Business Idea of the Day

Any good business requires a level of passion before it can go anywhere. It’s that drive that helps so many entrepreneurs succeed at what they do. For Kellie Markey, passion was the driving force for her latest venture, trAloola . It is not always easy for an artist to find the right sales platform when they want to sell their products online. While trAloola may not be the first service to specialize in handcrafted products, they definitely kick it up a notch.

The Boston Globe: Earl Cogswell noticed a curious phenomenon three years ago when he started working at his father-in-law’s business, Dick’s Power Equipment in Hanover. He would refill propane tanks for customers, then load the tanks in their vehicles - and it wasn’t easy. “People were using all different configurations to keep them from tipping over,” he said. “Women would come after grocery shopping and pack the groceries around it

Wired: Drummer Josh Freese’s musical skills have landed him gigs with major bands, but his marketing genius has generated a huge buzz about his coming solo release. Freese, who’s recorded on hundred of albums and played with top acts like Nine Inch Nails, Devo and A Perfect Circle, roped in famous friends to offer extravagant, limited-edition packages to hawk alongside his new record, “ Since 1972 “.

Paul Sloane at Lifehack: Let’s say you are wrestling with a tough issue - maybe at work, at home, with your children or in your social life. You have been stuck for a while and you can’t seem to make a breakthrough.

The Providence Journal: After endless trolling through career Web sites such as Monster.com and never connecting with a human, Charlene Helm snapped. “Every day was a constant battle,” said Helm, a 2008 graduate of Appalachian State University. “I was so frustrated I just typed in ‘I need a job.’ ” And there at the top of the list was damnineedajob.com , a Web site designed by Larry Dinsmore of Lexington, which offers T-shirts with the Web site name on the front and your resumé printed on the back. The site was born out of frustration, said Dinsmore. In 2005, he went 18 months without a job.

Reuters: U.S. consumers’ mood brightened a bit in March, nudged up by increased confidence in government economic policy, but overall sentiment remained near an all-time low, a survey showed. The Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers said its final index of sentiment rose to 57.3 in March from 56.3 in February. This was a touch above economists’ median expectation of a 56.6 reading, according to a Reuters poll. The index of consumer expectations rose to 53.5 from 50.5

Popgadget: It can turn your newspaper into live video, project a fully functional phone into your palm and a watch on to your wrist, help you get complete details of an acquaintance that you just met at a party, or even let you know if the product you are looking at in a supermarket is eco-friendly or not. And it isn’t called ‘Sixth Sense’ without a reason. What we are talking about is the wearable computing device which goes by that name and happens to be perhaps the most revolutionary device ever developed in the field of wearable electronics

What was traditionally believed to be a service that was used most among the rich, maid services are seeing an increase in business with the average family as well. As more households look to create a 2 person income, that is leaving less time for tasks, like cleaning, that need to be done. When you put that need together with the growing trend towards eco-friendly living, you have Maid Brigade

How many times have you seen a trail of paint on the roadway from a spilt can of paint in the back of a painter’s truck? Were you ever tempted to follow the line to figure out where it ended up?

The following is a guest post by Sharon Raymond of Simple Shoemaking . photo credit: orangeacid I was delighted, as a shoemaking instructor working out of my home, to see the statement in an article on www.treehugger.com that “shoemaker” should be added to a list of occupations that would be in demand in the “new green economy”! To me it makes perfect sense. From a global perspective, the “post-peak oil” world may result in the costs for transporting a pair of shoes from afar outweighing the “benefits” of their cheap production