Legal-ease For Entrepreneurs: Empowering Creatives About The Legal Aspects Of Running A Business

With Black Friday and Cyber Monday fast approaching, if you're a maker, you're thinking of ways to get the most eyes on your product.  Listing your products on Amazon is definitely the way to do that - but that also exposes you to the risk of theft and piracy.   To help you protect your hard work and your coins, I've put together a brief episode to help you understand the various problems you could face, how to work with Amazon to solve any issues, and how to do the ONE thing that permits Amazon to give you the highest level of protection.   Listen to the full episode to learn how! *****SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process of starting a new business or launching a new product, we encourage you to sign up for our FREE masterclass, Select and Protect: How to Select a Brand Name That You Can Legally Own as a Trademark. If you need

Congrats!  You have a registered trademark - the federal government has given you a monopoly and the use of your brand name, logo, or product.   But - this is only the beginning.  Having a federal trademark doesn't automatically increase your revenue or prevent someone from infringing on your trademark, it only makes it easier for you to seek damages.  But you have to catch the copycat first.  And that - takes strategy and diligence. In this episode, I discuss four things you should do to protect and leverage your trademark.   Listen to the full episode to learn exactly how to protect your trademark investment. *****SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process of starting a new business or launching a new product, we encourage you to sign up for our FREE masterclass, Select and Protect: How to Select a Brand Name That You Can Legally Ow

You've built an amazing business that someone wants to buy.  Congratulations - that's an amazing accomplishment! You're probably thinking, I'd never sell my baby - but slow down.   In this episode, I talk about some of the reasons why you may want to consider selling your company and five things you should consider when someone approaches you about buying your business.   Some of those things include getting a lawyer, determining what role you want to play, figuring out what you want, and more. Listen to the full episode to make sure you know exactly what to do when that day comes.   *****SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process of starting a new business or launching a new product, we encourage you to sign up for our FREE masterclass, Select and Protect: How to Select a Brand Name That You Can Legally Own as a Trademark. If you nee

Licensing agreements are one of the most important legal documents for creatives and the improper use of a license could amount infringement and can be pretty costly.  They work both ways; to help creatives maintain control over their work, and to help consumers understand the permitted use of your creative work. In this episode, I talk about what creatives need to consider when creating a licensing agreement for their work and what consumers need to pay attention too when purchasing work that is licensed. As a consumer of licensed products, you want to consider the following: locate and READ the license determine if it's for commercial or personal use How many times are you permitted to use the licensed work? Can you use in a product that you’re giving away?  Or selling? As a creator of licensed products, you want to consider the following: You license agreement MUST BE CLEAR! What kind of license do you want to give? What parameters do you want to put on the use? How will you monitor and enforce those pa

When it comes to sharing and monetizing your creativity, there are a few things you should know.  First off, there are a few ways to monetize where you still retain control over your original work.  And second, you can leave yourself some wiggle room to regain control of your work down the line.   In this episode, I discuss four different ways in which you can do that:   work for hire; licensing; assignment; and selling your work.   Listen to the full episode to find out how to adequately negotiate a fair price for your creative work based on what you're giving up.   *******SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process of starting a new business or launching a new product, we encourage you to sign up for our FREE masterclass, Select and Protect: How to Select a Brand Name That You Can Legally Own as a Trademark. If you need help better

Forming your legal entity is a first great step to limit your liability.  But too many single-member LLCs (SM LLCs) don't have an operating agreement - what's the point, it's just you, you know how to operate your business. In this episode, I explain why it's important for every LLC, including SM LLCs to have an operating agreement.   *******SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process of starting a new business or launching a new product, we encourage you to sign up for our FREE masterclass, Select and Protect: How to Select a Brand Name That You Can Legally Own as a Trademark. We want you to be ahead of the curve, by creating a name that you can actually own and leverage as an asset in your business.  You can sign up for that course by going to creativegeniuslaw.com/trademarkclass    

Side hustling is great for a few reasons; it gives you a taste of what it’s like to start and grow a business, it helps you figure out if your idea is marketable, and is a great outlet to fuel your passion. But, is it legal?  It depends.  In this episode, I discuss some things to consider when starting and carrying on your side hustle while still employed.  Some things to consider: Can your employer fire you for having a side hustle? Can your employer claim ownership to your side hustle? Is your side hustle related to or competitive with your current job? Should you tell your boss about your side hustle? and  What obligations do you have under a contract or non-compete? Listen to the full episode to get tips to make sure you protect your side hustle from a claim from your employer. *******SPONSOR****** The Inksecure podcast is sponsored by Creative Genius Law.  At CGL we provide creatives and entrepreneurs with the highest quality representation at all stages of their business.    If you’re in the process o

Hey hey! I've been gone for a minute and it was totally unplanned.   In this episode, I talk about the reason for my absence, why it took me so long to come back and how taking that break helped me realized that kind of business I'm in and the legacy I want to build.   I'm brutally honest about my shortcomings, being hard on myself, unnecessary stress and MAJOR changes coming to the podcast. I'd love to hear your feedback and it's great to be back!

