Though our feet are firmly planted here on Earth, our heads are always in the clouds when it comes to our love of everything cosmic. We know you stayed up past your bedtime for the summer Strawberry Moon (or at least, you did your best to), so get your full moon party ready again for the last Harvest Moon eclipse until 2024. Why? Because it’s happening tonight!
With fall coming ever-closer, the temps will start to drop and we’ll be pulling out our (fab) autumn wardrobe soon, so this month’s full moon will be the closest one to the autumn equinox in the Northern Hemisphere. That only means one thing: Harvest Moon, baby!
So what makes this moon so special? Well, the science-minded folks over at National Geographic explain that, because the moon is now “rising about half an hour earlier each night, the added light from the full moon’s shine is said to have given farmers more time to harvest their crops.” Thus, the name Harvest Moon. This year’s moon will occur with an added bonus — a penumbral eclipse (when the sun, Earth and moon align in a straight line).
If you want to check out this cosmically awesome event, the eclipse will be most noticeable at 2:54pm ET (18:54 GMT), or you can check out EclipseWise.com for the best viewing times for your part of the world.
Will you watch the Harvest Moon eclipse? Tweet us @BritandCo!
(h/t National Geographic; photos via Getty)
Desirée O is a ‘Professional Bohemian’ who loves anything and everything related to the arts, entertainment, and pop culture. She ADORES being a ‘Newsy’ for Brit + Co, covering all of the latest tidbits of awesomeness that you want to read about. When she’s not writing, she’s either making messy art, going on long adventurous walks with her camera, or poking around over at bohemianizm (http://www.bohemianizm.com/). You can find out about Desirée O and her work at http://DesireeO.com/ or follow her on Twitter @DesireeO.
More From Current Events
You can wear many hats running a business and sometimes some look better than others. Thanks to Office Depot, we're talking with Koyun Fan, co-founder of Sticky Rice Sisters, about finding inspiration along the way and staying organized on the road to success.
<p><strong>B+C: What set you on this entrepreneurial path of Sticky Rice Sisters?</strong><br></p><p>One day I was looking for stickers and cards to use to write to kids for a program I volunteer for when I came across Etsy shops selling products I was familiar with, growing up in Taiwan. I always had easy access to cute stickers and stationery, so I thought I should just bring them to the U.S. myself and also share Taiwanese culture with others. I also thought that if others can do it, I can do it too. I had been a marketing professional for many years before starting the store. I was still working full-time when I first started, and thought this could be something fun to work on outside of work. Also, I thought that with my marketing experience, running and promoting a store shouldn't be too hard. I had no idea what I was getting myself into! </p><p><div id="teads-ad"></div>
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</p><p><br></p><p><span></span><strong>B</strong><strong> + C: What was your most valuable takeaway from <a href="https://tryselfmade.com/" target="_blank">Selfmade</a>?</strong></p><p> I've thought about taking a business course or pursuing an MBA previously, but the cost and commitment made it difficult to. When I saw the 10-week-course on Brit's Instagram, I knew it was right for me. Since everything would be online and recorded with unlimited future access, I knew I would have enough time to consume all the information and refer back to it whenever I wanted.</p><p>I had a great experience with all the coaches. They were amazing and super helpful. I learned so much about the different aspects of business, from ideation, to creating new products, operations, legal, finance, marketing and more! I love how the course started with helping us establish the right mindset. The coaches taught us to not limit ourselves. My coach, Naomi Powell, was always challenging us on our beliefs about ourselves and she would tell us to set higher and bigger goals. It is definitely something I always think about now and I have her voice in my head.<br></p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p>All of my classmates were AMAZING. Everyone was so talented and so willing to share. It was truly a community of women who were cheering each other on and rooting for each other. </p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
