By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt Marketing Troubleshooter This is a quote from the Global Hope Network International's web site about a village in Afghanistan the group is helping become self-sustaining. Qala e Nadar is a small village framed by rugged mountains on one side and less than fifteen kilometers from... Read more →


By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter From Christian Science Monitor: Why did Michele Bachmann's campaign crater? Gaffes...defections...and - ta-da! Women. You would think the only female candidate in the GOP race might attract a disproportionate share of woman voters. But Bachmann didn’t. According to an Iowa State University poll... Read more →


No. Really. You Shouldn't Have!

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt Marketing Troubleshooter We all love getting gifts, especially if they're unexpected. However - unless you're some hideously spoiled rotten socialite - it really is the thought that counts. And, according to the NYT, gift giving doesn't have to be expensive or painful. Traditionalists and etiquette... Read more →


By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter People talk a lot about giving thanks, being grateful, giving back, mellowing out and such during the holiday season. We write feel-good blog posts. Tweel uplifting quotes. Post heart-warming FB links. Stuff dollars into the Salvation Army kettle...hug our grandmas... Then January rolls... Read more →


No, I really, really, really don't want to buy the bra.

By Guest Blogger, Mary Schmidt, Marketing Troubleshooter, LLC As regular readers know, I don't own a television, so I watch shows online. Of course, there are still commercials. And, really, I don't have a problem with that. I understand that the networks/show producers need to make money. I even enjoy... Read more →