When Kunbi was planning her wedding – she didn’t find too many blogs with brides that looked like her. So she created Aisle Perfect as a personal journal to manage her overwhelm of planning her wedding. Today, Aisle Perfect is a wedding blog dedicated to providing romantic inspiration to the discerning bride.  As a go-to wedding planning source for brides covers everything from wedding tips, bridal fashion and much more.   As a matter of fact, Kunbi has also launched Aisle Perfect Living - a more personal account of her life after the wedding. In addition to running Aisle Perfect, Kunbi is a business immigration attorney with a passion for start-ups.  In this episode, Kunbi and I talk about why she started her blog, how it quickly caught on when she decided to monetize her content, and some of the challenges and day to do of managing an inspiration blog.  Lastly, Kunbi and I discuss Kunbi’s and her husband’s struggle with infertility – a subject that has affected so many families.  She talks about how difficu

Today's guest, Kendra Barnes, is an economist by day and a real estate investor on the side.  Once Kendra started on that path, it became addicting and she's now acquired over 4 real investment properties.   Real estate is still one of the most stable types of investment and a smart way to accumulate wealth and pass it down to the next generation.   In a world where entrepreneurship is sexy - we're encouraged to pour everything into building a business - by way of business coaches, graphic designers, copyrighters, 5-figure masterminds and some even encourage to forsake real estate at the expense of building a business. In this episode, Kendra and I discuss how she got into real estate, some of the mistakes she's made, some of the common misconception about how easy it is to acquire real estate investment property, and what Kendra is doing to spread the word.   Kendra has been featured in Black Enterprise and Forbes.   To find out more about this episode, visit www.artsteele.co/ep59-kendrabarnes

Brown Girls Love Power!  Such a powerful (and true) statement.  That's the headline of today's guest, Christina Brown, Power Day event.   Christina Brown is a style blogger and digital media expert and the founder of fast-growing style; beauty destination LoveBrownSugar.com, mommy destination BabyBrownSugar.com and digital empowerment community BrownGirlsLove.  In this episode, Christina and I talk about how she started her blog and moved from being a blogger to being an influencer, landing huge campaigns like Dove (and we talk about her reaction to their scandal), why she celebrates Brown women, and how she manages being a single mom of two small children. Christina has been heralded as a “30 Under 30 Style Maven” by HelloBeautiful.com, a “Black Blogger To Watch” by TheRoot.com, a “Top 40 Style Blogger” by Essence Magazine, a Black Enterprise Magazine “Blogger Month” Honoree, a Wharton Magazine “Social Media Watch List” Honoree and she most recently became the first black influencer to become an internationa

Simona Noce is an accomplished Public Relations manager who has worked with some heavyweights, but her greatest achievement and her most important role is being a mom. Simona is skilled and dedicated public relations professional with an intense passion for media, entertainment, and the execution of creative ideas and special events. She has pierced the world of both Hollywood glamour and the non-profits sectors in the D.C area. She is currently a full-time entrepreneur running The NoceModel, a  PR & marketing strategic firm, focused on creative, entertainment, lifestyle, and tech brands.  She is also the co-creator of District Motherhued, Washington's premier organization for millennial moms of color.   She recently launched The Momference which is a conference all about mothering and entrepreneurship as a mother of color.  Tickets sold out within a couple of weeks! In this episode, Simona and I talk about why celebrating motherhood is so important, why having a space specifically for moms of color is ne

Tiffany's story never gets old - because you can't believe how much she's overcome.  But then, she has the receipts - to the tune of almost 500,000 mostly Black women, who have followed her footsteps and are on their way to financial freedom. Tiffany is quickly becoming America's favorite, personal financial educator. The Budgetnista is the founder of the LIVE RICHER Challenge and the Dream Catchers, a community of over 500,000 women worldwide that work together to improve their lives through financial education.  Tiffany is the bestselling author of the books, The One Week Budget and Live Richer Challenge, and she and her financial advice have been featured on: Good Morning America, the TODAY show, PBS, TIME, The New York Times, Reuters, ESSENCE Magazine, Forbes, Fox Business, MSNBC, CBS MoneyWatch and has appeared on The Real a few times. She also blogs about personal finance for The Huffington Post. In this episode, Tiffany and I talk about a bad investment she made at a young age, how she finally overcam

Hey hey!! Happy World Intellectual Property Day!  As proud IP attorneys, Patrice and I give you a rundown of how we are doing our part to help creatives, especially creatives of color! In this episode, we talk about our passion for helping creatives protect their intellectual property and how we can start using our IP to create legacies and build generational wealth.  We also discuss the newly added services to Creative Genius Law - including helping creatives renegotiate their copyright licenses and assisting creatives in properly enforcing their licensing agreements.   Finally, we touch on some popular topics like the Lina Viktor suit against Marvel for the unauthorized use of her work in the "All the Stars" music video and why Lauryn Hill can't sing her songs! Check out the full episode.  Link in bio.   For more information about this episode, visit artsteele.co/ep55-worldipday

