Resolutions or my 2009 To Do List

Okay, now that 2009 is officially here, it’s time for the resolutions. There’s something energizing about a shiny new year stretched out in front of me, all ready to be filled in.

The resolution part works for me too. I like lists and tracking goals. I enjoy checking off things accomplished and contemplating the yet to be finished. For me, the act of taking time to think about and then write about is a huge step toward actually getting something done. Posting it on my blog for others to see will help me hold myself more accountable. At least I think so.

So, here’s my list.

1 Lose Weight. It wouldn’t be a new year without this one right? This year I have a plan. This is all about adopting a healthier lifestyle. I know I need to. I know what to do. I’m all out of excuses, so there’s nothing else to do but follow through.

2 Meet at least one new person a week. This came about as part of the #fastfriends idea. (see previous post) I actually meet new people all the time but I decided to make a more conscious effort to really connect, if just for a short while, with someone I don’t know. I don’t have any more of an agenda except to say I think this will be fun and I’m looking forward to it.

3 Do something new every month. I don’t know exactly how this popped in my head. I think as we get older and more settled in our lives, we stop doing new things. Think about it. When was the last time you did something that you have NEVER done before? I don’t have lots of rules, so going to a new restaurant could qualify I guess, but that’s not in the spirit of what I’m going for. I really want to end up with at least 12 brand new experiences. I’m open to suggestions so, if you have any…. Please let me know!

4 Write every day.

5 Send a hand written note to people that help, inspire, impress or for any old reason. I’ve always done this a little and just want to do more of it. It makes me feel good and that’s reason enough.

6 Stay organized. I am good at starting this one, but fall short on the follow up. I love the part about list making, file folders and sorting, but the daily keeping up bores me and I lose interest. And it shows.

7 Make sure the people in my life know how much they mean to me. This is on my list every year too since it’s a work in progress.

Well, that does it. Since I like making lists I originally had several more things written down but decided to keep it short. For me, resolutions should push me a little and the above list does that for me. I’ll keep you posted on the progress.

I’d love to hear your list. What do you hope to do or be or have in 2009?

#FastFriends w/ Cheryl Harrison

I have been following lots of people from central Ohio on twitter.
I began following @CherylHarrison - she tweets often and I find her interesting to follow because she's funny, honest (as far as I can tell) and always giving her opinion on some topic or another. For me, twitter is a place to connect with others, especially those I might not otherwise meet or talk to and it is working out great so far!

A little over a week ago, Cheryl decided she'd like to meet a new person every day for 2 weeks. 14 new people over coffee or lunch or whenever. Great idea don't you think? Check out the schedule she posted. She's since extended it to another week or 2 because she's so popular and had such a great response. Genius idea.

I meet with Cheryl this Thursday. I'm looking forward to it.
Here's where I'd like your help. This whole idea has me thinking about doing my own #FastFriends, but with a twist.
I want to meet at least one new person every week of 2009.
I meet people through business all the time so that really won't be to tough, but this also has me inspired to put a list together.
I'm not planning on stalking anyone (at least not yet) but I like the idea of thinking of people outside my normal circle of influence that I'd like to meet.

What about you?
What would your list look like?

I promise to share my list along with an update after meeting with Cheryl.

Can you help? Volunteers Needed.

I started volunteering for the Memorial Tournament several years ago. I enjoyed it so much I now serve on the women’s committee that organizes the volunteer efforts.
Here are a few facts you may not know.

1. Almost everyone who works at the tournament is a volunteer except for those specifically responsible for the actual golf part.
2. The tournament pays a paper credit for all of the hours worked by the volunteers.
3. Nationwide Children’s Hospital receives the financial benefit of those credited hours.
4. If you work 12 hours total, you receive an all tournament badge for the week.
5. If you work less than 12 hours, you receive a pass for the day of your choice to attend the tournament.
6. There are parking areas for volunteers so you can get where you need to be without having to park and ride or walk 2 miles!
7. There are all sorts of things you can do, you don’t have to know about golf to be able to contribute.
8. 2009 Tournament dates are: June 1-7.


Here’s a list of the areas you where you can volunteer. For more details about what each area does and requires, you can go to the volunteer section of the website.

Bears for Children’s
Concessions
Courtesy Cars
Cub Care
Hospitality
Leader Boards
Sandwich Factory
Scoring and Data Control
Spectator Relations
Status Boards/Press Room
VIP Courtesy Center *

* I am responsible for the VIP Courtesy Center – the best volunteer gig there is IMO. We are off course (across Muirfield Dr. at Memorial, think near Dr. Fanning’s office if that helps) We are inside which can be a bonus depending on the weather. We don’t get to see golfers during our shifts, but do have a TV so we can watch the coverage.

