Denver Restaurant Week

There are many things to love about Denver, from the ever-changing weather to the awesome outdoor activities; you can always find something to do in this vibrant city. One thing Denver is renowned for though is our eclectic mix of amazing restaurants and chefs. Denver has attracted a lot of talent over the years and more and more restaurateurs are making moves to this growing city to try their shot at making it. It can be hard to figure out what restaurant to go to with the huge selection or it can be tough to try new places that are hard to get into or restaurants that are known to be on the more expensive side. That is why Visit Denver decided to start Denver Restaurant Week twelve years ago, a weeklong event where different restaurants participate with special menus and prices for restaurant-goers. This is a great way for Denverites to get the chance to try different restaurants they have been eyeing for a less expensive price tag and also a fun and engaging menu of great food. This year there are over 126 restaurants participating in restaurant week that starts tomorrow Friday, February 26th and goes until March 6th. Feel free to check out menus of all the restaurants in the link below and also you can make reservations (which is highly recommended if you want to get in!) http://www.denver.org/denver-restaurant-week/menus/ . Just remember, this is a very busy week at all these restaurants so you may have to wait a little longer to get seated and to get your food, so practice patience and be sure to tip your waiter or waitress well because they are working very long hours this week! Below are a few restaurants I would recommend trying out this week but all the restaurants on the list are worth checking out!

Atticus – 1115 E Evans Ave – This quaint neighborhood restaurant and bar is known for their warm hospitality. Their American menu is designed around Colorado’s small producers and is complimented with a wide variety of delicious cocktails and wines.

Bones – 701 Grant St – Denver is crazy about noodles these days, you can’t go anywhere in this city without finding a good ramen or pho spot. Bones is on top of the list with their ramen, their green chili ramen is ranked 2nd best ramen in the US so you know it is good! Don’t forget to order their handcrafted steamed buns to start.

Fooducopia – 1939 E Kentucky Ave – This is another restaurant that prides itself on making a delicious menu full of local ingredients. On their website they talk about joining them on a journey to remember the delicious taste of good honest food.

Ophelia’s Electric Soapbox – 1215 20th St – This restaurant used to be home to a brothel back in the day and the owners (who also own the wonderful restaurant Linger in the Highlands) wanted to keep memories of that around. With great live music on the weekend, amazing food and bartenders who know a thing or two about drinks, this is a fun spot to try during restaurant week.

With so many good restaurants signed up to participate this week it will be hard to choose where you should go with friends and family but I hope you get to experience lots of great tastes of this awesome city!

Why Being Social Is Essential In Any Business

When talking about social media, many people think of it as a fun thing they do during the day when they have a few down minutes. Social platforms are seen as a place to keep pictures and look up old friends, to write about opinions and to share memories. But there is a whole other side to social media that I, as a business owner, have come know quite well. No matter how hard many business owners’ try to fight it, our country is an ever-growing social media network with new ways to connect and market coming out daily. It is important as a person in business that I figure out the best way to use social media to further my work connections, to advertise my properties and to market myself as a real estate agent and business owner. While I do believe in the older way of marketing, going out and meeting people and handing out my card, there is just not enough hours in the day. Having social platforms that I can post on helps me connect with a wider audience while allowing more relationships to begin via the Internet. Below I have compiled a list of the benefits to having different social media platforms for your company:

Finding New Customers/New Customers Finding You – Whatever product your are buying/selling, there is always a market out there and the more you are out there on social media marketing yourself, the more likely people will find you. With things like Facebook, you can join groups that specifically go with your company and from there, new customers can find you. Or on a platform like Twitter, finding what you want is only a “@” sign away.

Seeing Your Target Market Personally – With access to your customer base at your fingertips on social media, you will get to know them better which in turn will help you market your company/product better.

Keeps You in the Now – A lot of business owners think they have missed the train when it comes to social media and are not sure why they should start now. Well, I can tell you this, it is never too late to start! Even if you are just putting your business on the social media map, you will be surprised just how quickly being in the public eye will increase your sales. Also, it is more than likely that your competition is on social media already and therefore already a step ahead of you. We both know that being one step behind is never the best place to be so take the step and get your social media started today!

It Is Free – I could repeat this one a few times because let me tell you, marketing isn’t cheap, but social media is free, period. Use that to your advantage! Get out there and figure out what social platforms are best for your brand and then use those as guides to market your company. If you are a company such as a real estate agent, using Instagram to post pictures of upcoming listings or great house fixer-upper ideas would benefit not just you, but your clientele, and possibly future clients as well.

Take the time today and sit down to experiment with different social media platforms to figure out which one best fits your business. If they appear intimidating, there are plenty of social media experts out there who would be willing to sit down and go over each essential element to each platform and help you decide which platform makes the most sense for your company.

Just remember, it is essential to be social in today’s business world, find the best platforms for you and your company and watch your business grow!

What The Denver Broncos Taught Me

It wouldn’t be right to not say a little something about those football players from Denver who recently won the most coveted title in football. Congratulations to the Denver Broncos for being Super Bowl L champions! What a time to be a Broncos fan, our team had quite a year but in the end, led by Peyton Manning, the team rallied together to play a great Super Bowl game and came out victorious. There has never been so much blue and orange draped around the city and it is quite a wonderful sight to see.

