WTAMU Enterprise Center now offers professional office space, multi-office pods, and segregated production area.

The WTAMU Enterprise Center has completed a fifth stage renovation that expands offerings to include 16 new professional office spaces, multi-office pods for growing companies, and a segregated production area for manufacturing and distribution. All clients also have access to resources that were added in fourth phase renovation completed earlier this year, including a state-of-the-art training room, conference room, coffee bar and shared office support services. Increased demand for low-cost, professional space within the incubation framework prompted the most recent renovations.

Business incubation is a dynamic process of entrepreneurial development. WTAMU Enterprise Center Clients now have the opportunity for that development in a state-of the art professional environment at rate 25% below market costs. By locating within the WTAMU Enterprise Center, small and medium sized companies have access to support services and professionals with real-world business experience, shared office services, equipment and flexible low-cost leases all resulting in increased rates of growth and success. We strive to make our clients look bigger and feel bigger than they are, which helps them overcome risk, isolation and barriers to success, says Cori Burns, Director of Marketing.

The WTAMU Enterprise Center has added 11 new client companies to the incubator program over the last year and expects to add 3 more within the next quarter. All entrepreneurs in the WTAMU Enterprise Center are basic industry clients, bringing more than 75% of their revenues into Amarillo from outside Potter and Randall counties. The WTAMU Enterprise Center and its programs provide 203 new jobs and more than $10 million in new revenues to the Amarillo economy.

The WTAMU Enterprise Center is a member of the West Texas A&M University Enterprise Network, developing entrepreneurs through business incubation.

For more information or to inquire about space availability call 806-374-9777.

CLIENT NEWS:

The WTAMU Enterprise Center is excited to welcome several new clients:

• Animal Innovations, Inc
• MaxiVolt, Inc.
• Norris Audio Visual
• and Word Creative Marketing

The WTAMU Enterprise Center has added 11 new client companies to the incubator program over the last year and expects to add 3 more within the next quarter. All entrepreneurs in the WTAMU Enterprise Center are basic industry clients, bringing more than 75% of their revenues into Amarillo from outside Potter and Randall counties. The WTAMU Enterprise Center and its programs provide 203 new jobs and more than $10 million in new revenues to the Amarillo economy.

Amarillo EnterPrize Challenge 2009 Update

Amarillo EnterPrize Challenge 2009 business plans are due January 19th by 5pm. This year has been a success, with an average workshop attendance increase of about 15% this year and an an increase in applicants to the program as well. The Amarillo EnterPrize Challenge provides a unique opportunity for businesses to receive funding to help their business grow , while also benefiting from the many entrepreneurial resources that Amarillo has to offer including relationships with the WTAMU Enteprise Center, the WTAMU Small Business Development Center, the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation and a panel of highly successful entrepreneurial minded judges

The insight that judges can provide entrepreneurial companies in this process has proved invaluable. According to Wade McKinney, 2007 AEC recipient, “With funding provided by the EnterPrize Challenge and the expert advice and resources of the WTAMU Enterprise Center, our start-up company has developed two new products and pursued new market opportunities that will accelerate our business growth.”

Judges for the 2009 Amarillo EnterPrize Challenge include:

Dr. Anne Macy, Gene Edwards Professor of Finance and Director of the College of Business Student-Managed Investment Fund at West Texas A&M University.

John Marmaduke, President, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Hastings Entertainment, Inc.

Chris Stewart, Transactional and litigation attorney specializing in copyright, trademark, trade secret and computer law.

Don Sanders, Owner of Sir Speedy Amarillo a franchise document management company.

Mark Marrs, Senior Vice President of commercial lending with Interstate Bank, ssb.

To date, 37 businesses have received cash grants of as much of $75,000 each, totaling over $1.9 million in grants over the last thirteen years. Altogether, these firms have created 312 new jobs and bring more than $24 million into the Amarillo economy. In addition, these companies have invested over $5 million in additional capital since receiving their grants.

The Amarillo EnterPrize Challenge is a program of the WTAMU Enterprise Center that is funded by the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation. The mission of the West Texas A&M UniversityEnterprise Center is to grow and diversify the economic base of Amarillo and selected regional communities by utilizing the tools of business incubation, business development and entrepreneurial education.

How to Make the Most of 5:00-9:00 PM

We are excited to host Enterprising Ideas, featuring best-selling author and speaker Laura Stack in February 2009. In considering timely topics that entrepreneurs would find useful at this time a year, I decided to turn to Laura for some productivity wisdom. The following article are some tried and true tips to achieving a more productive and fulfilling lifestyle.

Forget about 9:00 to 5:00 for a minute. We spend lots of energy making sure that we are efficient and productive during the workday. But what about AFTER the workday? Do you find yourself keeping your nose to the grindstone and working diligently throughout the day only to have it all unravel when you step through the door at home?

