NeighborGoods is profiled in the Amex OPEN Small Business Rules series! Click here to watch the video. We’re honored to be profiled alongside great companies like Thrillist, Etsy and Cafemom.

Our rule is a good one for all startups: The perfect time is now. Don’t waste time waiting for the perfect set of circumstances to get your business going. Start now!

Thanks to Lindsay Campbell and the folks at Next New Networks for including us in the series. We’re really excited for this opportunity to tell people about NeighborGoods!

To stay up to date with all the Small Business rules videos, follow them on Twitter!

Olivia Wilde & Artists for Peace and Justice along with James Franco, Brandon Boyd, Rashida Jones, Taraji P. Henson, AnnaLynne McCord, Zachary Quinto, Will McCormack, Michael Stahl-David, Barbara Burchfield, Tao Ruspoli, Bryan Ling & Bryn Mooser…

Invite you to join ARTISTS FOR HAITI

Music by Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros & KCRW DJ Mathieu Schreyer. Silent Auction featuring artwork by Ed Moses, Ed Ruscha, Corinne Chaix, Raymond Pettibon, Huguette Caland, Larry Bell, Chuck Arnoldi, Robert Graham. & more…
Photographs of Haiti by Tao Ruspoli…
Short Films from the Jacmel Film School

A minimum donation of $100 is requested of all guests.

Thursday
January 28th
8pm – 11pm

Track 16 Gallery
Bergamot Station
2525 Michigan
Avenue,Bldg C-1
Santa Monica
CA 90404

RSVP Monica Lambert at Monica@thealist.us | 310.659.7783

100% of all donations will be given directly to Father Rick Frechette of
St. Damien’s Hospital and the ground-level doctors and rescue workers.

Season tickets are still available for 2010! You can buy for the whole season or just all the games for your favorite team. My team, the Varsity Brawlers is in 2nd place for season tickets sold. So buy yours now and come support us all year!

By the way, The Varsity Brawlers are playing the season opener on January 23 against the Sirens. We’ve got some surprises in store so don’t miss this bout! As always, you’ll want to buy your tickets in advance to be sure: Tickets here.

Accept Help Graciously from Mickipedia on Vimeo.

Part 2 from the startup video series.

Show Links: WePropel & Sparky Rose

Sparky not only made my awesome video bumpers, he also came up with some great potential titles for the video series. And now I don’t know what to call it. Basically, my plan for this series is to share my experience of running a company. Not just tips and tricks but really what it’s like. What am I learning and how does it feel? I might even talk to other CEOs or show you around the office or something. Like a web startup, I’m giving it room to grow however it may. So I want to make sure the title allows for some transformation. Which of these titles do you like best? Can you think of a better one?

UPDATE: Thanks, y’all! Startup Stories is the winning title!

PRESS RELEASE – LOS ANGELES

DOWNTOWN ON ICE AT PERSHING SQUARE HOSTS CHARITY BROOMBALL CHALLENGE BETWEEN MEMBERS OF L.A. FIRE DEPARTMENT AND L.A. DERBY DOLLS

Testosterone verses estrogen, bring it on… No guarantee of a sweeping victory for either team in the Los Angeles Fire Department verses L.A. Derby Dolls Broomball Challenge game Thursday, January 14 at Downtown on Ice at Pershing Square. Members of the LAFD face off against Southern California’s premiere women’s banked track roller derby league at 9:00am in a seriously fun game that promises to be a thrill to watch, despite the ruling of no “checking, blocking or hitting.” Armed with only athletic shoes, helmets, brooms and a winning game plan, the action promises to be a spirited showcase of thrills and spills between the sexes.

Attendance is free but donations are appreciated to benefit the LAFD Widows, Orphan and Disabled Fireman’s Fund. The team’s members from Fire Station #9 downtown and other outlying stations have been hard at work developing their game.

“We stay in shape with our jobs and training is a part of our lifestyle, so we’re confident that we will be able to run them up and down the ice for the full hour,” says Fire Captain Justin Bactat who also captains the team. But, according to L.A. Derby Doll Tae Kwon Ho, “The LA Firefighters are true heroes so it’s a real shame that we’ll have to kick their butts!”

The Broomball Challenge is a part of the community outreach programs from the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks that hosts the annual winter holiday rink at Pershing Square in the heart of the city at 532 South Olive. The 12th Annual Downtown on Ice outdoor skating rink debuted November 19, 2009 and will remain open everyday through Martin Luther King Day, January 18, 2010. The last day features a free afternoon concert performance by Urban Dread. As the largest outdoor holiday skating rink in Los Angeles with the lowest admission price, a session is just $6 and skate rentals $2. Underground discount parking is available with validation. For more info and a detailed session schedule go to www.laparks.org and click to Pershing Square or call 213/ 847-4970.

