Pencil Bugs Blog Posts

It wasn't too much fun but at least I'll be able to eat good stuff again without having loose, hurting teeth. Remember to brush and floss!

#1 - Help someone because even the smallest thing can make a difference.

1. Shake hands
2. Roll over
3. Sit
4. Stay
5. Lie down
6. Crawl (on her stomach if you can believe that)
7. Walk on her back legs only
8. Dance on her back legs in a circle
9. Hop on her back legs
10. Catch a piece of food in the air after we set it on the tip of her nose
11. Beg

#2 - Everything happens for a reason. We just need more patience.

#3 - Listen more than you talk.

#4 - Keep going, even if you want to quit sometimes.

#6 - No one can do it alone.

#7 - It's not about how much you do but what you do.

#8 - You can do anything if you set your mind to it.

#9 - You can't get anywhere by sitting on your ideas. Don't be the person who says, "I thought of that years ago."

#10 - Treat everyone with respect - good customer service can make all the difference.

#11 - If you make a mistake, get over it and move on.

#12 - Think BIG!

#1 - If you believe big things will happen, there's a better chance they will.

#2 - Don't make New Year's Resolutions

#3 - Everything in moderation

#1 - Textbooks are great for the basics but nothing beats common sense and practical experience.

#4 - A website doesn't guarantee success or sales.

#3 - The Fear of Flying

#4 - Over 14,000 text messages - Get real!

#5 - 44th Presidential Inauguration

#6 - It's only money.

#5 - Believe in yourself and what others think, won't matter.

Growing up is hard. Just ask anyone. Now ask a kid. They’ll tell you it’s even harder. But I bet almost every generation of kids have said that.

I've heard adults say they are glad they’re not a kid in today’s world. Everything seems to go so fast. There are so many influences and distractions, it is hard to stick to what you believe in. Even if you are a good student, school life is difficult at times. Kids, especially boys, can be very mean. Teachers don’t always understand. And parents, well . . . I’m lucky and think I have the best parents in the world, but it’s the law of nature that we are going to disagree and argue. All that is just part of growing up and everyone has probably had similar experiences.

Now take all that and add in the fact that you are a kid with a business. A young entrepreneur. That makes you different from all the other kids you know. Most people just don’t get it. Some even think you have nothing more than a little hobby. It’s frustrating for sure. Sometimes people try to look interested and understand what you are doing but the blank stare tells it all. It can make you wonder if what you are doing is worth it.

What would life be like if you were just an ordinary kid? No business. No income. No extra work. No public speaking. Just a regular kid. Everyone has moments that make them wonder. If you are lucky enough to have people in your life that believe in you, they remind you to believe in yourself. It’s not easy sometimes because you are looking from the inside out. You don’t always see what they see.

My parents have always believed in me. They have encouraged me with all my ideas. They have reminded me that what others think now won’t matter in the long run. It’s true. It's just hard to see that sometimes.

So here's my advice. If you have moments or doubts, it’s okay to feel bad but don’t hang onto it for too long. Find that extra 10% as my mom says. Believe in yourself. Get going. In the end, it’s up to you.

1. A kid
2. A cute kid
3. A dog
4. A cute dog

Last Friday, April 3, I went down to Rady Children’s Hospital in San Diego, CA with my parents for my quarterly donation. We delivered lots of fun toys for the kids and their playroom such as Play-Doh, bubbles, and cool musical toys and books. This time, we were given a short tour of some of the public areas in the hospital. Because I’m under age, I’m still not allowed to go into the medical areas but we saw some cool things.

When the coordinator said she was going to show us their cow first, I wondered why they had a cow at a hospital. It turned out to be a very colorful statue which stood in the courtyard. It was designed by artist Eduardo Parra and painted by some of the patients. It was spectacular because of the vibrant use of colors. It was on display for La Jolla's Cow Parade which runs from March 15 to June 15. On one side, it was painted in yellows representing day and on the other, in blues for night.

The tour continued inside through the lobby and we saw all of their remodeling efforts. As we walked through the emergency room waiting area, it was empty. I guess that was a good thing at least for the moment. She said they typically get busy after school is out. On the other side of the reception area was a hallway lined with hand painted tiles by sponsors. They are doing a lot of construction which will mean they can care for more kids when everything is done.

