When I was a teenager, I would regularly argue with my parents as Gen X teenagers were wont to do. My favorite thing to yell at the top of my lungs was, "You should stop saying should!" A couple of decades later, I felt a little vindicated by the perfectly titled book by Elle Luna, The Crossroads Between Should and Must: Find and Follow Your Passion. Ridding my vocabulary of the word "should" is a Herculean effort.

Last weekend, I went to a local liquor store to pick up a bottle of wine. I took my own sweet time reading the labels, and started giggling to myself. The man behind the counter, Bill, came over and asked if I needed any help. I smiled, and said, "Not yet, thank you."

I have been told a number of times by potential clients, "I have my investors in place." My heart drops when I hear this, because it often means that a resourceful creative (and usually young) entrepreneur has gone about fundraising improperly. The minute founders of a company seek outside investment (which is NOT the same as donation-based crowdfunding such as Kickstarter or Indiegogo), those founders are dealing with the exchange of "securities," and must conform to certain rules, or face potentially painful penalties.

She called as we finished dinner, and Caller ID told me she was calling from Northwestern University. I think her name was Natalie, but to be honest, I wasn't paying close attention, because I knew that she was calling to ask for money.