7 Ways to Have a Budget-friendly [Adult] Halloween

So as a creative person, an event planner, and an event designer in training Halloween is by far one of my favorite holidays. The amount of imagination that goes into creating a Halloween costume that is A. budget friendly B. creative and memorable and C. worthy of you stepping out of the house in just fills me with child-like glee. At my new job, learning how to do new design techniques makes me think about all the parties and haunted houses that go through hours of creating the ULTIMATE in Halloween decor.


Sometimes we all can get a little crazy trying to pick a costume, come up with a great party theme, or even trying to find out where the best Halloween spot is. Below are 7 Ways to Have a Budget-friendly [Adult] Halloween:

1. Set the scary mood with a scary movie-nothing says Halloween like a good ole scary movie. There are some movies that to this day I will never watch again because it scared me so bad and there are other movies that really get my creative juices flowing. Find a classic such as Frankenstein or a new classic such as [The Original] Nightmare on Elm St. onDemand or find your new faves at the Red Box in your local store.


2. For those that don't celebrate Halloween, have a Fall Harvest potluck. Some people don't celebrate Halloween for personal and religious reasons and that's okay. You can still have fun and not break with your morals. Have a Fall Harvest potluck. Invite some friends and ask that they bring at least one dish. You can coordinate the meals to reflect the start of the harvest with items like sweet potatoe pie, baked apples, roasted corn, and maybe even a large turkey breast or chicken. Make some spiked apple cider punch and you're set!


3. Turn those treats into something sweet. Remember when you were young how you used to leap for joy at the thought of how much candy you would be getting? As an adult, you probably still leap for joy at the sight of a good chocolate bar or candy treat. Try turning your guilty pleasure into an even better guilty pleasure. Turn those treats into something sweet. Personally my favorite candy is Reeses' Peanut Butter cups, so naturally I'd find a chocolate peanut butter pie to make. But you too can get creative and see what you can whip up with your favorite treats.


4. Instead of giving your friends candy, give them mini bottles of liquor-Let's face it. We're all adults...well most of us, candy and treats are all fun and everything but most of us like a good drink or two. Have a costume party of your own and fill your friends' bags with mini bottles of the liquor. The best thing about these mini bottles is that they are drastically less than their bigger counterparts. Plus it's a great way for your adult side to meet your inner kid again.[*Disclaimer: We here at SOA Event Concepts, LLC and The Unemployed [but Empowered] Entrepreneur DO NOT condone underage or binge drinking.*]


5. Find out where all the free Halloween parties are and invite friends. Being a newly employed entrepreneur it's great to be able to say, "I have a job" and have a little extra pocket change, but I'm still cheap (just being honest). Depending on where I am going and who the special guest is, I don't feel like I should have to pay to party. Most of my friends are pretty much the same way. So when we are able to get some quality fun at a nice location for nothing at all, we relish in it. You too can have a great time and not spend hardly any money if you know where to look. Try sites like Eventful and Facebook and even Twitter to find out where the nearest and best Halloween parties will be this weekend and then INVITE YOUR FRIENDS! The more the merrier!


6. Pumpkin carving contest and scary ghost stories. I like a good scary story like the next one and I love to carve pumpkins. Put them together and you have a night of great fun and mischief. Encourage your friends to bring their own pumpkins and snacks and a great story and have a wonderful time trying to out do and scare each other.


7. Support the local kids club and give back. One of the best things about any holiday is the opportunity to give back. Even on Halloween, where most people are thinking about the mischief and mayhem of the night, take an opportunity to volunteer your time at a local school or boys/ girls club. Many of them create fall festivals and safer environments for kids to go trick or treating. Do your part in supporting your community and local service organizations.

Last year's budget friendly Halloween Costume. I was Nurse Betty!

These are just a couple of ideas I have for you to create a budget-friendly and exciting Halloween weekend. No matter what you decide to do, just remember BE SAFE; DRINK RESPONSIBLY; DON'T DRINK, TEXT, OR TWEET WHILE DRIVING; and HAVE FUN!!!

Happy Halloween from The Unemployed [but Empowered] Entrepre-BOO-er

Time management pt 2

As you've noticed, this past week I haven't posted nearly as much as I did a few weeks ago or even a month ago. Well that's because I now have both a job and a business *wipes brow*. I hate to think that they are interfering with me giving you some motivation and inspiration. I've been able to get posts out in a fairly timely manner and be consistent on at least posting Monday through Thursday, even with a busy schedule. How I'm able to do it? Well first off I'm normally a night owl. Matter a fact it's 3:45 AM as I type this on my ipod from my bed [and 12:16pm when I posted from work on my lunch break]. When I am watching my prime time tv, normally I do so with my laptop in lap, idea book open, and multitasking skills put to work. I've often been applauded by my management of time and efficiency when getting work done.

Here's how you can manage your time when you're in a serious time crunch:

• Double duty- when you watch tv, are you really watching it? If your task involves you having to write something creative or quick do so while listening to your fave tv show. In some instances it can even help you break that creative block. You can also double your prime time tv hour as your workout time, be creative and resourceful. A sit-up or 100 here, a squat or 50 there and you've completed a nice workout.


• Don't take time for granted- if you literally have less than 20 minutes to complete a task, do so with focus, vigor, and a winning attitude. Make it a game with yourself if you have to; just make sure it gets done right and in time.


• Break up the work- on many occasions I've written half a post in the morning and completed it in the middle of the day. Whether you get interrupted or have to stop, set yourself up for success when you return. Complete your thought you started and then come back later.


• Set yourself up for success- most of us know our schedule ahead of time, set yourself up so you don't have to rush as much. Whether that's laying out your clothes the night before, creating bullet points for a presentation, or creating blog posts as drafts the night before. When you're in a time crunch, being prepared absolutely helps you set yourself up for success.

