Mixing Business With Pleasure

Many business owners start their own business because what they do is their life calling, their passion. This was certainly true for me, even though since starting our business 15 years ago, my purpose is different than when we started the company.   I have found in my travels as a speaker, author and consultant that many business owners and leaders are also passionate about giving back. It is in fact a big part of our business model as well.  A couple of months ago I blogged about a great article that Brett Wilson (Dragon’s Den TV show) did in Venture Magazine about philanthropy in business, I really enjoyed his perspective. 

A few weeks ago, I was thrilled to be able to interview with CEO of eWomenNetwork, an international business organization, Sandra Yancey.  We talked about the importance of philanthropy in business. 

Sandra talked about the eWomenNetwork Foundation, her company’s philanthropic foundation that supports emerging leaders, and a number of charitable organizations around North America. Every single eWomenNetwork business mixer and networking meeting has a philanthropic component, this was what drew me to become a member a number of years ago.  eWomenNetwork’s motto is “Give first share always.” 

Something that Sandra said really stood out for me – “Time promotes your exposes you.” Wow, what an interesting perspective. In my presentations, I often talk about making your moments matter, and deciding in advance how you want to show up in the world.  Sandra’s comment is an important reminder to carefully choose how you show up and how you make your moments matter.

Here are some of the great ways my corporate clients are giving back and playing full on in community service and philanthropy:

•        Monthly change for change initiatives (staff put their lose change in the “change for change” jar and every month at staff meeting they choose a different community organization to donate to.  Another client does something similar and they also make a team field trip to the organization (what a great way to give and build relationships).
•        United Way fundraisers
•        Cause of Choice- company chooses one organization they support throughout the year
•       Day of Helping- the team chooses an organization that needs help (e.g. with painting, spring cleaning, an event, etc) and volunteers
•        Toner recycling drives- some companies save their toners and donate to a place like http://www.cartridgefundraising.com/
•        Sobeys (and other similar businesses) gift card purchases where a portion goes to a local sport team, or community organization
•        Pop bottle drives and the money goes to charity
•        Volunteer to make meals at the local soup kitchen

What are the ways you give back?  I would love to be able to feature your company in a future blog.

To listen to the interview with Sandra Yancey, please visit this link (and feel free to share with others).  It is full of incredible tips on philanthropy in business and success!

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/charmainehammond/2012/03/14/guests-jj-digeronimo-and-sandra-yancey

Listen to the other radio show interviews where I have interviewed guests on the topic of leadership, marketing, trust building in teams, communication, and more:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/charmainehammond

Can Leaders Really Balance it All?

There’s that age old saying “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” and I am finding that in business, we have been able to have our cake and eat it too. The last few years in business have been extremely exciting for us.  It has involved some huge learning curves, some hard work but nonetheless has been fun, interesting and full of times when we could have the cake and eat it too. 

When I asked business owner, Sandra Yancey, the CEO of eWomenNetwork, a global organization, if leaders can really balance it all, we had an interesting discussion.  Sandra talked so eloquently about the importance of choosing what leaders and business owners focus on. This resonated for me because I often say in my presentations and seminars that the thoughts you choose are so important, because they frame everything (how you communicate to others, how you show up and the results you experience).  Sandra gave an example of a recent 30 city tour… This type of tour can be exhausting because of the travel however, Sandra pointed out that when you focus not on the exhaustion but on the passion (the reason she was visiting the 30 cities on the tour), you are rewarded with energy and great experiences. What you focus on really does matter. 

We talked about balance…how she balances running a global company, numerous philanthropic projects, writing books, having a family, and having a life.  Sandra provided what works for her:

-       Behind the scenes is when you can take time to refresh, kick back, and regain our energy. Take time for you!

-       Carefully choose what you focus on, and the people you associate with.
-       Know that you can’t do it all alone- build a support system, ask for help, and learn from those who have been there

-       When you love what you do it is easy to lose time, make sure you take time to be away from the business.

These tips fit in great to my philosophy on Bouncing Forward. 

Balance expert, JJ DiGeronimo states that we have to find ways to recycle our time and manage against the unknowns. JJ gave a great example whereby life happens…we’ve all been there. Challenges crop up throughout the day and then we are left wondering where the day went. She uses several systems to help her recycle time. Planning is a big part but she also stated that learning to say “no”, ensuring you are not over committing yourself, asking for help, delegating and setting reasonable expectations for yourself.  Most importantly, JJ suggests that each of us take time to enjoy the life you have created.  JJ is the author of the Working Woman’s GPS-when the plan to have it all leads you astray. 

You can hear more tips from these two phenomenal leaders at:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/charmainehammond

You can find out more about JJ and her book at http://www.purposefulwoman.com/

                           Sandra Yancey's book

Sandra Yancey’s new book Succeeding In Spite of Everything, comes out this summer.  

Building Relationships and Conversation – Networking to the Rescue

Networking and relationship marketing is an extremely important part of our business, as it should be for any entrepreneur or business owner. In a recent blog by Carol Roth, she identifies three critical components to networking, you can find out more by following this link: http://tinyurl.com/cm6bbrh. 

Networking is NOT about seeing how many business cards you can give out. It is more about the connections you can make (for yourself and others). Networking is about making relationships, coming from a place of service, and following up on the contacts you make.

Think about your best networking experience. What made it so great?  How did you show up? Far too often I see business owners go to a networking event and sit with people they know.  While it is great to catch up with colleagues, the point of networking is to meet new contacts.

A great book on Networking is Relationship Networking- The Art of Turning Contacts into Connections by Sandra Yancey. You can find out more here:

I recently had the opportunity to interview Sandra Yancey about networking, business and entrepreneur success and finding balance in the midst of it all. She talked about the importance of building relationships, following up and finding ways to serve others. Sandra also talked about the importance of maintaining relationships “the old fashioned way” with phone calls and face to face meetings. She talks about finding the common ground with people you meet then finding ways to help them.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/charmainehammond/2012/03/14/guests-jj-digeronimo-and-sandra-yancey