The day was really fun and since we had just gotten a new digital camera, I used it to take lots of pictures of random stuff. Here are some of the more meaningful pictures.

I donate to them every quarter so if anyone is interested in helping out a really good cause, let me know. The next donation will be about the first week in July. They always need toys and activities because so many kids go through that hospital.

How many times does a seventh grader get to judge a high school business competition? Probably not too often. On April 17, I was invited to judge and speak at a Junior Achievement business competition in LA. It was really interesting. There were about 17 groups from different schools in the LA area. Each group created a business and had to present their plan. I judged the table displays for the teams. I was paired with two adult judges and we didn’t always agree but I made some pretty good points.

The overall winners were:

• JA Company of the Year (Venture Capital League) went to Falcon Royal Tees from CALS Early College High School.
• JA Company of the Year (Board of Directors League) went to Higher Grounds Cafe from Chaminade College Preparatory School.

Through the Inland Empire’s Junior Achievement rep, we were able to also invite Mark Victor Hansen, author of “The Richest Kids in America” to be on the business panel. He has so much energy, the kids were amazed.

I am looking forward to working with Junior Achievement in the future.

When you talk, you want to be heard. Right? And don't you just hate it when you tell a whole story and then find out the other person wasn't listening? I have been on both sides of this situation.

Not only is it respectful to listen when someone is talking but you gain credability because they know you will really listen, not just pretend to hear. My parents try to listen when I tell my never-ending stories about my video games. Since they really listen and not just hear, I feel able to talk with them more about everything. Even if they get tired of hearing about the game and sometimes they don't understand all the details, at least they listen. In return, I try to listen to what they say. I admit to sometimes not listening even when it is important but I am human and make mistakes just like everyone else.

I feel when you pretend that you are listening, people don't want to be around you. Nodding your head to make it look like you are paying attention is just the same as lying.

So no matter who is talking, you should really listen, pay attention and not just hear them. There's a huge difference between listening and hearing.

• Public speaking (and not just memorizing poetry or speeches)
• Interviewing with the media (which would be good for job interview experience)
• Social networking (learning how to communicate with a large variety of people)
• Profit and loss (or at least some basic business finance)

