CreateAthon: The Power of Believing In An Idea

“A tiny, crazy idea we had. In a tiny market. It’s grown beyond our wildest dreams.”

— Cathy Monetti

There was a time in marketing when great ideas were fiercely guarded.  Riggs Partners of Columbia, SC helped shift the industry in 1998 (then 10 years into life as a traditional full-service marketing firm) by sharing an innovative concept and helping it grow. 

The agency's commitment to provide a 24-hour block of full service pro bono work to community nonprofits has grown into a national marathon movement.  Sixteen years later,  they have seen 87 agencies and partner organizations provide more than $15M in services to over 1,275 nonprofits across the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico.

In a recent interview, CreateAthon co-founder Cathy Monetti spoke with me about her upcoming CAPRSA Spring Conference presentation (May 5th @ 10:45am) and gave me a glimpse of what she hopes attendees may gain from her talk. Here are some of my favorite take-aways:

1.) "It's becoming a Must Do to provide pro bono service."  Cathy passionately believes that pro bono service should be a part of the culture of your company.  "It's the right thing to do, but it's also becoming requirement. I think that's largely because of the millennial generation, who feel that it's vital." 

2.)  "You will get back more than you give if you do it."  She emphasizes that CreateAthon has shaped their company's cultural base and has been powerfully transformative.  Participants consistently count CreateAthon as a defining event in their lives both- personally and professionally. 

3.) "We get them, and they know that we get them."  Yes, Riggs has transitioned a few CreateAthon service recipients into client relationships over the years. But that has never been the intent or mission. What they've found is that their commitment to the nonprofit community and understanding of the challenges they face have positioned them well for bigger clients within that realm.  

In case you cannot attend the May 5th presentation, here are a few ways you learn more about CreateAthon and help it grow. Currently, there are 3 professional arms: 

• Agency Model
• Club Model ( i.e. PRSSA, AAS)
• University Model (on campus, student-driven)  
• Corporate Model (i.e. Discovery Network)

There is currently no cost to participate as long as you agree to meet minimal CreateAthon Network requirements (which are outlined in a partner agreement) and use the CreateAthon logo. They provide quite a bit of backend support and substantial benefits, such as inclusion in national PR. 

For more information on how to join, or to spread the word, visit the www.creatathon.org. 

Cathy Monetti, Riggs Partners

CAPRSA Presentation:

Monday May 5th 10:45 am - 11:15 am.  

Cathy Monetti

Riggs Partners, Founder & Brand Strategist

Founder, CreateAthon

@cathymonetti         @davispr

cathy@riggspartners.com

A Preview: Learn the Business Case for Good CSR

Guest blog by my colleague, Jason Spenger, previewing an extraordinary panel of CAPRSA members at this year's spring conference. 

By: Jason Sprenger, APR  President- Game Changer Communications

More and more organizations are making a concerted effort to incorporate social responsibility into their corporate culture, and these good deeds are being richly rewarded.  Studies have shown that consumers have very high expectations that the companies they do business with will be a good corporate citizen.  And 42% of professionals surveyed recently reported that an organization’s participation in charitable activities is at least somewhat of a factor in their decision to work there.  Remarkably enough, good CSR isn’t just a coincidence!

In Key West, we’ll have a panel to talk about the business case for accepting the mantle of social responsibility with grace and enthusiasm.  Abbie Fink, vice president and general manager of HMA Public Relations, will moderate a panel of PR and CSR heavyweights:

·         Aaron Blank, president and CEO at The Fearey Group in Seattle

·         Nancy Page, executive vice president at Buchanan Public Relations in Ardmore, PA

·         Esther Buchsbaum, chef de la direction and managing partner at Energi PR in Toronto and Montreal

By the end of the session, among other things, you’ll be able to:

·         Formulate a CSR program that directly reflects your firm’s culture

·         Describe your agency’s commitment to CSR

·         Explain to clients and prospects that CSR is about doing what's right simply because it is the right thing to do, and not just because it’s good for business

·         Devise strategies for taking the high road in difficult and divisive situations

This session will be Monday, May 5 at 3:30 p.m.  Join us there!