I hear it all the time: I am so exhausted when I leave the office, but I always know there is more work waiting for me when I get home. What can I do? With most of the day behind us, it’s easy to lose our focus and end up letting those precious hours at the end of the day go to waste. Keep in mind that those weekday hours from 5:00 until 9:00 make up 20 hours of your week! Not many of us can afford to waste that much time.

Ask yourself a few questions to help you make the most of those evening hours and feel less stressed as a result.

How much television am I watching? For many, the biggest culprit, by far, is television. There is no reason you can not enjoy a favorite show or two, but do not let it dominate your evenings. Have you ever spent hours in front of the tube and barely even realized it? You can not get a single one of those precious minutes back, and chances are that in a week you will not even remember what you watched. That is a bad sign! See if you can turn it off for a week. You do not even have to spend the extra time doing something particularly productive, just something different. Read a book. Talk to your family. Organize a drawer or two. You will be amazed at how much better you feel than you do after hours in front of the TV.

Where does the time go? Try keeping a diary for those 20 hours between 5 and 9 for one week. At the end of the week, it should be clear where there is room for improvement. Here are a few things to look for as red flags, and some suggestions on how to tackle them:

• The Internet: Do you sit down at the computer to check your e-mail and end up spending an hour aimlessly surfing the internet? The Fix: Limit e-mail checking to just that. If you want to surf, go ahead, just do it after the rest of your HOME work is done.
• Continuing the Workday: Do you have a habit of bringing the office home? The Fix: Do it, if you must. But consider the value of your time and the things you are sacrificing to continue the workday. If you have to work at home, have a schedule and a plan of exactly what you need to accomplish. If you can just leave work at work, even better.
• Dinner Plans: Does it take twenty minutes of staring into the fridge to figure out what is for dinner? The Fix: Take an hour on Sunday and plan 3-5 meals for the week. Even if that means planning for take out, know what you are having ahead of time. If you can, cook a meal or two over the weekend and reheat them during the week to save time.
• Kid Wrangling: Are you spending a ton of time making sure homework is done or working on kid-infrastructure like coordinating the carpool and extra-curricular activities? The Fix: Get a plan and a calendar. Hang a desk sized calendar in a prominent spot, and use it for the familys master schedule. This way, it is all in one place and you can spend less time coordinating on the fly. As for the kid wrangling and homework: get a routine going. Whether it is first thing when you come through the door or at a planned time each evening, block off time to do homework or other structured activities.
• Chores: Are you working all day and then coming home to work another few hours to catch up on the housework?The Fix: Do not feel obligated to do it all, or even most of it. Aim for one or two LARGE tasks and a couple of small ones each evening. Bring the family in on it, too. Throw a load of clothes in the washer and then go clean up the living room. When you are done tidying up, fold the clothes. A little each night will go a long way for the whole week and give you more free time on the weekend.
• Paper: Does it seem like your mail is taking over every horizontal surface in sight? And that you are constantly sitting down to pay bills? The Fix: While the kids do homework, you should too. Sort through the mail, file it in your tickler file by due date, and get it off the counter.
  

What can I do that will have a positive effect on my life? So many of the most personally rewarding things in life really do take very little time. You just need to make them a priority. With your newly efficient schedule, you can now work in 20 minutes of exercise, an hour to read a good book, or 45 minutes to sit down with loved ones and catch up over a real dinner (with real silverware and everything). It does not take much, but the results can be tremendous. You just have to commit to making it happen (and encourage loved ones to do the same). While you are at it, make time for yourself. I will bet that no matter how tired you are, you always manage to take care of family and friends when needed. Make yourself a priority as well, whether it is carving out time for a relaxing shower or going for a rejuvenating walk around the block. You have earned it.

What is my perfect schedule? There is not one. If you spend all day at work and all night fretting about a demanding timetable, you’ll drive yourself up the wall. Be flexible. Go with what works. And don’t be afraid to adjust as necessary.

Make it a productive day!

(C) Copyright 2008 Laura Stack. All rights reserved.

© 2008 Laura Stack. Laura Stack is a personal productivity expert, author, and professional speaker who helps busy workers Leave the Office Earlier® with Maximum Results in Minimum Time®. She is the president of The Productivity Pro®, Inc., a time management training firm specializing in productivity improvement in high-stress organizations. Since 1992, Laura has presented keynotes and seminars on improving output, lowering stress, and saving time in today’s workplaces. She is the bestselling author of three works published by Broadway Books: The Exhaustion Cure (2008), Find More Time (2006) and Leave the Office Earlier (2004). Laura is a spokesperson for Microsoft, 3M, and Day-Timers®, Inc and has been featured on the CBS Early Show, CNN, and the New York Times. Her clients include Cisco Systems, Sunoco, KPMG, Nationwide, and 3M. To have Laura speak at your next event, call 303-471-7401. Visit www.TheProductivityPro.com to sign up for her free monthly productivity newsletter.