Project: Lori Greiner, The Shark Tank’s Chickstarter

Lori Greiner. A pretty simple name to remember. But over the years she’s acquired several more, earning a reputation as 1) Inventor, 2) Entrepreneur, 3) The Queen of QVC, 4) The Warm Blooded Shark and recently she divulged her secret power while on ABC. While many people turn to Kickstarter, people turn to her as The Chickstarter.

It is not hundreds, it is not thousands, it is millions of dollars of success that she can accredit to her name and to those with which she partners. Her formula?

Communication.

Passion.

Dedication.

And the inability to hear the word “No.”

While it is true a large percentage of people cannot say the word “No,” she will not hear the word “No.”

We’ve witnessed her saying, “And for that reason I am going to pass.”  In other words, NO!

However, the year she made her first millions, she did not back down; she did not stop. She was the whirlwind that defined Chicago as the windy city.

So sometimes that is what we have to do. We have to take the world by storm if we want to introduce our peers to our product and ideas. Neither they nor we may be ready for the turnout, but no is not an option.

Moreover, if we want to create a new name for ourselves, to always elevate our identity as an entrepreneur and add layers to our life, we need to speak with passion. Live with dedication and cultivate the ability to never hear the word, “No.”

Can you speak Shark Tank? What’s in your life that you are “…going to pass,” so you can pursue your real passion? Are people saying, “No” to you in life, when you know it is a “Yes”?

It is time to Chickstart your life!

-The Green Couch

Project: Five Signs You Might Be A Workaholic

Robert Herjavec. Ring a bell? Well, it seems even when he is with his family he does not turn his off. It’s the price you pay when you have the country's largest cyber security firms.

And I guess we have to be thankful for that. You know since we all do online banking, shopping, swiping, skyping - so much that entails personal information and everything that could endanger our species.

Known as the Mr. Nice Guy to Shark Tank’s Mr. Wonderful, he admits he’s a workaholic. While his high profile life may seem more demanding, we all have a choice when it comes to our business lifestyle of whether or not we want to give in to the demands of business both during the week and weekend.

So, take the test and tell us, are you are a workaholic?

1. You take your phone AND/OR laptop to the bathroom with you for checking notifications Non-Game related activities such as updating excel spreadsheets, and seeing if your stocks are plummeting or your latest system wide team email is getting any response.

2. You’re the Buzz Lightyear of the office: You are the first to turn the light on at the office and the last to turn it off. Your hours are long, and you get to see both the sunrise and sunset. Essentially, you have become both a morning and night person with your job description.

3. You’re easy; too accessible. Here is my home number, my cell number, my pager, my fax number, my home address, my PO Box, my personal email. I do not take sick days and what the heck is a vacation? Never heard of one. Yeah, you over-kill, but boy do you pack a punch in 24 hours.

4. You’re simultaneously thrilled and tired. You get a high from all the achievements and even the lows. Every turn and set back is a challenge, but you’re tired. Adrenaline is the body’s natural hormonal caffeine. And we all know what happens when caffeine leaves our system. We crash.

5. You find ways to exercise at work. You have prioritized your life in such a way that hobbies – and even necessities such as exercise- have become non-existent. Therefore to justify the lack of them, you have established excuses to create healthful ways to work around this. Standing desks; yoga ball chairs; walking to the printer more; salads on Tuesdays and skipping the elevators once in awhile.

And these are just five signs. There are many more red flags that exhibit signs of addiction to work and extreme affixation to office desks. The most prevalent? Denial. Because you know what they say: Denial is not just a river in Africa.

Now with the resumption of the sixth season Herjavec’s workaholic ways only just getting busier: Twelve more hours on the set and still just 24 hours in a day. And you thought you wanted to be on TV?

Here’s to the success of the sharks and all the contestants - and the sanity and safety of our companies!

-The Green Couch