In order to move forward, you have to take a step back and assess how you're moving through the process.  Since it's the end of the first quarter, I thought I'd give you a quick recap of Q1 2018.  I started the year out pretty strong, got hit by March and April - always really tough months for me, and learned a few lessons along the way.  In this episode, I discuss three lessons I've learned this quarter: Plan ahead! If you're planning for January in January, you're too late. I procrastinated on planning my first quarter content and ended up not doing it until mid-late December.  I'm paying for that by working double-time to get ahead. Is it a good decision for YOUR business? I had a few incidents and collaborations fall through that made me realize everybody out here is making a business decision so I need to start doing the same.  That also means that when someone says No, it's not that they don't like you personally, it just may not be a good time investment or direction for their business. Somebody's alw

One word comes to mind when I think of Maya Elious: message clarity.   Maya Elious is a personal branding strategist that teaches experts how to create curriculum-based content to grow & monetize their online brand. She’s helped hundreds of students and clients launch digital content platforms like blogs, challenges, masterclasses, webinars, and courses so they could establish and monetize their expertise in the online world. In this episode, Maya and I discuss why it’s important to really have one clear message and be absolutely clear about who you are speaking to.  We also talk about the real struggle that so many smart and very capable entrepreneurs with their inability to explain their value to their potential audience (that’s a real struggle for me).   And finally, we talk about Maya’s Impact 1K mission – where she set out to impact the lives of thousands of women, by encouraging women to use their voice, and share their message in the form of online content in order to reach even more women. For mo

It's National Siblings Day!  And there's no better way to kick it off than with these gentlemen who took the step of not only loving their sibs to death (don't we all?) but actually starting a business with them. When Collin (11), Ryan (9), and Austin (7) asked their mom for more money (they were already getting an allowance) to buy toys, their mother (an entrepreneur herself), gave them two options:  get a job or start a business.  So, they started a candle company:  Frères Branchiaux Candle Co. Joining me on the podcast are Collin and Ryan and their dad Patrick.  In this episode, we discuss why they picked candles, how they divide the duties, and their dad Patrick discusses how the business has changed the boys and how they’ve become a role model for their peers. Freres Branchiaux took the 2017 holiday market by storm and have grown so quickly that their parents almost can’t keep up with them. They’ve appeared in more than 10 markets, they’ve been featured on Good Morning Washington, West Elm and have sold

Today's guests are my favorite business couple:  Kim and Tim Lewis of Curlmix.   They launched Curlmix in 2015 to a whopping two orders.  After contemplating quitting her second business, Tim convinced Kim to give it one more shot and this time around, she took no prisoners.  She contacted media outlets, bloggers, including Hey Fran Hey and Natural Chica, she got coverage in Refinery 29 an Essence and when they relaunched, they sold 100 boxes on their first day! Since then, Curlmix has done more than 350K in business, have launched the Curlmix DIY party, city tours and have been featured in BuzzFeed, Refinery29, Allure, Essence, Ebony, ABC News Chicago, Naturally Curly and more.   They launched their first pre-mix line in March 2017 and that planted the seed for the much-needed pivot they just made in their business. In this episode, Kim and Tim get very honest about some of the mistakes they made in their business, what some of their biggest challenges are and their light bulb moment that turned their busin

Tax season is upon us and I'm giving you a few tips to help you get on the right foot.   There are plenty of myths and misconceptions about when to report your income and what type of return to file.  I've broken it down for you.   In this episode, I discuss: When to start reporting your income and losses; How to keep track of your business deductions How to pay yourself from your business income; What tax return to file for your entity; and  Estimated tax payments. Since it's my 50th episode, I reflect on my milestone and how I plan to slow down, enjoy the moment and look at what I've accomplished.   Remember with all Legal Briefs, there's a pre-recorded webinar and cheatsheet for you.  This week's cheat sheet is a checklist for organizing and keeping track of your business deductions (this is how most small businesses lose money). For more information about this episode, visit www.artsteele.co/ep50-businesstaxes   Legal Disclaimer:  This podcast episode is for your informational and educational purposes o

Emmelie De La Cruz is an entrepreneur who turned her layoff into her legacy. Her books, blog, and consultancy teach entrepreneurs and side hustlers how to scale their businesses using automated strategies. Her special skills include showing everyday people how to create new income streams online and teaching entrepreneurs how to monetize their influence. Her unapologetic approach to life and business have earned her a highly engaged following on social media, features across top publications, and the opportunity to work with brands like Staples, Dropbox, Capital One, Pantene, and Coca-Cola. In this episode, Emmelie and I discuss Why she really enjoyed her time in corporate America and how she uses that experience to help her clients; Why she’s so honest about her entrepreneur journey; Why followers don’t equal dollars.  To find out more about this episode, visit artsteele.co/ep49-emmeliedelacruz