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Jason J. Sprenger, APR

President

Game Changer Communications, LLC

Email: jsprenger@gamechangercommunications.com

Mobile: 612-327-1886

Website: www.gamechangercommunications.com

The Truth About Mergers and Acquisitions - with Chuck Tanowitz

 In a world full of inauthentic networking, overly practiced elevator speeches, and colleagues rattling off talking points, the candidness with which members of PRSA's Counselors Academy speak about business ownership/management is quite refreshing. 

Chuck Tanowitz, Vice President HB Agency, took an hour out of his day last week to candidly discuss his upcoming CAPRSA Spring Conference presentation "Taking the Leap: Growth Through M&A. The Why's, When's, How's, and What's".  Any interview that starts with a friendly "on the record/off the record" clarification generally provides some wonderfully juicy tidbits of information, and this one did not disappoint. 

 In short:  If you have ever thought about growth and/or exit strategies for your small to mid-sized agency, then you do not want miss this.  (If you haven't, then stop reading right here and register for the conference immediately.) 

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In more detail:  Every agency owner faces the question: do we grow on our own or join with another group? The decision is different for everyone, but this is the story of how two Boston agencies (Fresh Ground and HB Agency) became one. How they met, the pitfalls they faced and how they're growing. The opportunity had major positives and negatives for both.  

Great press releases and videos were created during there merger, but there is definitely more to the story. On Monday, May 5th you can hear what Chuck has learned in the months before and after the merger. 

• Moving from idea to reality- the benchmarks for when the time is right
• Starting the right conversations and establishing trust 
• Opening your books with another agency
• The weight of responsibility to employees
• The delicate task of merging office cultures
• Getting existing clients on-board with changes
• Impacts of transitioning from owner to employee- personal, professional, & emotional
• Having time to refocus on public relations and let go of business operations

Chuck credits his CAPRSA colleagues for motivating him to honestly present what he's learned throughout this process, and for giving him important #KEYS for leading a thriving, healthy organization over the past few years. 

Mr. Chuck Tanowitz
Vice President, HB Agency
Newton, MA
ctanowitz@hbagency.com
(617) 575-9643
Twitter Handle: ctanowitz
Chuck Tanowitz is vice president of PR and editorial services with HB Agency, an integrated marketing agency based in Newton, Mass. He co-founded Fresh Ground, Inc., a PR and social media shop that was acquired by HB in September 2013.

The Sheer Value of CAPRSA, from a Reformed Skeptic

When I attended my first CAPRSA conference last year, I was a bit skeptical about what I'd gain from the conference. My resting state tends more towards the optimistic, but I can relate to Jon Goldberg's perspective here. With his permission, the text below is from a very eloquently crafted Facebook message he recently posted.

Jon Goldberg, Chief Reputation Architect at Reputation Architects, was one of the most genuinely engaging, insightful, and humorous people that shared their time with me last year. He's certainly one of the many reasons I am looking so forward to returning to the conference this year.

by Jon Goldberg

As anyone who knows me well will readily attest, skepticism is my resting state. So when a couple of longtime colleagues tried to coax me into joining something called “Counselors Academy” five years ago, right after Reputation Architects came into being, I found it easy to rationalize why putting clients aside for a few days to attend a conference with other PR firm leaders was almost certainly going to be a waste of time and money. I’ve never been much of a joiner, for one thing. I was a member of PRSA in my callow youth, but when I departed the warm bosom of Corporate America for stints with three big agencies I stopped renewing. I did without for more than 20 years and didn’t miss a thing.

Then, having left the rather more chilly bosom of a big holding company agency, things changed. I discovered that I really missed having a network of peers to turn to who were facing the same challenges I was. People I could trust enough to kick big ideas around with, or turn to for the occasional sanity check (and lord knows, my sanity is frequently in question). Who shared the joys and angst of entrepreneurship and would respond to my cranky rants about overdue receivables and managing millennials with a knowing nod and pearl of wisdom instead of “talk to the hand.”

