It seems like a week does not go by without a few lessons that no one told you about in any school or traditional learning forum. Every Monday I’m going to share what I learned. They will be random topics, some marketing, some running your biz, some life balance and some just dealing with people and technology.

Last week lessons.

1. Postage costs in US. Snail mailing of large envelopes costs more, than mailing regular #10 envelopes. It does not matter what they weigh. The Post Office has separate rules for different kinds (sizes) of mail. I mailed 60 large envelopes and they were all returned. And what really sucks is, the Post Office puts stickers all over the short stamped mail, so you will waste all that time and materials.
2. Mac batteries. If use a Mac and your battery is not holding its charge like the Mac promotional copy promises. You may be running battery sucking programs. I was. Turn them off when you need the battery and your computer will purr for hours longer.
3. Linkedin banner ads. If you receive a promotional offer from Linkedin to try their small business banners ads, WORDS of CAUTION, after the the offer runs out you will be buying and paying for on your credit card for ads until you stop the campaign. I received a $100 certificate. Linkedin requests a credit card to use the offer. Mark your calender, other wise you like me will being paying for many more not free ads. And FYI- For my mistake of around $400.00 Oddpodz got no conversions.
4. Linkedin groups. Linkedin groups are great way to build a community using Linkedin’s tools. I’ve noticed that each groups has different rules for posting. And unless you enjoy getting reprimanded, I’d recommend reading each group’s posting rules, should you decide to post items. For example, some groups will not let you post shortened URL, other won’t let you solicit people for other Linkedin groups and most will not let you direct promote a product or service.

Record high unemployment not only impacts those who have lost their jobs, but it presents some new challenges for entrepreneurs and small businesses looking for reliable human resources. This past year I learned a few lessons on this subject. Hopefully this insight can prevent you from experiencing similar situations.

The Internet offers a vast pool of talent when you are looking for perm or contract help. From Linkedin to Twitter, you can have access to thousands of people within minutes. You post your needs, the assignment description and in no time you can connect with a perfect resource, or someone selling you their qualifications,  but they are not sharing all the facts for you to know, they are not the one.

As an entrepreneur, we don’t always have the luxury of time, no HR department to conduct deep background checks and so we make quick decisions. So how does this translate into the ugly twists with sour results?

Here are my stories and what I will do next time.

1. Make time to test contract talent and employees. There are more people than ever really strapped for a cash, swimming in debt and some are extremely desperate for a job. Many will over sell you. I experienced this scenario. And don’t be fooled by three degrees either. I honestly believe there are many smart folks out there who have earned multitudes of degrees and there are equally as many who are not prepared to contribute to an entrepreneurial enterprise and have so many degrees because they are putting off getting anything done. Give them assignments in a controlled placed and with a defined time frame.
2. Ask them if they are a full fledged business service provider or are they just picking up projects until they find a full time gig. This situation has cost me money and time. I posted a clearly contract assignment on Linkedin. Received many qualified resumes. I narrowed it down to a couple of people. At that point, started investing serious time in educating the candidates with details on the project, signed NDAs and exchanged lots of documents. After a week of this, I get a call from one of the candidates, “I have been offered a job and sorry but can’t help you on your project”. You mean the one we spent 40 hours on?
3. Don’t prepay until you are 190% convinced they are a superstar and reliable. I engaged a social media person to help me with traffic building. We signed a contract detailing the project, I paid him upfront for a portion of the project. A month ago, he tells me he got a full time job and is to swamped. He can’t do the work and he also will not return the money I advanced him. And now he does not even return my phone calls or emails.
4. Clearly provide paperwork to talent stating their contract status and that you are not an employer, now or ever in the past. I was not dinged on this one, but I did have to waste an hour and send a registered letter to a state unemployment office. I hired a contract PR person, had her sign a 1099 and provided her a purchase order, all clearly communicating she was contract. Apparently, she was collecting unemployment and as she was updating her case, she gave my company name to the state of NY as a part-time job provider and they attempted to suck me for confirmation and likely an unemployment contribution. Which would have notched up the tax rate I pay for for me and my other employees.

Finding the right people is already a tough task when you are a small business. Be extra aware and cautious in these recession recovery times, because unemployment is a real factor in human pool of talent.

Leveraging stuff  may not sound like the ultimate academic growth term, but it is certainly a key strategy when you are a small business or start up. Leverage means to milk something without buying a dairy farm and stuff is anything that you can find and legally use to help achieve your goals.

The team at Oddpodz is doing our best to crank out useful content and create educational tools. But we know we need to provide you our readers and community with more. You need a way to engage, participate beyond blog commenting and shooting us occasional emails. We thought about finding an spiffy application where you can post questions, and while that might be nice, it would be pretty primitive tool at best.

We use Linkedin a lot to help drive traffic to the site. The Linkedin team has done a stellar job (with the help of a few million bucks in funding) to build out the solid functionality of the site, thus allowing its members the ability to do many cool things for free. We like free and really like technology that someone else has paid for. BINGO! A tool Oddpodz can leverage!

Here’s how it works. We just set up a group in Linkedin for Oddpodz. A Linkedin group is the perfect place for Oddpodz to attract new folks and to conduct discussions with our readers. After you join the Oddpodz group, you can ask questions, share answers and voice opinions, all in a nicely developed suite of tools that Linkedin maintains. Members of the Oddpodz group can also manage how often they want to be updated with new discussions etc.

Here’s what you need to do to get in on the discussion.

1) If you don’t have a profile on Linkedin, you need one. That’s your first step. For some great tips on setting up the best Linkedin profile check out, the social media Ta-Do list and a past blog on social media.

2) Build your network of business associates and colleagues. My network, as of 7.12, has close to 500 folks in it. To find me, search under people and type in “Karen Post.” You are welcome to join my network.

3) Now go to groups and search for Oddpodz. Request to join and unless you are a Russian spy, a snake oil salesman or spammer, you are in like flyn!

4) Next, need help with a entrepreneurial issue or marketing challenge? Go to start a discussion (in the groups section), post a new discussion with your questions and we will do our best to provide you with some good, timely advice. And the really awesome thing is, as the group grows so will the pool of smart brains to help you.

This is officially an entrepreneurial experiment. We have great intentions, but it is a launch and learn, so be patient with us. And as always, thanks for your support!