We pass out press credentials to the media at the beginning of the week along with Muirfield resident passes for parking in certain parts of the neighborhood. We also serve as the location for volunteers to pick up a shirt, hat or passes if they need to during the week before they work their shift.
As the week progresses, we are the location for last minute pass purchase/pick up for corporate clients and also for PGA members. We are also the pick up location for friends and family of golfers who leave passes for those coming later in the week.

Online registration starts February 2, 2009. You can also email me at vipcourtesycenter@thememorialtournament.com if you have other questions.

I hope you’ll participate. You can have fun, see one of the premier tournaments on the tour and help Nationwide Children’s Hospital all at the same time.

Business Networking - My Strategy

Definition
Business networking: the process of establishing a mutually beneficial relationship with other business people and potential clients and/or customers

To many, this evokes less than pleasant memories of evenings (or early mornings) spent passing out business cards and hoping that the time and energy spent are worthwhile. I’ve done my share of these events. Some have been fun and I met people that made me glad I took the time to attend. Others have been horrible and I regretted pretty much every minute there.

And still I attend and hope for the best. The Woody Allen quote “80% of success is showing up” rattles around in my head when I’m heading out to another event.

I have decided to put together a networking strategy vs. the random approach I’ve been using. I want to be open to all types of opportunities, but maximize the benefits and make sure when I’m there I feel great about the time and effort spent. Having a little fun wouldn’t hurt either.

Here’s my list I now use when evaluating events.

1. Diversity – There must be different types of people and businesses represented (not all events are business related - like a book club or community group but diversity of ideas & people are a must)

2. Convenience – The day/time has to work with my other commitments and not require a radical change to my schedule/lifestyle

3. Benefit – Beyond meeting other people, will there be any other advantage to attending?

4. Ease of Participation – I’d like to feel welcome (at least as a guest) before having to pass a test for admission, pay dues or feel like I must learn the secret handshake to be part of the club (okay no one really has a test but some meetings can be pretty intimidating to newbies)

If an event fits all 4 of these I will put it on my calendar. If one is missing, I will investigate and get more info to see if it’s right for me. More than 1 missing – not for me.

I’d love to know what you think.
Do you participate in a group that you’d recommend?
How do you select which events to attend?
Do you bother at all?
What works for you?

WNGCO Gets Shot!

Kathy Thomas, one of our members arranged for a photo shoot for all of us. Kathy is a project manager and webdsigner and a wonderfully creative person. She did some work with a couple amazing photographers and wanted to give us all the chance to have professional photos taken.

Janene Jaroscak owner of Trending Solutions was nice enough to let us use her beautiful home for the photo shoot. Our usual meeting place at Panera just wasn't going to work. So we all came over ready for our closeups!

Cory Piehowicz and Rainer Zeihm of Hello PZ were just amazing. Not only do they take beautiful photos, they are genuinely nice and fun. In no time they had even the most camera shy among us smiling, laughing and enjoying ourselves.

Thanks Kathy, Janene, Rainer and Cory for a fun night. I can't wait to post some of the pictures!

MeetUp + Twitter = TweetUp in Columbus

This past Wednesday Twitter came to life! I attended the Central Ohio Tweet Up. I was a little nervous since I was going by myself. I walked into the room and was greeted by a group of 5 or 6 guys who were friendly (thank goodness) and knew each other a little from Start Up Weekend.

A fellow twitterer described it as the Columbus developer/programmer crowd plus the public relations/marketing folks. The group was diverse but everyone I met was friendly, super smart and genuinely interested in finding out about others.

Lara Kretler is the “unofficial” organizer with Rocky VanBrimmer as acting MC and all around great guy. I’m glad they got the ball rolling. I’m looking forward to more meetings and of course getting to know the cool people I met there.

This group is also all about doing things, not just talking! There’s a site that tracks Columbus topics and events from Tweets – how cool is that? There's already talk about the next event so if you weren't aware, stay tuned into Twitter for the next announcement.

Neat Tool For Creative Minds!

This website lets you make word clouds quickly and easily. It's a little addictive too. I found myself thinking how cool it would be to see a favorite quote, verse or speech entered.
Check it out and let me know what you come up with. I'd love to see it!