Many creative types sell their work for a pittance for fear of scaring off buyers. They equate someone liking their work with liking them, have difficulty determining the value of their time and don’t mind losing money.

Pretty silly, huh?

I strongly suggest leaving graphics design to the professionals so that everyone can focus on what they do best. Yet for those who still insist on doing it themselves, here are 20 design blunders that scream “Amateur!”

Do you want to design your sales materials to avoid having to pay someone else? Are you thinking you can just use Canva or another design app? Just recognize you’re spending valuable time on something you’re probably not good at.

Without a good strategy for grabbing the reader’s attention, your email is pretty much guaranteed to go right into the trash! Here are 8 solutions you can implement immediately.

The Pluto Channel is wasting a breathtaking $230 BILLION each year. The question becomes why are stockholders of corporate overlord Paramount Global allowing this to happen, six years after buying the network for $340 million? Here’s an easy solution for you, guys…no charge.

If you’re looking to win an award, focus your efforts on trade associations or Chambers of Commerce. These legitimate groups will provide far greater ROI than a phony plaque, helping build relationships that may actually help grow your business.

Getting fired on Christmas Eve by a man with no business acumen proved to be a blessing. He’s since gone bankrupt, while today I run two successful businesses.

And have you met “Christmas” Carol Tiernan, who offers some of the best job-hunting and hiring advice this author has seen in a LONG time?

By making all stakeholders comfortable with all the names and logos and being transparent that changes are afoot, the probable transition of a company to a new name can go smoothly without customers wondering what happened or why they don’t know who you are.

Were I starting a business today, I’d consider every marketing tool available — from public relations to skywriting — to determine how to best reach the audience within the available budget.

Here's a guy's dog who has it all figured out.

Wearing a baseball cap to Costco means I’m just another guy in the crowd. The Panama hat, though, is easy to spot…even from a distance. This means I stand out…and that’s what it’s all about these days!

While everything’s not perfect, I look at all I’ve got…and I am grateful for a good life. Thank you for being a part of it, and happy holiday.