Sunshine and Jessica Taylor

I had the delightful opportunity to have lunch with Jessica Taylor again yesterday, this time at the Trellis Cafe at Thanksgiving Point.  The Tulip Festival is in full swing and it was a beautiful day to eat out on the porch.  If you haven't ever been to Utah during the Tulip Festival, you must come.  Last fall we finished the new windows in my office and I've been itching to plant the flower garden I will be able to see from my desk.  I had a few pots outside with tulips and daffodils, but it is nothing like the majesty of what is going on at Thanksgiving Point.  So it was a wonderful break from our busy days to take a break with the beautiful Jessica and the beautiful tulips.

Jessica is a great friend.  She owns Legacy Tree Genealogists and has won several awards for the amazing business she is building.  She and I are trying to figure out the details of how to scale our businesses so it is good to have someone to share ideas with.  We both find ourselves in the position of knowing more about our company's subject than we do about how to run a company--much like most entrepreneurs--but we're figuring it out.  We founded the Genealogy Business Alliance together and I think that has made an impact on the industry and been a support to other startup companies.  She is a light in my life and hopefully together, we can light the way for others as well.

Yesterday, it felt like I was a bundle of concerns, about business, about family and about stuff.  We were sitting in the sunshine, and it really helped. (Do you ever have a day like that?) It was great to have a safe place to talk about it all.  We both came away with notes about new avenues we wanted to try and resources that we could follow up on.  I'm so thankful to have a partner in crime and someone who understands, someone to work on projects with and someone who is figuring out the same puzzle.  It is always so nice to get together. 

I'm thankful to have such a great friend. 

It's Coming, It's Coming..Our RootsTech Plans

It's getting close.  It feels a bit like Christmas Eve.  The biggest family history gathering is coming up and we can't wait to see all of our friends.  

You may remember the chicken with her head cut off named Janet last year.  Two booths, Five lectures, including the Innovator's Summit, two with my sister and one with my Dad.  SUPER FUN, but a super big crash afterward.  So this year, for the first time, I decided not to apply to teach, but just to focus my efforts on our Family ChartMasters booth and having time to really enjoy the wonderful people we get to work with.

We have some special sales we're doing for the conference.  Check out a few of the signs we've been printing:

So I'm so excited to be able to help our clients and have time to talk individually to each of you.  I'll be available for consultations anytime and all of our wonderful designers will be there too.

We've also helped organize a super fun game with the Genealogy Business Alliance where you can play for instant coupons and lots of prizes.  Just scan the barcodes at each booth to play.  We're giving away a free canvas DNA Chart.  Watch this fun video from the Family History Fanatics to get all the deets.

Can't wait to see you.  If you aren't able to come, be sure to watch the live stream.  You're sure to learn alot and get even more excited about family history.  Let us know what we can do to help you.

GBA happenings: SLIG Colloquium and the Genealogy Business Alliance Giveaway

So great things have been happening with the Genealogy Business Alliance and I'm delighted about what is coming down the pike.

We've met at the major conferences and had some great networking and discussions between the companies.  I think it has helped to make connections and spread good business practices.  We've put together a steering committee with representatives from NGS, Ancestry, FamilySearch, RootsMagic and Legacy Tree Genealogists and we've finalized a Best Practices for Conferences document that has been a great collaboration between all of the businesses.  (More on that later).  If you are a genealogy business owner and haven't been watching the Facebook Group, join us over there.  We'd love to have your input.

So I've been asked to participate with several genealogy leaders on a panel for the SLIG Colloquium this coming Saturday and I'm so passionate about this topic--I hope I can keep from monopolizing.  The panel is discussing Tom Jones' talk at the Professional Management Conference for the Association of Professional Genealogists last year about the state of the genealogy profession.   The funny thing is, many of the issues he discusses are being solved by genealogyDOTcoach and I've just spend last week talking to each of the coaches about how to deal with the challenges we are facing--which are similar to those the profession faces.  I've got alot of ideas about what needs to be done and how to do it.  The panelists include David E. Rencher, Billie Fogarty, Tom Jones, Russell Lynch and Jean Hibben.  It is going to be a great discussion.  I'm sure I'll have more to say about it here afterward. 

And then Jessica Taylor has come up with a brilliant idea for the GBA at RootsTech.   We are going to do a Colossal Giveaway, with signups at each of the participating booths for a huge giveaway of many genealogy prizes.  Not only will it help with excitement for the attendees, it is a great way for each of the companies to have a greater marketing reach.  We'll be doing signs for each booth that shows off the companies that are participating.  You can see details about the contest at genealogybusinessalliance.org

With the social planned at Finca Resturaunt for Thursday night (Thanks to Thomas McEntee for sponsoring appetizers!) it is going to be a great conference for networking.