I've been in a time crunch lately trying to reorganize my life and fall back into the groove of having a full plate. Trust me when I say it's a normal thing for me to be busy. But just because my time is more valuable doesn't mean I have to fail at managing it more efficiently. You too can make 10, 20, or 30 minutes seem like an hour if you just manage the little time you have each day to create lasting opportunities for success.

Time is our biggest non-renewable resource so make sure you're not wasting it.

The Unemployed [but Empowered and time managing] Entrepreneur

Time Management

There are only 24 hours in a day, but sometimes it feels like we have 48 hours of work that needs to be done.

It's nearly impossible to do everything your schedule entails. Think about it: you go to work from 9-5, then you come home eat, relax, work on establishing your business, go to networking events, and do a slew of other things that most humans wouldn't be able to handle. With so much on your plate, something is bound to fall off. Especially when you aren't managing your time more wisely. And when you add a mountain of distractions like the TV, Twitter, Facebook, iChat, and Skype, more work falls off and more time is lost.

Whether it is spending more time with loved ones or getting more work done in general, time management is the key to getting more work done in a short amount of time efficiently.

Here are 10 ways to manage your time better:

1. Set A Schedule/ Make a "To Do" List- When life gives you a mountain of work, how do you climb over it? You set a schedule. Setting a schedule will enable you to not only make a list of everything that needs to be done and when, but it also allows you to focus your attention on each task for a set period of time before moving to the next one. Personally my to do lists are on a weekly basis, I highlight the most important ones for the day, and then check off what's been completed. It gives me a sense of accomplishment and it helps me to remember everything that needs to be done.


2. Prioritize-What's most important in your life? Although we have several tasks to take care of before the day or week or month is over with, what's the most important task? There are somethings that aren't on our lists that feel important but they really aren't. Paying bills on time-important. Finishing that presentation for work before the morning-important. Sitting on Twitter for hours taking part in the latest trending topic-UNIMPORTANT. There is a time and place for everything. Prioritize your life and you won't get flustered when you are up late at night, rushing to finish a project.


3. Strategize-sometimes when you're given a lot of work, much of it can compliment something else that needs to be done. Come up with a strategy to get the most out of everything you do. If you have to do research for a paper and research for a project, create a strategy to get the research done for both at the same time. Dive into that bit of bottomless tasks with the right strategy to knock them out.


4. Write Things Down-I've discussed it in #1, but writing things down is a major component in managing your time. Have you ever tried to to keep a running list of things to do in your mind, just to find out at the end of the day you forgot something incredibly important? When you right things down, it actually helps you to remember those things. You may or may not look at that list for the rest of the day, but the sheer fact that it's available to you tangibly gives you more mental security. Plus, with the advent of technology, you don't even have to waste paper anymore. If you're work has you on the computer all day, like me, then you can download a ton of different "note" "list" or "to do" apps on your computer or phone so your daily tasks are always available when you forget.


5. Get Research Out of The Way Early- Having to do research for a project, paper, presentation, business plan, or marketing strategy can be tedious work but it has to be done. Make a plan as to what you specifically need to do research on. When you make a plan for what you will be researching, you can cut down the hours on Google getting frustrated because you can't find what you are looking for. When you get research out of the way early, it leaves your time open to effortlessly integrate it into whatever it is your are working on.


6. Do What You Do Best First- When it comes to this blog, I write much better than I do the html coding for it. I know a nice amount about html, but it still takes me a minute to do it especially when I'm not sure what to put. But the writing takes me the shortest amount of time. Same goes for anything else. If you are better at one task than you are at another, get that task out of the way first. Doing what you're best at first helps to create momentum to complete the task you fall short in.


7. Multitask-It's true every one does not know how to multi-task effectively. It takes a lot of focus and brain power that some people just aren't born or blessed with. But it's okay. Those who aren't blessed with multi-tasking skills can still multi-task to some degree. Group like tasks together, say laundry, ironing, and putting up. Then create an assembly line like system. Put the laundry in first, organize the clothes to be ironed, fold them and then put the clothes up after you're done, and repeat. The same can apply to anything else. If you have three or four tasks that involve the computer, work on one project for about 20-30 minutes then move on to the next task until they all get done.


8. Take breaks-You wouldn't think taking a break could help you manage your time better or get more work done. But it truly does. The reason we end up getting distracted or off task is because we get tired. We overload ourselves with doing the work and then can't commit to finishing it because we feel like we should just go straight through the work. When you short frequent breaks, you are giving your brain time to rest for a minute. Kinda like a bathroom break for your brain. When you return you'll be more refreshed and ready to finish what you started.


9. Unplug- Distractions. We know we succumb to it, but we won't admit it. Social media, television, friends, cell phones, and even family can be huge distractions when we are trying to get things done. Whether you are in that last stretch of the work race or just beginning, unplug from the world to encourage that momentum to remain steady. Tune out the world with some motivating music, turn off the tv, put the phone on vibrate, tell your friends and family you'll see them later and get some work done. In the end, you'll see you got more work done than you ever have before.


10. When In Doubt, Dish It Out- As much as we like to think of ourselves as Supermen and Superwomen, the truth of the matter is we aren't. Sometimes, life puts a mountain of work in front of us. As much as we think we can tackle it by ourselves, we honestly know that we can't. We have to learn to ask for help when we need. Dishing out the work doesn't make us look weak, far from it. It shows that we know our strengths as well as our weaknesses and we know how to manage our work through other people. Think of it as running a mini agency.

Time, like money, has to be properly managed in order for it to be used wisely and effectively. When we manage our time better, we can get so much more work done in a short amount of time. Through these ten steps and strategies you create for yourself, you too can be a great time manager.

The Unemployed [but Empowered and Efficient] Entrepreneur