5 Fabulous Ways to Benefit Your Community through Your Business
Wed, 09/23/2009 - 4:14am | by monicadear
5) Be mindful of your choices.
Shop local, buy green, support women of color and encourage small businesses. We always have a choice: we have a choice in who we hire, we have a choice in which materials we use, and we have a choice in how we go about our business processes.
I encourage you to benefit your community by shopping local, buying "green", supporting women of color in business, and when possible, buying from independent and small businesses. Your mindfulness about your choices may keep money circulating within your local community. Your mindfulness may reduce environmental impact and may employ local men and women. Your mindfulness may even assist another business in giving back to the community! If you cannot find a local supplier, make the effort to support your worldwide "family" of companies and causes you support. From your pens and pencils all the way to the stocks in your mutual funds: be MINDFUL of your choices.
4) Promote a local non-profit in your advertising materials.
As a leader in business, you have access to a great mix of customers, suppliers, and business associates. Let others know how much you care about your local community. You might be a real estate agent promoting your 10% of commissions to a local homeless shelter; or you might represent a computer company promoting a donation of laptops to a local school.
Whichever situation, I recommend "adopting" a non-profit or issue area as part of your overall business priorities. Add this priority to your marketing mix. Promote your participation on your website, in your newsletter, in your print materials, and when you interview with local media, and raise your company's profile and your non-profit partner's image at the same time.
3) Participate in an athletic event... for a cause.
Encourage staff, partners, clients, and associates to join your team. There are plenty of organizations that will help you organize, train, and finish an athletic event, as an individual (but better as a team) from your company. Some ideas to help get you started: Team-in-Training runs marathons and half-marathons, the AIDS/LifeCycle offers a bicycle ride from San Francisco to Los Angeles, and the Komen Race for the Cure® has a variety of races with over 1 million participants every year. You get in shape, foster team spirit with your friends, and you raise funds for much-needed work to help our communities.
2) Organize, organize, organize.
Help organize an event for a local issue that ignites your passion. If you are in business, your list of contacts is a big one, and you can use your networking abilities to the benefit of your community. Help organize an event: it might be a lemonade stand, a charity ball, or somewhere in between. Join an existing committee if there is one, or find an upcoming event through Craigslist.org or Idealist.org to join the organizers.
Hint: open up your address book to find silent auction donors, sponsors, and invitees. Or, hold a meet-and-greet at your home with a community-based organization in your area. Your friends will know more about a local group and you will have a great party! And the number one way to benefit your community through your business:
1) Find a non-profit and donate your services.
Pro Bono is the way to go, baby. If you love what you do, support your cause with your talents: give our non-profit community an opportunity to engage your services or install your products at a deep, deep discount. You benefit by sharing your business skills with your non-profit client, the non-profit benefits by improving their quality of service or availability of product, and the community benefits from accessing a wider, better pool of opportunities. Pro bono, pro bono, pro bono.
I've personally donated almost 2 and a half years of full time work to the causes I adore and I think it's an excellent way to make use of your skills.
Thank you for supporting our worldwide community.
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Send to friendVisionboard #10: Trust the Universe
Mon, 02/06/2012 - 2:26am | by monicadearOne of my favorite meditations is the idea that each of us are simply manifestations of the Universe, and so every experience that we go through, no matter how difficult and terrifying, is still a way for us to learn, expand, grow, and increase our self-knowledge.
This visionboard item is one of my ways to remind myself to place my trust that everything is part of a greater plan, or at least, I can put everything into place and know that there is unity and harmony within all the different chaotic strings and threads of experience and activity.
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7 Tips to Prevent Bullying
Mon, 02/06/2012 - 1:30am | by monicadear
If you're a mom, mentor, or involved in the classroom, you know the importance of maintaining a decent, respectful, positive, safe, and supportive environment for all students. Bullying can happen to children, teens, and young adults who do not get along well with others, who are "less popular", or who have few to no friends in the school. Also at risk for being bullied are youths with depression or anxiety, and those who have low self esteem. Those especially at risk are LGBT and questioning youth: in one study by Laura Sessions Stepp, "four out of five gay and lesbian students say they don't know one supportive adult at school."
Don't Just Settle - Make it Meaningful, Happy, and Deeply Satisfying
Wed, 01/18/2012 - 2:18pm | by monicadear
I am always a proponent of upgrading your lifestyle in as many ways as possible. I believe that for the sake of mental health, sanity, and security, we each deserve to follow our intuition, treat ourselves well, and look after our own best interests. If we focus on continuous improvement and do this naturally every day, with the mindset of being grateful and expressing deep respect for the gift of life, we can incrementally change our living situation.
7 Valentine's Day Gift Ideas for the Woman Business Owner in your Life
Sun, 01/15/2012 - 2:48pm | by monicadear
1) Pay for her website domain and hosting
Most small business owners don't think of this precious detail, and if your special lady is in business, this is one of a myriad of other details. Do her a favor and prepay for the next 2-3 years of domain and hosting. You'll get a chance to reassess her existing website details (username and password) and inventory the current situation.
2) Get her Quickbooks Online
Evaluating your Savings Needs
Thu, 01/12/2012 - 7:17pm | by monicadear
With the low interest rates available and the challenge of many women to manage their family finances, their business finances, and the changing needs of family - from children going to college to elderly parents needing care, we're finding a great need for education and self-awareness about personal finance options.
A great place to get started learning about finances is Investopedia. You can also learn about personal journeys through blogs like I Will Teach You to Be Rich, Millionaire Mommy Next Door, or Get Rich Slowly.
The beginning of the year is a great time to get organized and review (or start) your savings plan.
Four Totally "Out-of-the-Box" Predictions
Tue, 01/03/2012 - 4:44pm | by monicadear
I pride myself on being fairly well-educated and tolerant of diversity.
Here are four completely out-of-the-ordinary ideas I've recently been exposed to. I've had a hard time wrapping my head around each of these, but I think that each is a very early indication of different trends in our modern world, and in terms of a business approach, it would be wise to consider ways to integrate these ideas into your existing business model or your marketable job skills: natural remedies, open source mentality, overall collaboration, and green extreme.
Beyond Natural Remedies
Wedding Day Planning: Four Steps to Make it Fabulous
Thu, 12/29/2011 - 8:00pm | by monicadear
The wedding service and vows, your attire, the location of the service and reception, and decorations: if your big day is coming up, start planning for these four items at the very beginning. This will help reduce the stress because, like most brides, you're probably planning a wedding on top of dealing with a full-time job, interacting with family and in-laws, organizing travel arrangements, anticipating special needs for seniors or children, finding ethical rings, deciding on vendors, and fitting everything into your budget.
