Author Archives: Brian

About Brian

Brian is a nice guy who lives in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Breakfast of Champions Recipe

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A breakfast mixture that I created and have perfected over the last few years….I eat this for breakfast nearly everyday. 

Supplies Needed:

  1. Microwave Safe Bowl that can fit about 2 or 3 cups of water. 
  2. Measuring Spoons
  3. Regular Spoon and Butter Knife
  4. 1 Cup and ¼ Cup – Measuring Cups
  5. One Banana
  6. Steel Cut Oats
  7. Ground Flax Seed
  8. Whey Protein Powder – Vanilla Flavored
  9. Ground Cinnamon
  10. Water
  11. Smart Balance Chunky Peanut Butter

 Process:

  1. Pour One cup of water in the bowl.  Microwave on high for three minutes.
  2. Prepare ¼ cup of Steel Cut Oats and right when microwave ends, pour the oats in the boiling water.  Time is of the essence. 
  3. Let the oats and water sit for about 10 minutes.  The longer they sit the less watery the finished product.
  4. Remove from microwave.
  5. Add one Banana, sliced and chopped.
  6. Add Two Tablespoons of Ground Flax Seed.
  7. Add ½ scoop of Whey Protein Power.  This stuff is pretty high calorie, so I only use ½ scoop.  If you are weightlifting, etc. then maybe you should add more.  (When you buy the protein power they give you a plastic scoop.)
  8. Add a few generous shakes of Ground Cinnamon.
  9. Take the spoon and put some peanut butter on it, then use this spoon to stir everything up. 
  10. Enjoy. 

Notes: 

* Don’t have a banana? Here are some other things to try: Jam or Jelly, Blueberries, Raspberries, Peach, Orange.  The possibilities are endless or just forget the banana and use a little less water.     

* Waiting 10 minutes is a little painful, but it’s the best way to cook the oats without making a mess of your microwave. 

* If you start making this on a regular basis, let me know and I can give you the inside information on how to get the ingredients inexpensively. 

* The Smart Balance Chunky Peanut Butter is the best that I’ve been able to find.  I also like Almond Butter as an alternative choice. 

* If you leave the peel on half of the banana, then you can slice and chop it without a cutting board or getting your hands dirty. 

Estimated Nutritional Value:

Calories 480, Fiber 13 g, Fat 16.25g, and Protein 28.5g

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What is it like to be an employee vs a business owner?

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I recently had a friend go in to business for herself.  She felt some anxiety but mentioned that it was a different feeling than the stress and pressure that she felt as an employee.  I started my business in 2007 and have felt a wide range of emotions over the last few years.  Here is the response that I shared with her: 

Yes, I think the anxiety is a natural feeling.  As an employee you have stress but you also have a set paycheck.  The stress is rationalized because you’re getting paid.  As a small business owner, you don’t have a set paycheck.  It’s a whole different game because you can work really hard and not make any money. 

This is a big mental shift.  You need to work hard but also work smart so that the activities bring in cash.  You can no longer show up and get paid.   (Which is a great feeling that I often miss.)   

The largest change for me was that as a business owner, I never stop working.  I’m constantly thinking about work, telling people about my work, or actually working.   My brain never stops solving work related problems.  When I was an employee, I left my work at the office.  I never checked work email at home.  I never answered my work cell phone on the weekend.  I never took vacations and checked email from the hotel room. etc. 

When I first started my business, there was a lot of pressure and anxiety because the revenue wasn’t consistent; after time you will have steady clients and a fairly reliable cash flow.

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A few of my favorite YouTube Videos

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In the last few years I’ve come across some really entertaining videos on YouTube.  As technology moves forward, the trend of self-publishing videos is only going to continue.  (According to youtube.com: every minute, 24 hours worth of video is uploaded to the website).

Fairly soon all televisions will be hooked up to the Internet, most television shows will be “on-demand” and videos on YouTube (and other websites) will compete side-by-side with programming on the big networks.  As we’re at the front of this wave, here are some of my favorite videos on YouTube. What are your favorite on-line videos?  

1.  We Speak No Americano (Music)

2.  David After Dentist (Comedy)

3. Tommy Wonder – Cups and Balls (Magic & Entertainment)

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Blog Updates

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Good Day to you.  After a long vacation I’ve decided to do some updates to my blog.  If you’re reading this on facebook or twitter, I have a blog website which you can view here: www.brianjweidner.com – and if you’re reading this on the website, you are already at the right place.  I plan to be a little more regular with my posts and updates. 

Here are some new features that I added today:

1.  I’ve disabled the comments feature.  Most blogs allow people to add a comment to a post.  It creates an avenue for dialog and information sharing.  I’ve decided to disable this feature.  The main reason was because I was getting 5-7 emails per day from spammers who wanted to post a comment on the blog.  It’s a popular tool to build links back to their spam websites for things like Canadian Drugs or Pornography.  (Nothing against drugged up Canadians who like Porn…but I just don’t need your comments on my website.)  Most real people…like you…don’t feel the need to comment after reading a blog post.  And, I also see this as a one-way stream of information.  If you want your voice heard, start your own blog. 

2.  I’ve added a fancy tool on the right side of the website where you can enter an email address to receive new blog posts.  This is really nice.  You won’t need to remember to check back on the website or get lucky and happen to see the post on Facebook…if you enter your email address the system will automatically send you new posts.  Look for the “Sign Me Up Scottie” button on the right.  Or you should also be able to click this sentence to sign up.

3.  I’ve added a page on my 2011 goals.  My plan is to add more goals and also then keep the page updated so that you can track my progress (or lack there of).  I’ll probably forget to make updates to it…but at least you can see a snapshot of what I’m working on.      

4.  I’ve updated the About Me page as well.  It’s fairly entertaining. 

In general, I want to use this blog more often in 2011.  I still plan to use facebook and twitter but see this venue as more appropriate for one-way information sharing.

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Breasts in Public

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Wisconsin has a new Breastfeeding law that states the following:

“A mother may breast-feed her child in any public or private location where the mother and child are otherwise authorized to be. In such a location, no person may prohibit a mother from breast-feeding her child, direct a mother to move to another location to breast-feed her child, direct a mother to cover her child or breast while breast-feeding, or otherwise restrict a mother from breast-feeding. A person who interferes with that right is subject to a forfeiture not to exceed $200 under the general penalty provision under current law.”

A woman can legally expose her breast in public while feeding her child?  And if I ask her to cover up, I can be fined $200? 

I’m not sure how I would feel if I’m eating lunch and the woman at the next table’s breast is exposed.  I’m all for breast feeding in public, and understand the merits, but shouldn’t a woman be required/expected to cover the breast?

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