After the big win on Sunday, I listened to many of the interviews with the players and the coaches and have to say, I came away with a lot of realizations about football but also about what it means to be on a team and to have one another’s backs through thick and thin. When Peyton was injured earlier this year, many people got down on him saying he was too old to play and wouldn’t ever be able to come back and play the way he once did. The truth is, Peyton is not the youngest quarterback out there, he isn’t the fastest and he isn’t the most graceful even. But he is one of the smartest quarterbacks out there, who has a team that respects and follows his lead. On and off the field, Peyton is looked up to by players, coaches and the media a like, because he is far more than just a superior football player. For a team to be successful, like the Broncos were this season, there needs to be those leaders on and off the field. The ones who encourage their fellow teammates, push themselves and others to do better, take the disappointments in stride and celebrate each and every little victory.

That kind of work ethic and leadership is something I admire and myself try to do in my everyday life. I am lucky enough to work with some amazing team members, from the company my husband and I run together to the financial organizations I help run, being a team player and a leader is something I strive to do from the time I wake up to the time I go to bed. I have encountered many bad leaders in my time, managers who lack personal skills and speak to their employees in a degrading way, co-workers who find it ok to talk badly about one another or owners who are barely seen at their companies leading many employees to wonder how important the business really is to the owner. The thing is, you can’t have a team without a leader or a group of strong leaders who support those they advise and those they mentor.

There is that saying, there is no “i” in team, and the Broncos showed us that more than anything this past weekend. The offense, the defense, the kicker and good ol’ Peyton, all took to that field and showed what it looks like when a team works together for their cause. In the end, they walked off the field all smiles, knowing they had all taken part in their great victory.

Photo From; The Denver Post

Continue to Give All Year Long

Even though the season of giving has past, it brings up even a better time to give. I’d like to share a great story I came across on Forbes.com about how Becky and Dave Seidl are giving back. “By giving when you’re alive, you have control over what happens with the money, and you can get the joys and benefits from giving now.”- Dave. Just remember it’s never to late to make a positive impact in this world. Check the link below to find out how you can benefit from the joys of giving to families and charities! Happy Friday!

http://www.forbes.com/sites/northwesternmutual/2015/12/21/the-benefits-of-giving-during-your-lifetime/

Writing Your Story in 2016

“We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.”  - Edith Lovejoy Pierce

Hard to believe we are about to being another year, where did 2015 go? As busy as my life can be some days, I always feel like my life moves at a fairly steady pace. I devote my time to my family, my work, my church and other important causes that are near and dear to me. My family and I make sure to take time off from the hustle and bustle of everyday life to get away and enjoy each other’s company and the blue skies and the beauty that is Colorado. When I look back on this “book” for the year, my pages are full of a lot of love, laughter, obstacles, resolutions, a few tears and lots and lots of happiness. I love the idea of looking at every New Year as a new book just waiting desperately for each of us to pick up the pen of life and start writing and living to fill up each and every page. The wonderful thing is, you don’t have to wait until a new year starts to get a new book and you can pick up new books throughout the year and start making different stories for each part of your life.

People put a lot of emphasis on making big changes when the New Year comes around, from making large lists to resolutions that they feel are important for the year to come. I commend that, I really do, but I would also encourage each of you to work on daily changes, weekly changes and monthly changes. And if you have an idea or a resolution in the middle of July, then take that blank book and start working on that chapter when life calls you to. Never wait to start living your life the way you desire and don’t be scared to take a few risks along the way. I personally wouldn’t be where I am today without a few mishaps and mistakes along the way, that’s what makes us human right? Being perfectly imperfect is one of our best qualities. The hope is that you learn from those mishaps and grow from them and that will help you work towards bigger and brighter things in your future.

For my resolutions this year (which I plan on updating as the months progress and more things come my way) I have come up with the following:

·      Donate 15 hours of my time to Reagan's new Christian School

·      Donate one more day a month to my church, Flatirons Community Church, Currently I volunteer once a month for one service in the Cafe.

·      Read 12 new books, I read 6 new books this year but read two books again from the previous year.

Of course I also made resolutions with my husband Jay this year as we do every year. We have found this is a good way for us to push one another and support each other as we continue to grow as husband and wife and as business partners:

·      Jay and I want to EACH close $10 Million in Sales in 2016. 

·      To Purchase one new rental property or vacation property

·      We would like to partner up with a local builder to help them market their properties.

·      $50,000 In Gross Sales for our longboard company, LongJohns Longboards

·      Build a new website for LongJohns Longboards®

Are you ready to start a new book this year, with blank pages a plenty just waiting to be filled up with your hopes and dreams and goals? Keep that book all year long, add to it, nourish it and make changes to it. Nothing is set in stone when it comes to resolutions so make 2016 everything you want it to be.

Here’s to a wonderful and blessed 2016, happy New Years everyone! Can’t wait to see what 2016 has in store for you!