1. Have a parent or other adult help you tweet.
   • Even though the minimum age requirement is thirteen for Twitter and most other social networking sites, it's no secret there are kids much younger online. There are also adults who shouldn't be allowed on at all because they haven't figured out it's not cool to use bad language or act inappropriately. Except for a couple of tweeters who sent horrible tweets to several kids (me included), the majority of the adults I've met on Twitter have been awesome. By the way, one e-mail to abuse@twitter.zendesk.com from my mom about a user who was at the total opposite end of the "G" rating, and their account was deleted the next day by Twitter. Keeping it clean for everyone does work.
2. Remember that ANYTHING you say online stays forever somewhere.
   • If you are a biz kid using Twitter, you want to have people take you seriously. Using proper grammar and spelling helps. Even if you only get 140 characters to say what you need and have to abbreviate a lot of words, you can still come across much better if you're not just plunking out the first thing that comes to your mind. Think before you type. It can save you a lot of embarassment later on.
3. Learn how to have a conversation with people.
   • Don't just say random things. Use Twitter to practice talking with people about a lot of different subjects.
4. Use http:// before a URL so it makes a clickable link. Or better yet, use a Tiny URL option to save space. Tweetdeck has an auto option for this.
5. Do searches with keywords that interest you.
   • If I'm stalled and haven't had many new followers lately, I'll go to the web version and use the Advanced Search option. Type in some keywords to find people who might be tweeting about the same subject. Then take time to see what they're talking about and if you want to follow them.
6. Take time to do #followfridays
   • Don't just list people. Tell why people are worth following even if you have to do several #followfriday tweets. I started making a list (on paper) during the week to group my favorites. I'll usually have a Biz Kid group, Awesome Adults, Artists, etc. You get the idea. Then because I'm in school all day Friday, when I'm done with homework after school, having my faves in groups ready to go makes it a lot easier to tweet my #followfridays.
7. If someone refers you on a #followfriday, it's good to reciprocate.
   • Okay, for this one you have to be reasonable. Some Fridays there are too many to even keep track of so I'll just do a general shout out and thank all the people who included me in their #followfriday tweets. Most of the time, people understand and aren't offended.
8. I recommend Tweetdeck
   • It has so many advantages over the web version: separate column options, auto tiny URL, post tweets to Facebook at the same time, among others you can play around with. I have mine set up with a DM column, my own Pencil Bugs column, my Favorites, and All Friends. It's easy to see who has mentioned you by quickly looking at your own column or who has DM'd you.
   • The only thing I still go to the web version for is to see new followers and follow back.
9. Take time to read other people's tweets. There's always something you could comment on (i.e. movies, people asking opinions, etc.)
10. Send replies as soon as you see them.
    • Try to mention what you're replying to especially if it's been awhile in between tweets. Otherwise, the other person may not even remember what they said to you in the first place.
    • Even if I somehow missed a tweet directed to me or referring to me in some way, I still send a reply. People would rather have a late response than no response. What's one of the rudest thing to do to another person? Ignore them . . . so don't.
11. It's ok to sell or advertise your own services or products but it's even better if someone else does. Recommendations from other people is better than tooting your own horn all the time.
    • If you have something you really need to promote but don't want to keep saying it too often, send a DM to someone you know really well and ask them if they'll tweet it for you. I've had people do that with me and I know who I can ask for favors in return if needed.
12. NEVER EVER use bad language. There's just no reason for it and it doesn't make you look good.
13. Web Twitter and Tweetdeck have a delete tweet option but you only have a short time to delete it.
    • I've tested it and was able to delete a tweet up to a minute afterward. It may go a little longer but I haven't tested that yet. Don't get worried if you still see the tweet in your own column because it stays there but it's gone from the general view. For general purposes, I'd still make sure you proof before you hit enter just in case. You may not realize your mistake until it's too late for delete.
14. Use DM if there's no reason for the world to see what you're saying to a specific person.
15. RT whenever you find something that's worth repeating. Not only are you spreading good things but your username comes up more often too.
16. If you know people that have something in common, do a tweet with both people's usernames in it so they can meet & tell them why. Twitter is like trying to find a needle in a haystack so if you can introduce people, they appreciate it.
17. Be genuine.
    • Don't have people tweet for you. Tweeples see your profile pic, get to know "you" and expect they're talking with "you", not a hired substitute.
    • Even though it's fun to change your profile picture, keeping it the same helps people recognize and find you faster.
    • Take time to fill our your profile information and post a picture of you, not of some random cartoon unless of course you're a cartoon artist. :) I've heard from many tweeters that say they won't follow people without a profile pic or information.
18. If you tweet something that you hope others will RT, make sure you leave enough characters for that.
19. Even though many Twitter applications have auto responders, etc., I wouldn't use them.
    • If you follow someone and you instantly get a DM that is obviously not personalized, it's like hearing a recording on a phone message or getting junk mail. If it wasn't meant for me personally, I usually don't pay much attention to it.
20. Don't schedule tweets ahead of time like when people write a bunch of famous quotes and set them to auto tweet on a regular basis. Without too much effort, anyone can see they are auto generated. If you're too busy to tweet them yourself and have real conversations with people, maybe you shouldn't be using Twitter until you're not so busy.

• I have a business book coming out in 2010.
• I wouldn't have written my book if I hadn't done my 12 Biz Tips of Christmas on this blog.
• I wouldn't have a blog if I didn't have my business.
• I wouldn't have started my business if my Pencil Bugs hadn't been so popular at the craft fair.
• I wouldn't have had to come up with my own idea if my mom would have let me help her paint her wooden door stoppers for the craft fair.
• She wouldn't have been doing the door stoppers if grandma didn't ask her if she wanted to take part in the craft fair.
• Grandma wouldn't have been in the craft fair if she wouldn't have been painting watercolor greeting cards.
• Grandma wouldn't have started watercolor painting if mom hadn't encouraged her to try something new.

