HomeBBQ.com is a very nice site offering a ton of free barbecue information. You can also buy their quality barbecue rubs and sauces they actually use while cooking for HomeBBQ.com competition team.

So anyway, Kevin was discussing how the increasing price of gas has kept him and his team from traveling to competitions further away from his home base and out of state.

You can read Kevin’s post right here!

Kevin’s fear is some of the smaller events who depend on out of state cooking teams or teams who travel further distances will start to go away because teams will no longer travel to them.

Now there is no debating the price of gas has made it very difficult for many people to make their bills much less travel all over the country to attend barbecue competitions.

But I have a real problem with the mentally of people who say ” I cant afford this ” or “this is too expensive”

I think the better question to ask is ” How can I afford it?”

However it’s totally understandable–I mean I used to say those same words until I started reading and hanging around successful people.

You see, what I’ve learned is once you say, ” I can’t” your mind automatically shuts down. You loose your resourcefulness.

But if you ask yourself ” How can I do something” or “How can afford it” your mind goes to work.

Don’t believe me? Fine, try it yourself…

Next time you find yourself in a tough situation and you find yourself saying ” I cant afford this, or I can’t do this, or I can’t figure this out” tell your brain to STOP!

Then you’ll want to grab a sheet of paper and write “How Can I (blank)” at the top of your paper. Next, just start answering your question…

You’ll be amazed how creative your mind can be!

I left a comment in Kevin’s blog stating I don’t think gas is effecting my family all that much. While we do feel a pinch it’s not to the point where we have to stay home, pull the curtains shut and lock the doors.

You see, what I did is I started to ask myself the question. “How can I afford it?” or “How can I make more money for my family?”

So what I’ve done is create a business around my passion for barbecue. That’s right BBQFreaks.com is a business and anytime I travel to a barbecue event, restaurant or whatever, I make a note of my miles and I keep all copies of my receipts.

If I attend a competition I hand out flyer’s, business cards and t-shirts. If I eat at a BBQ Restaurant I’ll mention it in my blog and do a review.

In other words I’ve created a perfectly legal and ethical way to enjoy barbecue passion and to also build and grow a business to take advantages of certain tax breaks offered by the U.S. Government.

And here’s the other thing, I’m able to make some extra money with my business so I’m able to EXPAND my means– rather than shrink away.

So many of us allow our salary to dictate our lifestyle–why not make a salary to suit your lifestyle?

I know these can be very obscure and controversial comments to you and I understand this. I was the same way. All I’m asking you to do is open your mind and ask yourself ” How Can I” instead of saying ” I can’t”

After all, you owe it to your Country, your family and most importantly–you owe it to yourself!

Now go smoke something, Bill Parlaman

If you enjoyed this please post your thoughts in the comment box below. I’d love to know what you’re thinking and what’s going through your mind.

If you own a barbecue business and you would like to discover unconventional ways to market your business please shoot me an email or contact me through my blog!

Its all about underground maverick marketing baby!

So I spent a good part my evening last night in the ER with my 9 year old daughter, Gabrielle. She’s fine now but it was it was a little scary there for a while.

As I’m watching her little body lying in the hospital bed while the nurses and Dr.’s poke and prod her, I realized how unimportant the “other” stuff in my life really was.

I wasn’t thinking about my frustrations in trying to launch BBQFreaks.com, or worrying no one will read my blog or if I’d paid my electric bill on time.

Nope–the only thing that mattered was my little girl.

Her big brown eyes, her little chubby hands and her tiny lips.

This is what life’s all about.

Look, there are no dress rehearsals in life.

You’re “on” from the moment the Dr. smacks your bottom and hands you off to your momma.

We’ve all had bad days before. I sure as hell have and I bet you have to. Maybe you’ve had a crappy day at the office, maybe you got a letter from the IRS or maybe you got a flat tire on the way into work.

The fact of the matter is those things are insignificant events in your life.

Far too often we lose site of what’s really important to us.

So, here’s my message for you today -

Make every day count. Be “present” with the ones you love.

Maybe put an extra rack of ribs or a pork butt on the smoker and invite your family and friends over for dinner.

Maybe cook up some tasty barbecue and donate it to a homeless shelter.

Maybe surprise your significant other with a romantic dinner at home while the kids are off to grandma’s. ( I’m thinking a nice smoked beef tenderloin with horseradish sauce would be nice!)

Call your buddies up and go see a ball game together.

Celebrate life!

Be present with your wife, husband, boyfriend, girlfriend, partner or whomever is important in your life. Make sure they know how much they really mean to you and how much you love them.

Do this every day– with out thinking.

You only get one shot–you might as well make the most of it!

Now Go Smoke Something, Bill Parlaman

P.S.

Don’t forget to check out my upcoming inaugural interview with, William “Billy Bones” Wall of Billy Bones Barbecue .

If you have a rub or Barbecue Sauce you’d like to market and sell or if you’ve ever thought of selling your own BBQ product then you wont want to miss this interview!

If you’d like to try some of Billy’s world famous rubs and Sauces take a trip over to see my good friend at Billy Bones BBQ now!