Coffee Art

This is pretty cool stuff over at J-Walk Blog . He linked to Coffee Art which does all their work with coffee. Maybe this is what a coffee and art shop is all about.......

Come, Sit, Talk....loose weight?

Entreprenuer Mag has an article discussing the "okness" to grab that third cup of coffee... Caffeine speeds up our metabolism. (Maybe that's why it's the active ingredient in most diet pills.) It also breaks down fat, freeing fatty acids that can be burned during exercise. Studies have shown that conversion of fat to energy is about 30 percent more efficient when caffeine is consumed prior to exercise. ...this is music to my ears! Is it too good to be true though? Maybe now I can add "weight loss" to Cafe Evoke's slogan and tag...... "...come, sit, talk...loose weight?"

Ashish's Niti: Carnival of the Capitalists

Check out this segment of the Carnival of the Capitalists at Ashish's Niti's site

When is Enough, Enough?

An important part of planning your buisness is your exit strategy. When is that time going to come? Will it be retiring? Selling out? or death? Who knows how it will all play out in the end. Here is something I have been thinking about though. I had a highschool teacher that was a supervisor and officer in the FBI. He was the leader of many prestigous crime investigations and had won numerous awards. This success took him from his home and family quite often and he told himself that if he ever doubted his role in the FBI or stopped enjoying it, it would be time for him to quit and do something different. Well, since I had him as a teacher, it appears that his time came. He was asked to do an assignment that normally would have been his greatest honor. He hesitated on his acceptance and then retired from the FBI. I asked why and he said that for the first time, he was not if that is what he wanted or not. He said he was not enjoying it quite as much so he left and wanted to pursue his lifelong goal to teach highschool. When will it be time to get out? Will I be willing:? These are both things I need to be sure of before I jump in head first.....

A Look to the Future?

In the midst of market research, identity creation, and tidying up last semester school tasks for graduation we are selling our condo. Now, with 4 months till moving day, it would seem that this would not be the stressful and surprising adventure it has turned out to be. We listed it "by owner" and my wife is using it as a practice tool for her career aspirations in the realestate market of Montana. We recieved a call the other morning from a person who wanted to look at the place. He asked if this weekend would work and we said it would. Then, he said "how about 10 minutes from now?" My wife looked at me, about to jump into the shower for work, and said "sure." This is where the fun began. We cleaned the entire house, got the dogs out, got dressed, made coffee, set the table, turned on all the lights, and hit play on the Thelonious Monk in the CD player. It was an impressive display of teamwork and resposiveness. How am I going to tie this in the my future? With a new business, there are going to be times that are crazy, abrupt, and unknowing. You have to be ready for each of these times. With the right people invovled, no task is impossible and any curves that are thrown your way can be handled with confidence and under control. It will be important for me to hire the people that can take ownership of Cafe Evoke and act as though it is theirs. The market will set the pace and we have to be in position when things begin to change..

Vision

evokesample2 Originally uploaded by JasonDuncan. First things first. I have spent much of the last few months working on the vision for Cafe Evoke. There are many questions that go into this vision. Here are some that I have been working on: What are my financial and non-financial goals with this businss? What do I need out of this business? What are my personal values that will go into forming this business? What is the mission of the business? How will I measure success? Included in the research of the answers to the questions, I spent time completing a self-assessment complied by Dr. Cornwall of Belmont University (visit his blog The Entrepreneurial Mind) and also a personal ethics creed. All of these things really opened new doors to what this business would be about and how my personal life and values will fit in.

Hold your nose and jump.....

Here I go. After months of telling myself I have time before writing this busines plan arrives, it has tapped me on the shoulder and forced me into action. Only 4 months until I leave the comforts of this college town I have spent the last 3 1/2 years and on to the place where my life will start, Bozeman, MT. All that lies between now and my last Spring Break as a college student is the rough draft of my business plan, the feet of my dreams for Cafe Evoke, an art and coffee shop that has taken my head by storm for over a year now. This will be my story from now, through the business plan process, the joys of construction and the growing pains along the way. I hope that we can learn together and that if you have information to help me, you will be so kind as to pass it along. I hope to engage you in my journey and pass on the things I learn as I go. ...here we go...