizona women who struck out on their own with little more than determination and, in the past 20 years, give or take a few, have built thriving businesses.

women 2.0

What is Women 2.0? Women 2.0 connects like-minded, motivated young women in the Silicon Valley to swap energy, ideas, and experiences with each other.

They promote the collaboration and growth of women in entrepreneurship, technology, and business and provide opportunities for young women to interact with successful women from a broad spectrum of industries.

Learn more here but I don't think they should set age barriers on this. I posted something to that affect on April 4.

You're Fired! Good-bye Don Imus

I am relieved to see that action has been taken!

No matter who it is trying to make their way in this society, you cannot use the language Imus used on his radio show and get away with it.

Read more here and here.

By the way, who won the women's college basketball game?

The Feminine Mistake

WOW. It's been a long time since I've seen Amazon reviews this bad. The author had a strong start and then slowly, one by one, the women started slamming her. Check it out here. I have not read the book nor do I intend to but I'm curious if anyone else has and what you thought, thanks.

Separately and from the book "Women Who Changed The World:"

Chapter 50 (our final installment!)
Ellen MacArthur

It's good to be scared sometimes -- it keeps me on my toes. ~ Ellen MacArthur

If you liked our 50 quotations, buy the book here.

A Little Shame Goes A Long Way

Should Catalyst go back to naming companies without women at the top?

Apparently Diane Brady at BusinessWeek thinks so and she does a great job convincing us why in this provocative commentary.

See you what you think and let me know.

Separately and from the book "Women Who Changed The World:"

Chapter 49
Diana, Princess of Wales

Don't call me an icon. I'm just a mother trying to help. ~ Princess Diana

Do You Have the Right Entrepreneurial DNA?

Do you have what it takes to become a successful entrepreneur?

There are two schools of thought about what makes an entrepreneur.

1. Anyone can do it if they really want to, provided they put in the effort.

2. You have to be a certain type of person and, if you are not that type, you are wasting your time (view of psychologist Adrian Atkinson).

Do you fit the bill? Find out more by reading Are Entrepreneurs Born or Made? And be sure to take the test!

Separately and from the book "Women Who Changed The World:"

Chapter 48
Madonna (one my favorites!)

I've never wanted to make the same record or do the same thing twice. ~ Madonna

How To Get Your Talent Back On Track

Since yesterday was such a rainy day in Chicago, I headed over to Borders to check out the latest in periodicals. I scanned Strategy & Business, Harvard Business Review (read Bossidy's What Your Leader Expects of You), GQ (bought a copy for my husband), PINK, Inc., Going Bonkers (brand new self-help magazine with a sense of humor -- let's just say it's different) and BusinessWeek SmallBiz (to re-read the Why High-Powered Women Are Leaving Corporate America to Become Entrepreneurs ... bummed that they did not mention our work here) to get my latest fix on business.

Big takeaway? Two things. One, I stumbled upon a book that has a title that I can re-work and apply to my own business (global small business or better known as GlobeTrade) and write a fresh, new cutting-edge article about using globalization as a strategic mover for rapid growth. And two, I found out about this book. It blows BusinessWeek's piece right out of the water. Why do you suppose they left us and Hewlett's Off-Ramps and On-Ramps out? Check out the review:

Most professional women step off the career fast track at some point. With children to raise, elderly parents to care for, and other pulls on their time, these women are confronted with one off-ramp after another. When they feel pushed at the same time by long hours and unsatisfying work, the decision to leave becomes even easier. But woe to the woman who intends for that exit to be temporary. The on-ramps for professional women to get back on track are few and far between, the authors confirm. Their new survey research reveals for the first time the extent of the problem--what percentage of highly qualified women leave work and for how long, what obstacles they face coming back, and what price they pay for their time-outs. And what are the implications for corporate America? One thing at least seems clear: As market and economic factors align in ways guaranteed to make talent constraints and skill shortages huge issues again, employers must learn to reverse this brain drain. Like it or not, large numbers of highly qualified, committed women need to take time out of the workplace. The trick is to help them maintain connections that will allow them to reenter the workforce without being marginalized for the rest of their lives. Strategies for building such connections include creating reduced-hour jobs, providing flexibility in the workday and in the arc of a career, removing the stigma of taking time off, refusing to burn bridges, offering outlets for altruism, and nurturing women's ambition. An HBR Special Report, available online at www.womenscareersreport.hbr.org, presents detailed findings of the survey.

Download their original report, The Hidden Brain Drain: Off-Ramps and On-Ramps in Women's Careers, here. Book is available through Harvard Business School Press May 2007.

Separately and from the book "Women Who Changed The World:"

Chapter 47
Oprah Winfrey

The big secret in life is that there is no big secret. Whatever your goal, you can get there if you're willing to work. ~ Oprah Winfrey