My name is Joyce Reid — and you’re probably wondering, “Who in the heck is Joyce Reid and what expertise does she bring to this blog?”  “Why would she waste her time creating another blog to add to the millions already on the web?”

I am a firm believer in a statement that Zig Zigler once made: 

“You can have everything in life you want,
if you just help other people get what they want.” 

And that is what I’m trying to do.

I started my first business way back when my daughters were in high school and discovered that I was a true dyed-in-the-wool entrepreneur.  I’ve been in the gift industry since 1992.  Along the way, I’ve learned from others while acquiring knowledge from experience.  I’ve been sharing that experience for the past five plus years with my column REID ON… in our trade magazine, Rave Reviews.  Even before that, I started and still operate Gift Basket Network , an international directory for gift basket professionals.  A couple years ago, I added Gift Retailers Network to the mix.  These are all valuable resources but they all cost something to participate in.

Now, the time has come to step up to the plate and provide a totally free resource available to anyone in the gift industry, anyone thinking about starting a gift business, or just anyone who wants to grow a business regardless of their industry.  The result is Creative Gift Entrepreneurs.

You can read more about me as a person on my company website:
Creative Gifts To Go .  They say you should include a picture so that folks will know you’re a real person.  So, here’s one!  It’s not a recent one–-mostly because I don’t have a recent one.  My kids keep saying, “Go get a new picture made.” and I say, “Why? It’ll just make me look older.”   I guess that one of these days, I’ll get around to getting a new one made…but in the meanwhile, this is me, a few…ummmm years ago.

I’m probably older than most of you who are reading this, but if what they say is true, age equals experience and hopefully that translates into expertise.

I’ve seen a lot of changes in my lifetime.  Graduation from a segregated high school in the deep South should have made me a diehard conservative.  Instead, my personal and political views are liberal. I stood on the Capital lawn for President Kennedy’s inaugration and was a student at the University of California in Berkley when I heard of his death.  I’ve been a City Council member, served on planning commissions, school boards, and a lot of other volunteer committees.  I worked for the U.S. Census in Washington DC when the first computers were large enough to fill a room but have taught myself how to use this tiny laptop  that I can carry whereever I go.  I build my own websites and they rank high on the search engines.  I’ve founded, grown, and sold businesses and counselled other small business owners.  I’m a published writer and have been featured in a number of national magazines.  But my proudest accomplishments are 48 years of a very happy marriage to the same wonderful man and two grown daughters that I’m extremely proud of.  That’s a little bit about “who the heck is Joyce Reid?”

I’ve created, grown, and sold a publishing business and have built a second one from a small local gift basket business to a nationwide gift service. I’ve been a small business counsellor, written for my national  magazines, and created an extensive network of businesses within my niche industry.  During these twenty plus years, I’ve been asked thousands of questions, and have consulted hundreds of business owners and potential business owners–both online, and in person. What I’ve found is that I actually enjoy interacting with others in business just as much, if not more than I enjoy selling products. This site seemed like a natural next step.

This blog will be colored by my own opinions and experiences but will include much more.  We’ll have others, many whom are even more experienced than I am, as guest bloggers.  In today’s economy, small businesses are having a difficult time.  This blog will feature some of the small micro-businesses around the country that are struggling to build and grow a business in their unique way.  As a small business counsellor and business writer, I’ll be sharing ideas and suggestions that have worked for myself and for other small-business owners. What I hope to do is bring informative content, news, and other information that pertains to micro-businesses and those within it. Expect product reviews, industry news, educational articles, and other stuff that will hopefully bring value to  your business..  Venders and suppliers will be invited to participate and to share ways to save money when ordering products. 

I welcome your comments, your opinions, and your suggestions as we begin this journey. I suggest that you subscribe to this blog if you don’t want to miss an exciting moment.  It’s easy.  Just add your email address to the box on the homepage and follow the instructions.

Thanks for following.  Hang in there!  Check back often.  And REID ON…..