1. You don't have to share your finances with everyone.
2. Don't loan money unless you can afford to never get it back.
3. Don't mix money and friends.
4. Don't buy something just because you "want" it.
5. Save as much as you can.
6. If you have extra, make sure to help other people less fortunate.

• My parents, Don and Nancy O'Neill, for EVERYTHING they do to always help me.
• Catherine Garcia of KNSD TV in San Diego, California who interviewed me for their news the week of Thanksgiving. Because of the interview, MSN picked up my story and donations started flooding in from around the world.
• Every person who donated money to help buy bears. From $5 - $500, every dollar received was used to buy bears. Including my own donation, the grand total received was $5,130 which bought 1800 bears. A complete list of generous supporters can be found on my Pencil Bugs website.
• Lisa Vinton and Darcy Jones of Only2Degrees in Temecula, California who made a few calls and found several people willing to donate a truck so that we could deliver the bears to the hospital.
• Rachel Mason of Hemet Hospice in Hemet, California who donated their organization's truck, driver, and time. Rachel was so excited to be a part of my Christmas project that she is even coming with us on delivery day.

1. Do not stare above the audience. Many people will suggest the speaker focus on a spot in the back of the room and not look directly at the audience. The logic is that they won't get as nervous if they don't really see anyone. That's not always true and I found something that works even better. I actually scan the crowd and look at several people now and then which makes it feel like I'm talking to just a few friends instead of a few hundred people. If you focus on just one thing, you will still know there are many people starring at you even though you're not looking directly at them which will definitely make you nervous. The point is to deal with the situation head-on instead of avoiding it. Almost everyone is ok with talking to one or two people. Make it personal and you will feel more confident.
2. Make notes. You are never too old to make notes. I use them every time I speak and so do many other famous speakers who are much older than I am. Notes shouldn't be your whole speech. It's better to only write bullet points or key phrases, just enough so you can remember what you want to say. Some people think that notes are only for rehearsal. That's not true. Think about it. Wouldn't you rather hold some notes and glance at them once in awhile than stand up there all nervous trying to remember what to say? As long as you don't read from them, you'll be fine and deliver a better presentation or speech.
3. Rehearse. You have to know what your going to say and how you are going to say it. Use all the props that you would for the real deal so you can get a feel for it. This is one of my least favorite steps. I hate to practice or rehearse but it does work and it is a necessary part to public speaking. It's pretty easy to listen or watch someone who knows what they are talking about, feels comfortable on stage, and makes the topic interesting. If the person isn't prepared, not only will they be uncomfortable but they will make the audience uncomfortable too and probably put a lot of people to sleep with boredom.
4. Write your own presentation. Unless you're the President of the United States, you're better off writing your own speech or presentation. And if you watch any public figure give a speech, wouldn't you rather believe that they wrote at least part of what they're saying? If they simply read it, you wonder if they even believe in their message.
5. Know your audience. Even if you're talking about business but your audience is elementary kids, make sure you talk so they can understand. That doesn't mean talk down to them but make it interesting for the appropriate age group.

1. Very user-friendly - not nearly as complicated as Dreamweaver or similar programs (and she tested many)
2. More affordable - less than $200 vs. $400 for Dreamweaver
3. Much easier to learn - if you can used Word, you can master WebStudio
4. You can host your site with anyone, unlike some of the free programs where you have to use their hosting service too.
5. They have THE best customer service and tech support. They actually know what they are talking about and know how to solve a problem if you run into trouble. The company, Back to the Beach Software, is located near San Diego, CA.
6. The program also has a temporary host feature so as you're designing your pages, you can upload them to a temp site and see how it will really look in multiple browsers.
7. The program has a free PayPal shopping cart if you need.

Middle school conference dates: July 26-29

High school conference dates: August 2-5

1. Send me your logo and website URL via the email link on my website CONTACT page.

1. In return, I will send you my logo and URL to my 2010 Rady Bear Christmas Fundraiser page.
2. I will be redesigning my website home page to include a special place for all link exchange participants.
3. From now until December 4, your logo/link will be on my home page, which is the deadline for donations for the fundraiser.
4. After December 4, I will move your logo/link to the specific 2010 Rady Bear Christmas Fundraiser page where it will remain indefinitely.

