An American Birthday, 2020
Today is my birthday; I am now 41 years old. That’s old enough to have a child old enough to ask me what things used to be like. I woke up this birthday morning on the living room couch. My wife had asked me to sleep there, not because we fought the previous night but […]
3 Tips for Eye Strain in Zoom Meetings
Staring at a screen all day in Zoom meetings can cause eye strain. As someone who works on a computer all day, I get it. Your vision can start to blur, you feel wonky—it’s not very nice. Now, there does not seem to be evidence that screens will actually hurt your eyesight, so we’re not […]
Beer Cocktails: Revolution Freedom of Speach
Beer cocktails are not exactly my jam; I’m the kind of purist that enjoys tasting a beer the way the brewer intended. But when you’re stuck inside for long enough, you start asking questions that require answers. What’s a beer cocktail? Any beer you mix with something else, I suppose. A shandy (beer and lemonade) […]
The Best Support Apps for Writing a Book
Support apps for writing a book are any apps that are not strictly for word processing but can be helpful in solving other problems that come with using a word processor. To be sure, the problems we’re talking about are not problems with the word processing programs but with the fact that they are on […]
What is the Best Book Writing Program?
If you’re anything like me, choosing the best book writing program for the job feels like a big first step toward actually writing your book. Now, I’m not going to lie to you: Your book writing program is not the reason you have or have not written a book. A program is a tool, and […]
Social Distancing, Drinking, & the Coronavirus Long Game
The coronavirus scare has our whole society on virtual lockdown, or “social distancing.” For days, we’ve been bombarded with articles about what to do with the kids and tweets joking about buying TP and alcohol. The primary theme of all this? Survival. People have gotten so dramatic that I’ve seen nerds putting their feet down […]
Why Your E-mail Welcome Series Sucks
Let me be clear: Your e-mail welcome series sucks. Why does it suck? I think you know the answer: because you do not have an e-mail welcome series! I know this because I have never signed up for a brewery newsletter and received an e-mail welcome series. And I’ve signed up for a lot of […]
Chris Quinn Stumbles into Success
Beer Temple founder Chris Quinn didn’t set out to create one of Chicago’s most important craft beer destinations, but he has a way of stumbling into success. My 2 Beers and a Podcast co-host, Mike Rataj, and I sat down with Chris Quinn in his bar in Chicago’s Avondale neighborhood to talk about the shop’s […]
Passion Envy, Impostor Syndrome, and Making a Difference at LinkedIn Local
As an entrepreneur, you have to get over impostor syndrome, but after last night’s LinkedIn Local Chicago event I discovered another solo-preneurial neurosis: passion envy. If you’ve been to a networking event in Chicago, you know the feeling of being in over your head, that every one of these smart, hip, put-together people belongs there […]
Profit Over Percentages: Lessons from Deb Carey at CBC 2018
Deb Carey gave breweries a lot to think about in her Craft Brewers Conference 2018 keynote – some of which will be controversial.