Heart Be Your Guide

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Heart Be Your Guide Supporting small businesses! An easy to use collection of small business that you should spend your m

A small business is never just one small business. ♡ It’s the photographer who takes the photos, the artist whose work h...
10/15/2026

A small business is never just one small business. ♡

It’s the photographer who takes the photos, the artist whose work hangs on the walls, the local maker whose products sit on the shelves, and the friend who tells everyone they know to stop by.

One person’s idea has a way of creating opportunities for so many others. And that’s one of our favorite things about small businesses. The way they connect people, champion each other’s work, share resources, and create little communities around the things they love.

Supporting small businesses isn’t just about where we spend our money. It’s about the relationships we build, the people we believe in, and the kind of communities we want to be part of.

So here’s a little love letter to the businesses that make our neighborhoods more interesting, our communities more connected, and our world a little more wonderful.

Tag a small business that’s made your community a better place. ♡

Good things are made with care. 🤎 For our latest Heart Be Your Guide feature, we’re highlighting Sam applebaum, a Chicag...
10/14/2026

Good things are made with care. 🤎

For our latest Heart Be Your Guide feature, we’re highlighting Sam applebaum, a Chicago-based woodworking studio bringing thoughtful design, craftsmanship, and a whole lot of heart to the things we live with every day.

There’s something special about knowing the hands and the people behind the objects that fill our spaces. A little reminder to shop small, support local makers, and surround yourself with things made to last.

Get to know Sam applebaum and give them some love!

Meet Jess Warren, the bookkeeper and advisor behind Take It Easy Bookkeeping, joining Heart Be Your Guide as one of our ...
10/13/2026

Meet Jess Warren, the bookkeeper and advisor behind Take It Easy Bookkeeping, joining Heart Be Your Guide as one of our professional directory members!

📚 Jess helps creative, service-based small business owners make sense of their numbers without the overwhelm, judgment, or feeling that they should already know how to do everything.

A few things we learned about Jess: ☕️ Coffee in the morning, tea in the afternoon. Balance!

💸 Her favorite piece of advice? “It’s okay. Start where you are.” Especially when it comes to your finances.

🎬 Clueless is a forever favorite, but she also has a soft spot for ‘90s action movies.

📊 With a background in both accounting and global operations, she knows that good bookkeeping is about more than keeping the numbers organized. It’s about building systems that actually support your business.

Whether you’re starting from scratch, cleaning up your books, or just looking for someone to help you understand where your money is going, Jess wants to make the financial side of running a business feel a whole lot easier.

Meet Jess + explore her full profile on Heart Be Your Guide 🔗

From my notebook: “The fastest way to kill a good idea is to ask too many people what they think about it.”This week I n...
10/08/2026

From my notebook:

“The fastest way to kill a good idea is to ask too many people what they think about it.”

This week I needed that one.

I’ve always been a people pleaser. I want people to like my ideas. I want them to think they’re good. I want reassurance that I’m heading in the right direction before I get too far down the road.
But I’m realizing that asking for too many opinions can be the fastest way for me to talk myself out of something I believed in to begin with.
I have to remind myself of this often, especially through the quieter stretches of building Heart Be Your Guide, when engagement is low or things aren’t growing as quickly as I’d hoped. The same is true when I’m making art, trying something new, or simply speaking up.
Not every idea needs a committee. Sometimes you have to trust your own instinct long enough to see where it takes you.
I’m working on that and I thought maybe you needed the reminder, too.

Subscribe to the substack via link in bio 🔗

You might already know Kate through Compost Hands Creative, but words aren’t the only thing she has a way with. 🌱Meet Fa...
10/07/2026

You might already know Kate through Compost Hands Creative, but words aren’t the only thing she has a way with. 🌱

Meet Fasciation Planting & Care, Kate’s gardening consultancy helping people create outdoor spaces that work with the conditions they actually have and feel personal to the people living in them.

Kate is a trained arborist with a deep knowledge of plants, but her philosophy is refreshingly simple: you can be a gardener. Whether you have a backyard, a balcony, a shared space, or a business that could use a little more life outside, she can help you figure out what belongs there and how to actually care for it.

Explore Fasciation Planting & Care on Heart Be Your Guide 🔗

We have lawyer and Lane Law founder Lindsay Lane joining Heart Be Your Guide as one of our professional directory member...
10/06/2026

We have lawyer and Lane Law founder Lindsay Lane joining Heart Be Your Guide as one of our professional directory members and answering a few of our burning Qs.

Highlights include:
⚖️ Why putting a solid legal foundation in place early can save you a lot of headaches later
☕️ Coffee, always
👠 The Devil Wears Prada as a forever favorite
🧠 And a love of collecting completely random facts Lindsay works with new and established businesses on trademarks, contracts, copyrights, and the other legal pieces that come with building and protecting a business, with an approach designed to make the legal side feel a little less intimidating.

Meet Lindsay + explore her full profile on Heart Be Your Guide 🔗

the september list 📍 chicago, for very specific occasions the restaurant you go to when you want it to feel like you hav...
10/01/2026

the september list 📍 chicago, for very specific occasions

the restaurant you go to when you want it to feel like you have a standing reservation, even though you haven’t been in six months. the bar you go to when you said one drink but knew you were lying. the bookstore you disappear into for an hour. the shop for the friend who is impossible to shop for.

restaurants, bars, bookstores + shops for exactly the occasion you didn’t know you needed a recommendation for.

save this one for later ♥️

Meet Ostrich Moon 🌙 Founded by Annie Tinsman in Chicago’s Ravenswood neighborhood, Ostrich Moon is a one-woman jewelry s...
09/30/2026

Meet Ostrich Moon 🌙

Founded by Annie Tinsman in Chicago’s Ravenswood neighborhood, Ostrich Moon is a one-woman jewelry studio celebrating individuality, self-expression, and the beauty of standing apart. Every piece is created by Annie using high-quality, unexpected materials and a slow, intentional approach to making. The result is jewelry that feels less like an accessory and more like something personal, meant to be worn, lived in, and connected to.

A very good reminder that the things we choose to wear can say a lot about who we are. ✨

Read the entire journal article over on the site 🔗

Small business spotlight 🌱 Meet Trellis, the operations consulting duo helping small and growing retail + creative busin...
09/29/2026

Small business spotlight 🌱

Meet Trellis, the operations consulting duo helping small and growing retail + creative businesses build the structure behind the vision. With 20+ years of combined experience and firsthand knowledge of what it takes to grow a local business, Adina + Taylor help with everything from operational leadership and HR to bookkeeping, employee training, and the systems that keep a business moving.

Their philosophy? Before making a reactive decision, take a beat and think through at least five possible solutions.

Very good advice for business and, honestly, life.

Meet Trellis + explore more on Heart Be Your Guide 🔗

Are you a service provider helping small businesses grow? Or know of a good one? I’m building a founding network for the...
04/24/2026

Are you a service provider helping small businesses grow? Or know of a good one?

I’m building a founding network for the Heart Be Your Guides Professional Directory—a curated community connecting entrepreneurs with trusted experts.
Looking for: Bookkeepers, HR Consultants, VAs, Designers, Marketers, Ops Pros, Tax Experts & more with proven results.

If you’re passionate about helping businesses streamline, grow, and thrive—I’d love to connect.
Tap the link in bio to learn more!

https://www.heartbeyourguide.com/biz-owners

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