1. The Embracer - The person who leaves a circle open so more people can join (Caring, inviting, friendly - someone that people want to be around).
2. The Closer - The person who closes the circle so if someone else wants to join, they have to push their way in (Selfish, rude, insecure - most common but least admitted).
3. The Protector - The person who temporarily closes the circle but when someone else wants to join, they let them (Cautious, neutral, accepting - takes care of themselves but is willing to help others too).

1. Click Effect>Change Pitch>Drag bottom scroll bar until the Percentage Change box says about 50. Press OK.
2. Now the song should be in a high, squeaky voice (aka Chipmunks). You can play around with the percentages.

1. You'll need to zoom in so you it's more detailed. Click View>Zoom In repeatedly until you see the time bar go in .5 increments. You can also use the Zoom tool instead which looks like a magnifying glass with a + sign.
2. Play the song until you hear where the bad words are. Make note of the exact tick mark on the time bar.
3. Stop the song using the square stop button. Not the pause button! The vertical bar will not show at the stopped point.
4. Highlight the portion of the song that has the word in it. To do this, click the "Selection Tool" which looks like a text cursor I. It is located at the top to the right of the Pause, Play, Stop, Etc.
5. Once you click on the selection tool button, click your mouse in the song bar at the point where the word is. Try not to cut out the other words.
6. Drag your mouse to the right slightly which will make a dark grey bar. You can check the clip you selected by hitting the play button. It will then just play that selected portion. If you need to adjust to shorten or lengthen the clip, put your mouse in the grey area at either the left or right edge. A pointer finger will appear. Then just drag to lengthen or shorten the grey area.
7. FOR THE REST OF THE STEPS, MAKE SURE YOU DON'T CLICK IN THE GREY AREA WITH THE SELECTION TOOL . Otherwise, you will have to repeat some steps, undo, or restart.
8. Once you highlight the part you want to bleep out, select Effect>Change Tempo> Drag the bar until the Percent Change box is between 110-120.
9. Hit OK (The selected clip should be shortened.)
10. Select >Effect>Change Speed> Drag the bar to about 120-130
11. Hit OK (The selected clip should be shortened again.)
12. Select the "Envelope Tool" which is located directly to the right of the "Selection Tool". This changes the volume of the selected parts. The section should still be highlighted.
13. Click the top blue bar above the lighter soundwave section right before your selected clip and drag all the way to the top.
14. Before you do Step #15, if the selected clip is too narrow to see, zoom in so it's about a half-inch wide. This will make it easier to work with.
15. Put your envelope tool cursor in the middle of the dark grey selected clip area right below the blue bar and click. The top blue bar should be lowered as a result. If the lighter soundwave area goes up, you've done it wrong so click Edit>Undo.
16. Click after the dark grey selected clip area on the top blue bar and drag all the way to the top again. The line should make a V shape.
17. In the top blue line, drag the lower part of the V all the way to the center of the sound wave until a double blue line appears in the middle.
18. Notice how the blue double bar space is wider than the dark grey area time bar above. These need to match up. Put your mouse over the right or left white dot in the top blue bar and drag it to match the dark grey area/box in the time bar. Do the same for the other side. You are kind of eyeballing it to match. Be careful not to drag your mouse downward. If you do, you'll have to move the blue bar back up to the top.
19. Congratulations you have successfully bleeped out a bad word.
20. To test how it sounds, press the purple skip-to-start button. |<<
21. Press Play. If you hear that the bleeped word is not completely gone or you need to make revisions, it's easier just to start over than to try and modify your settings from here.
22. Now that you've got the hang of this, repeat Steps #2-19 for each word you want to bleep out.
23. Don't close the program until you save the project for future editing. Note: This will only save it as a .aup file.
24. To save the edited song as an mp3, follow the next steps.

1. To save the music as an mp3 you have to export it from Audacity. To do this, you must download an encoder to save as an mp3 at http://lame.buanzo.com.ar/
2. Follow the instructions when you are there! It is not a separate program but it is needed to run a function on Audacity.
3. Once you have downloaded the encoder, follow these instructions for export.
4. Click File>Export
5. The rest is self explanatory.

Golden Rule: Good customer service=customers Bad customer service=no customers=no business