Early this month, I participated in eWomen Network annual conference in Dallas.

We had a booth there—and while it wasn't the first trade show for Trademark Factory®, it was the first one after we launched a new version of our software a few months ago. It allows business owners who are serious about protecting their brands purchase our services before we've done the trademark search and confirmed that their brand is trademarkable. It also allowed us to make an irresistible offer at the conference.

By the way, you're welcome to try it if you if you haven't seen it yet.

I got to Dallas on the 1st of August, to make sure I have plenty of time to pick up our exhibitor materials, set them up, and start networking. On August 2, I went to pick up my stuff at the UPS terminal in Dallas—only to find out that they lost our biggest box with most of our stuff.

(No, they haven't found it yet. Instead, they lost my claim, which I had to resend...)

I’ve never put so much energy in getting ready for an event—and here I was with just 7 boxes of books that I had nothing to promote with.

I went straight into a complete freak-out mode.

I bought a big box at uHaul and was at Michael’s shopping for a jumbo marker so I could install it in our booth for everyone to see in my handwriting: “UPS LOST OUR EXHIBITOR MATERIALS!”

This is when I got a call from my mentor who knew about my predicament.

I told him about my brilliant idea about the love letter to UPS.

I'm glad he told me not to do it. His comment was that nobody really cares. He reminded me that we came to Dallas to help business owners trademark their brands, not to play the victim and tell the world that UPS sucks.

I reprinted our banners overnight and we were 80% up-and-running the next morning.

I couldn't recreate some of the exhibits this quickly (our promotional tote bags, our iPad stands, etc.) but everything worked out really well.

I had many great conversations with some amazing entrepreneurs, I made a ton of connections, and came back home with a profit.

I can only imagine what would happen if I simply stood there with my uHaul box and complained to everyone who'd listen.

The moral of the story: to get something done, you need to go and get something done. Whining can be comforting—but it doesn't really accomplish anything. 

P.S. I will never forget a moment during the conference when they brought on stage a 14-year-old girl who founded a company—Blue Line Bears—that provides the children of slain officers with a stuffed bear made from their parent's uniform.  What an amazing girl with an astonishing idea!