Let’s face it: It takes guts to own your own business. And creativity. Lots of stick-to-it-iveness. A big heart. The ability to manage people, and to hunt for the best collaborators and nurture those relationships.

That’s a gift. I don’t know how many of you think of it that way, but trust me - it is. Those of us who choose to go out on our own are WAY outnumbered by those who prefer to have a boss. Of course, I’m not saying one way is better than the other. They’re just different.

But that ability you have is precious, and needs to be guarded. A friend of mine calls it the “curse of competence.” Unfortunately, there are…and will always be…plenty of people who want to steal that gift. They are the people who ask for guidance and help, yet never offer the same in return. They are the people who receive your referral and instead of being gracious, they ask if you have more clients you can refer. They’re the ones who want to have long, circular conversations about how to grow their business, but never really take the challenging next steps, and keep coming back with their frustrations.

These folks may be good (if misguided) souls, but you can’t let them suck you dry. How do you protect yourself? A couple things I do:

• Keep a kitchen timer on my desk so if a soul-sucker calls, I can set it for 10 minutes and when it buzzes, I use it as an excuse to end the conversation.
• Visualize boundaries between myself and others. They’re not solid walls, but they’re a tight mesh - that only lets through the positive influences.
• Use caller ID. I screen those calls and return them (or don’t) at my leisure, not others’.

And to make sure I don’t become one of those soul-sucking folks myself (hey, no one’s perfect), I always try to remember that when someone helps me, I want to do the same for them if possible. I don’t keep a meticulous list, but I think of those folks often and try to do good things for them whenever I can.

So I’m curious - have any of you run into the same issue? I’m sure you have. How do you protect your valuable time, energy and ideas - your gift?

I just found this website for potential project work. Firm seems to be Chicago-based. Looks kind of interesting.

For the designers in our group (or who happen to drop by our blog), take a look at CrowdSpring.

I just skimmed it but here’s the premise: a buyer who needs a logo, website, etc. can post the project, list what he’s willing to pay, and then designers submit their designs. The fee is set and from what I saw, you certainly won’t get rich. But if biz is slow, you’ve got the time, you want to build your portfolio, etc., it might be worthwhile. You do get to work with a worldwide audience!

It appears that people can critique your designs and you also get feedback from the buyer (move this, tweak that, I hate that color, this needs to be redone — oh sorry, that was from one of my projects). I’m not sure how the winning design is selected but am sure it explains.

If you’re a designer who specs paper — or just looking for creative ideas — paper promotions are a great resource. Visit the Must Haves section of the PaperSpecs website for quick links to ordering the latest paper swatchbooks and promotions.

The Trib featured ideaxchanger Jackie Sloane this month discussing the benefits of virtual networking. If you would like to learn more about e-networking and e-marketing, come to my presentation tonight. Hosted by Independent Writers of Chicago, I’ll be highlighting the work of several ideaXchangers in a discussion titled “Writing for the Web: How to Find, Get, and Do Your Next Writing Gig Online.”

On Thursday, mix your virtual and physical networking at the mediabistro.com Chicago party for creative, content, media, and publishing pros at D4 Irish Pub & Cafe, just in time for the holiday. My cohosts and I enjoy getting to know your professional endeavors and introducing you to people with similar goals. Hope to see you at one or both events!

Looking for something to spark your creativity? Check out The Sketchbook Project, brought to you by Art House in Atlanta, Georgia. For a nominal fee, they will send you a sketchbook which you can fill to your heart’s desire, based on the current theme (How to Save the World). You send your masterpiece back and it becomes part of a group show to be held at their gallery. As of today, 117 spots are left… get your sketchbook now!

Though always the first to eat and the last to leave the table, I used to think that cooking was more about fueling myself — mere drudgery. I decided two years ago that I love eating too much to not know how to cook well. I’ve come to enjoy the improv, self-expression, and sharing in cooking and serving meals.

So, when my friend and fellow foodie Melissa Yen opened Vella Cafe with co-owner Sara Voden in ‘06, it was right around when I was learning to look at the act of cooking as art, as self-expression, as a gift for those I care about. Of course, I loved the blunch menu and the open, sunlit aesthetic of the cafe. Between stuffing my mouth and talking with my buddy about our craft projects, I thought about how creativity and pleasure can be found in the least expected places. I wager that Searah, owner of Early to Bed, would agree.

Vella Cafe, “The m.henry of West Bucktown,” is up for a Time Out Chicago Eat Out Award. Get your own edible Big O this Saturday, March 2. It’s the last day to vote Vella.

An ideaXchanger asked me this question, so I thought I’d post here for everyone to get in on the discussion, especially for those who are into GTD.

First, I’ve been in goals partnerships of some sort for over 5 years and have found them indispensable. In short, a goals partnership helps two or more people achieve their goals in a mutually supportive and accountable arrangement. It’s a two-way exchange, whereas professional coaching is better if you need to focus solely on your own goals. You can set it up in any number of ways. Some are more organized and linear; some are more brainstormy and collaborative.

Curious? Check out the power of goals clubs and this online goal-setting community.

This week’s writing assignments have me researching ancient Egyptian art and history, the New York stand-up comedy scene, bridal industry trends, a fancy garden party benefit for a charity that helps the developmentally disabled, and much more.

Sometimes I find myself wishing I had a 9-5 communications gig with a big company in the Loop — downtown Chicago is such a magical place, and at this point, employer-supplied health insurance would also be magical. But I know myself well enough to know I’d get bored writing the same stuff in the same style about the same people again and again.

I like the random element of freelancing. I like making phone calls to people in a wide range of professions, across thousands of miles, and getting to know them and their work. I like being prompted to learn more about something that otherwise may not have bleeped across my radar.

And now, to add even more variety to my writing day, I’m going to polish off another press release, and tackle my new gig writing greeting cards. I wonder how many versions of “Happy Birthday To My Wife” I can come up with in a half hour?

I have to share something really cool. I’m filing it under Marketing cause it is and Creativity cause it’s that to. But it’s really smart WOM cause that’s the result.

An email in my inbox called to me “open this” (no, that wasn’t the subj line). It did say something about Sale though. So I did a little online sale shopping and after my purchase was completed (and I might add, without any glitches in navigating, etc.), I got an order confirmation that said (in a funky script font in red), “Thank you! now go back to work!”

Cute, clever, kinda “gotcha”… and best of all, I wanted to tell everyone. And that’s the difference between ho-hum and smart marketing!

Lucky I have such a great boss so I can shop during work hours.

Heads up, Creativos. Sharpie has just launched a new Web site, mysharpie.com, which enables you to customize fine point Sharpie pens! The pens are available in a eight different colors, and there are 10 different fonts and about 20 different pieces of clip art to choose from.

Okay, only six of the fonts are really fun and the clip art is kinda lame, but it’s still a cool idea. And they’re not too expensive, about $12 for six pens. Plus shipping, of course.