1.  Interesting column in the Denver Post yesterday about the value of a liberal arts education written by the new President of Colorado College (click here) Lots of follow up discussion in the comments, what do you think?

Of course lots of very successful people do very well with little or no formal "higher" education. From Steve Jobs and Bill Gates to Henry Ford, Thomas Edison, and Andrew Carnegie, many, many successful people have made it without a college degree. But none of them made it without LIFE LONG LEARNING. Today as never before school is optional, but life long learning is mandatory.

2.  One way to get a learning boost when you need it most is to attend an IDEA Cafe Startup Workshop. For details, and more about the interesting speaker who we have with us this week see http://www.SmallBizChamber.org

3.  Would you help us supercharge the Facebook Page for your new, free Small Business Chamber of Commerce? Please "Like" it if you haven't already and right now "Share" it with your friends. And please post links to interesting news and information about startup and small business. Thanks! See http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber 

4.  Do you want to connect with other Colorado businesses? Another way Robert Schwab, former editor of ColoradoBiz Magazine, Scott Rodgers, who has build websites for some of the leading radion and TV stations, and myself are trying to build the small business community across Colorado is with the new online Colorado Almanac and Small Business Directory, PioneerHQ.com (click here.) Before we officially launch in December, Sharon Russell and Peter Roberts are contacting local chambers across the state to let them know about our plans. Right now you can get a free listing for your business in our directory, click the above link and follow the directions on the site.

5.  If you enjoy good discussion on important topics with a diverse group of interesting people, join us some Friday afternoon for the new Denver Socrates Cafe Beginners Group (click here.)  It's at 4 p.m. right after the Denver IDEA Cafe at Panera Bread, 13th & Grant.

6.  There are a couple of big chamber annual events here in the metro-Denver area this week, with the big snow storm being forecast it will be interesting to see  how well they are attended. Here's an idea for next year: combine efforts!

7.  I'm slowly changing the focus here on JohnWren.com, I'll be posting a letter like this here for you once a week or so, then emailing my many good friends to let them know what I've done and I'll also post a link on Facebook and Twitter. Your feedback is always welcome, especially when it is posted as a comment here on JohnWren.com

Contact me with your email or phone call if I may be of service to you or anyone you know.

This life is short, let's get started!

John

Chris Daniels will be with us this Friday (Oct 21) at the Small Business Chamber's Denver IDEA Cafe Startup Workshop to share how he started his career in music. Should be very interesting, more at http://www.SmallBizChamber.org Free.

You are invited too.

I just emailed this release to my media list:

PLEASE FORWARD

Note: This release will be distributed at the Occupy Denver camp on Broadway in front of the Colorado Capitol by John Wren at 1 p.m. today (Fri, Oct 14). Occupy Denver participants have also been invited on Twitter @IDEACafe.

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 14, 2011

Contact: John Wren (303)861-1447

Today Hunter Lovins to share startup experience with Denver IDEA Cafe.

Since 1994, free help for people starting a new career, project, campaign or new business.

DENVER—The Small Business Chamber of Commerce's free Denver IDEA Cafe Startup Workshop meets from 2 to 3:30 p.m. each Friday at Panera Bread, 13^th and Grant in Denver. Speakers and brainstorming. For speaker this Friday and more information see

http://www.SmallBizChamber.org or call (303)861-1447.

 

 

Today, Oct 14: Hunter Lovins http://NatCapSolutions.org on "My startup experience."

Oct 21: Chuck Morris, http://AEGLive.com on "How I started my career as a concert promoter."

Oct 28: Social media consultant and entrepreneur John Leavy http://JohnLeavy.com on "How I used social media to start my business of showing others how to do the same thing."

 

The Denver IDEA Cafe has met since 1994 to help people who are starting in a new direction by sharing experience and brainstorming. The new, free Small Business Chamber of Commerce has been formed to help local chambers across Colorado and beyond to form similar groups. IDEA is an acronym for: I= Inspiration or Identify the Problem; D= Develop Alternatives; E= Evaluate the Alternatives; and A= take Action. The meeting is free and open to anyone who is starting a new career, a new campaign or project, or a new business.

###

 

John S. Wren, MBA+ http://www.JohnWren.com or http://Facebook.com/John.S.Wren is the founder of the new, free Small Business Chamber of Commerce http://www.SmallBizChamber or http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber Contact Wren at (720)495-4949 or John@JohnWren.com

Beta testers wanted for new Colorado Almanac & Small Business Directory. Get a free directory listing at http://PioneerHQ.com

 

 

Paul Krugman's column in the New York Times today wonders why the rich object to the Occupy Wall Street movement, it seems to be growing here in Denver the Denver Post reports, in light of the 1%'s  recent glorification of the Tea Party.

One big difference could be that the Occupy Wall Street is being orchestrated by the White House. If that turns out to be the case, I expect Pres. Obama will do a Lyndon Johnson and announce that he's decided to follow the advice of his hometown newspaper and not run for reelection.

Still, there is a spirt that the two movements share. Jimmy Carter told Charley Rose on his show recently that the spirit of the Tea Party is what got him elected as President.