For more info on The Derby Dolls, who have their next bout January 23, 2010 when the Sirens take on the Varsity Brawlers, visit www.derbydolls.com/la

*Media welcome to attend game;
Interviews available. Contact: LCPR 818/ 889-1085 or lisa@lisacareypr.com

Our amazing friend Caroline just got a full time job! We are super excited for her but sad to see her leave the Nerd Commune. Her good news means we have two (possibly three) desks available and we’d really like to add another startup to the mix. So if your small company needs a fun and creative space to get shit done, check out the details for our shared office space:

INC: Idyllic Nerd Commune

Super awesome 2 story loft with common space downstairs and desks upstairs
You get a key to come and go as you please
Wifi, networked printer
Street parking
Amazing neighborhood! Arts District Downtown
You must like dogs. We have 2 super sweet office dogs including everyone’s favorite giant chihuahua, Jack!
$300/month for each desk with one month deposit

More details and contact information here: nerdcommune.com

2009 has been one of the most intense years of my life, and frankly, I’m excited to see it go. The year brought with it the worst personal and family crises I’ve experienced. I haven’t been too public about this part of my life as I have chosen instead to protect my family’s privacy. But it’s been a real whopper of a year. Thank you to those who have been involved for your undying love and support.

On the positive side of things, 2009 also marked some really amazing milestones for me. I skated my rookie season with the LA Derby Dolls on my awesome team, The Varsity Brawlers. Roller derby has become a central part of my life. It’s a sport that becomes more challenging the more you play it and my league is the best. Go, LADD! By the way, you can now purchase season tickets for 2010. VB is skating the season opener on January 23!

Most importantly, I launched my first startup this year, NeighborGoods.net! It’s been such an amazing experience bringing the site to life and watching people start to use it! NeighborGoods helps people save money while living more sustainably and strengthening local communities. It really is at the heart of everything I care about and I’m honored to have the opportunity to provide this service for people. Plus I’m having a damn good time! 2010 will be the year of NeighborGoods!

So in all, I’ve got a lot to be thankful for from the year 2009. Still, I’m happy to kiss it goodbye and rock into 2010!

For me, 2010 is all about going local! In true NeighborGoods spirit, I would like to focus on the following personal goals:

1. Shop/eat locally (more locally anyway)
2. Spend more quality time with IRL friends. (Step away from the blue screen.)
3. Get more out of my awesome city, LA. Art museums, cultural events, etc. (Step away from the blue screen.)
4. Drive less, walk & bike more. Enjoy LA every day.
5. Weekend trips! Hiking, snowboarding, etc. Lots of adventures nearby!

How about you? Any plans to go local this year?

Here are my slides from my Ignite talk!

Ignite Bay Area, Women Innovators Dec 8, 2009

Holy crap 15 seconds go fast! I think I did ok though and I definitely had a great time. The organizers, Carmel Hagan and Emily Goligoski did such a great job putting together a really impressive group of speakers and I was honored to be a part of it.

I updated my talk from Web 2.0 Expo SF for Do it With Drupal in New Orleans. Here are my slides!

What exactly is a Community Manager? A Community Manager can do a lot more than moderate your forum. She can change the entire culture of your company. She can advocate for your community. She can keep you one step ahead of your competitors. She can help you build a sustainable business… if you let her.

Hiring a Community Manager could be a great thing for your company. But imagine if you could turn all of your employees into Community Managers! We’ll work together to learn how employees in every department of your company can benefit from asking the question: What Would the Community Manager Do?

Presented at Do it With Drupal in New Orleans, Dec 10, 2009

The basic gist of the talk:

1. I have lots of experience in community.
2. I’m finding that experience incredibly useful as I’m running my first startup, NeighborGoods.
3. How can you apply the Community Manager best practices to your job?

I’m speaking tomorrow at Ignite Bay Area: Women Innovators

If you’re not familiar with the Ignite format, it’s a 5 minute presentation with 20 slides. Each slide lasts for 15 seconds and moves ahead automatically. My topic: All I Really Need to Know (About Love) I Learned Playing Roller Derby. The event is sold out so if you missed your chance to get tickets, come on back here tomorrow night and watch it live!

Ignite Bay Area: Women Innovators
Dec 8, 2009
7pm PST