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</p><p><br></p><p><strong>B + C: What's the biggest challenge you face as a small business owner?</strong></p><p>Not knowing if I am doing things "correctly" has definitely been an obstacle. I have tackled this by sending out surveys to our customers and followers asking for their feedback. This is also something Brit would always talk about--we should just ask others what they think instead of guessing. People are pretty good at giving honest and helpful feedback and it really helps with thinking about future plans.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><strong>B + C: Who are your role models in the entrepreneurial space?</strong></p><p>Not to sound super cheesy, but I would say it's Brit. She is such a great example of Selfmade. She started the company by herself and continues to innovate and inspire. She always radiates positive energy and in the Selfmade course she made herself available to everyone. She didn't just share what she knows, but also brought in her network to help us. My favorite thing she said is that we are all creative--creativity exists in many different forms!</p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
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</p><p><br></p><p><strong>B + C: What's one piece of advice you would give to female entrepreneurs on the brink of starting?</strong></p><p><strong></strong>You will never be 100 percent ready so just start now and learn and improve as you go. You will make mistakes, things won't go as planned, you might not have customers to start, but you will learn. If you keep waiting for the "right moment," or wait until "you're ready," you have already lost time that you could've used to learn on the job or make mistakes. In the beginning, not a lot of people will know you, so it doesn't matter what you do--you can try anything you want and figure out what works and doesn't. As you start to have more customers and followers, you will start to get better and they will help you, encourage you, and support you. </p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><strong>B + C: What's one female-owned business that you absolutely love and support?</strong></p><p><span></span>There are so many I love and support. To name a few fellow stationery stores: A Jar of Pickles, Occasionallish, AnnSunn, and fellow Selfmade businesses Evening Star Baby, Summer Space Studio, and The Ponnery! They are all amazing women running their own businesses.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><br></p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
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</p><p><br></p><p><span></span><strong>B + C: How do you stay motivated?</strong></p><p>I look at stores I want to become. I try not to think of them as competition but as inspirations, so when I see them working hard on their businesses it motivates me to do so as well. I also listen to motivational audio books or podcasts where they interview other business owners like <a href="https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this" target="_blank">How I Built This</a> and <a href="https://www.theskimm.com/skimmd-from-the-couch" target="_blank">Skimm'd from the Couch</a>.</p><p><strong>B + C: How do you stay organized? What tools or apps help you stay productive?</strong></p><p>I think I'm a very organized person. I use Dropbox for photos and Google Docs for everything else. My tip would be to always name your files and have a system for it so it's easy to search and find easily when you need them.</p><p><div class="htlad-contentbanner"></div></p><p><em>We're inspired! Thanks Koyun for sharing your story and your organizing tips! You can find Sticky Rice Sisters at <a href="http://sticyricesisters.com/" target="_blank">SticyRiceSisters.com</a> and <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stickyricesisters/" target="_blank">@StickyRiceSisters</a>, or email at koyun@stickyricesisters.com.</em></p><p><strong><em>Office Depot OfficeMax has the solutions to help you <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/marketing/save-time-and-organize?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=org_na&utm_term=eff" target="_blank">organize & save time</a> & create the <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/multi-category/work-from-home?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=wfa_na&utm_term=pro" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">perfect workspace</a> to help craft your story. From <a href="https://www.officedepot.com/a/browse/tul/N=5+971469?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=uf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_engt_aq&utm_content=org_na&utm_term=eff" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">journals</a> to , Office Depot OfficeMax is your go-to for all business solutions.</em></strong> <em><em><strong></strong></em></em></p><p><em><em><strong><em><em>Head to </em><em><a href="https://www.officedepot.com/cm/marketing/selfmade-promo?cm_mmc=bl-_-aq-_-url-_-bc&cm_mmca1=earned&cm_mmca2=lf&utm_source=blog&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=bc_sm_url_earned_prch_aq&utm_content=tea_na&utm_term=tea" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Office Depot's Selfmade page</a></em><em> to check out even more amazing business resources (and discounts!) to help you accomplish more on your entrepreneurial journey. These offers are available for a limited time only, so be sure to take advantage of all this goodness while supplies last.</em></em></strong></em></em></p>
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