Those who just want to just make noise will march with the various Occupy campers and their Tea Party counterparts. Those who want to make a real difference here in Colorado will start connecting with their neighbors getting ready for the 2012 Colorado Caucuses, for more about it and how you can get involved see http://www.COCaucus.org

Also in the Denver Post online this morning, a link to their business calendar which lists the Small Business Chamber of Commerce's Denver IDEA Cafe Startup Workshop. We have some very interesting speakers coming up in the next couple of weeks, hope you'll join us if you are starting in a new direction with your work.

It's finally turning into fall here in Denver, cold, cloudy morning here now. Before I eat my late Saturday breakfast at Charlie Brown's (they fix great biscuits and gravy, but only on the weekends) here are a few things I wanted to share with you:

Hunter Lovins will be with us at the Denver IDEA Cafe next Friday (Oct 14). Should be a great meeting. Join us yourself if you are headed in a new direction with your work, starting a new career, a new project or campaign, or even starting a new business. And please let your friends know about it who are headed in a new direction, OK? It's free and open to everyone, we just ask that you bring your brain for the brainstorming.

This is the 100th anniversary of our wonderful Colorado Caucuses, the best chance for the common person to get elected to public office. Should be one of the most interesting yet. See why I say that, and get info about how you can participated at my new post on www.COCaucus.org

I'm going to see To Kill a Mocking Bird this afternoon at the DCPA with my daughter Regan. To see the details about the play, and to see what I think of the current problems with the Colorado Symphony, check out my www.DenverWhenWhere.com

A friend told me yesterday that this blog is too scattered, he finds in hard to engage because I cover too many things. What do you think? Was the last minute or so you spent here worth your time?

I'm going to post here briefly each day, only send out an email reminder to you once a week or so. If you want off the email list, just let me know when you next get one.

I hope you have a great weekend!

If Obama knew about the movement that has suddenly grabbed the headlines before it started and encouraged it in any way, it will be his Watergate, and he will be forced out of office eventually.

Occupy Wall Street protests are spreading across the United States. According to NewsMax and Rush Limbaugh, the movement is being encouraged by the Obama campaign.

My friend Robert Schwab sees the good in the movement. "Have at it kids. It's your time." I'm not so sure. Seems to me those who don't have jobs might be better off using their time in other ways, maybe starting a business in a garage, like Apple, HP, Walt Disney, and so many other businesses have been started in the past, documented in a great article I just posted on http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber

When I left Cornell College my sophomore year in 1967, I wrote a letter to the school paper explaining that one reason was the lack of intellectual freedom on the campus. When I suggested a demonstration to my fraternity on one of the day's hot topics they declined because of the fear of retribution from professors. Told of what had happened, my faculty advisor said, "That's the problem with small schools like this, no one gets pushed off the sidewalk."

My protest took the form of taking a full time job my last two years of college at a different school.

How would the world be different today if Steve Jobs had channeled his energy into political protests in 1976 rather than going to work in the garage where Apple was born?

Anyone who wants to protest by finding a good job fast or starting a new business is invited to join us this afternoon (Fri, Oct 7) or any Friday afternoon for the Small Business Chamber's Denver IDEA Cafe Startup Workshop. It's free and open to everyone, we just ask that you share your startup experience (we've all started something) and that you bring your brain for the brainstorming. For more see the link on the Small Business Chamber's Facebook Page, http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber

Please share this with your friends who might find a boost helpful at the end of a hard week. I'm going to stop by the Occupy Denver camp out in front of the Colorado Capitol at 1 p.m. to invite them to attend.

As you can see from the posts below over the last couple of weeks, I’m gradually making this more personal.

My plan is to post here once a week or so things that are interesting to me and that seem worth sharing with you.

Each day I’ll be posting on Facebook, if we aren’t Facebook friends yet and you’d like to stay in touch that way, too, invite me at  http://Facebook.com/John.S.Wren

More and more, my work life is about helping to start new IDEA Café Startup Workshops and Franklin Circle Peer Advisory Groups in cooperation with local chamber of commerce and alumni groups, service clubs, and neighborhood associations.

To facilitate this process, I’ve organized the new Small Business Chamber of Commerce. I’m going to be forming a board of directors in the next few weeks, please let me know if you might be interested in serving. Each week or so I’ll post an update about our work on our website http://www.SmallBizChamber.org and several times a week I post on our Facebook Page http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber

My other passion is the statewide small business community Robert Schwab, Scott Rodgers and myself are trying to precipitate with our new online Colorado Almanac & Small Business Directory. Our purpose is to encourage startup and small business via local chambers and local community newspapers. We plan on launching this in the next couple of weeks, and we still need beta testers. If you haven’t taken a free listing for your business, please do so right now, while it’s on your mind, at http://PioneerHQ.com

Finally, the First Friday of each month is now an “Alumni” or “Reunion” meeting for our Denver IDEA Café Startup Workshop. Hope you’ll join us tomorrow or any First Friday to share for 2 or 3 minutes about your startup experience. No RSVP is required, walk ins are welcome at Panera Bread, 13^th & Grant starting at 2 p.m. For more info see the link on http://Facebook.com/Small.Business.Chamber or http://www.SmallBizChamber.org

How may I be of service to you?