So off I went to Asheville, NC, for my first Counselors Academy spring conference. I promised myself I would keep an open mind. If it turned out to be a bust, so be it. I just wouldn’t go back. Boy, was I in for a shock. I came. . .I saw. . . and I went home three days later with the dates for the 2010 meeting in Vegas already etched in my calendar. I tell people all the time that going to the conference is by far the most powerful investment I make in Reputation Architects each year bar none. This May in Key West will be my fifth time back. Call it Goldberg’s inviolable rite of spring. As rites of spring go, it’s way more inspirational, not to mention more fun, than washing windows or edging the gladiolus bed.

The sheer value of Counselors Academy lies in three things. First, there’s superb content focused on enabling us to lead better, more profitable businesses and help our people grow professionally. Second is unmatched access to a wealth of free legal, financial, HR and business advice from folks like PR legal maven Michael Lasky and agency management guru Darryl Salerno. And third is the people. I’ve never met a group of professionals so eager to embrace a new member and give up all their business secrets — and not just the clever strategies that worked for them that they like to preen about. They’ll just as quickly lay bare the things they royally screwed up along the way so that others can avoid making the same mistakes. My first year, longtime member Eric Morgenstern summed up the Counselors mindset in a way that really stuck with me. The odds of any of us in Counselors Academy competing directly with one another are slim to none, he said, so why not do everything we can to help all of us succeed. The cost of entry? Around a thousand bucks, give or take (sign up before April 5 and save $100). The chance to meet and develop relationships with 150 people who live by that mindset and run the most successful small and mid-sized agencies in the land? Priceless.

If you lead an agency or are a senior counselor in one, I urge you to join us May 4 to 6 in Key West and make Counselors Academy your new rite of spring. Your clients and gladiolus beds will be there when you get back. Trust me, you and they will be better off for it.

 Jon Goldberg, Chief Reputation Architect, Reputation Architects

 website: http://www.reputationarchitects.com/

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For more information on the May conference or to register, visit our website. And join us on Twitter @CAPRSA #CAPRSA #theKEYS. Hope to see you there!

A Preview of "True Confessions" in Key West

I am so excited to be hosting all these guest bloggers from #CAPRSA this month!

Jason J. Sprenger, APR, President of Game Changer Communications, LLC gives us a little preview of Debra Bethard-Caplick's "True Confessions" panel at the upcoming CAPRSA conference in Key West, Florida.

Reading this preview is making me mark this down as a "MUST ATTEND" on my itinerary. As an independent contractor, I struggle with some of these same issues on a regular basis. 

For more information on the May conference or to register, visit our website. And join us on Twitter @CAPRSA #CAPRSA #theKEYS. Hope to see you there!

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by Jason Sprenger, APR

It should come as no surprise to us that more and more public relations professionals and journalists are making the switch, whether voluntary or not, to the world of the PR consultant entrepreneur. This trend mirrors a bigger one; the number of part-time “involuntary” self-employed Americans has risen from 33% to 41% between 2007 and 2009, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that virtually all of that increase was from people who couldn’t find regular employment. But are these people prepared?

According to Debra Bethard-Caplick, who will moderate a discussion called “True Confessions” at the upcoming Counselors Academy Conference, many independent PR consultants are thrust into their roles without all the skills or prior agency experience they need to be effective. They want to appear professional, and instill confidence in their clients that they know what they’re doing, but they have good questions that need good answers. Where can these professionals learn what they need to know? Counselors Academy, of course!

Caplick’s breakfast roundtable session on Monday will enable like-minded practitioners to ask the questions they wouldn’t dare ask anywhere else.  For example, how much information is too much to put into a new business pitch? How do you fire a client? How do you find and land new clients? How do you create a 1099 for a contractor? What’s the one question you should be asking that you haven’t yet? With these and more discussion topics up for lively discussion, it promises to be a popular session for the entrepreneurial PR professional.

Debra Bethard-Caplick, MBA, APR, is a founding partner in Quicksilver Edge Communications, a virtual PR agency specializing in healthcare, nonprofit, and social media strategic communications. QSE provides clients with senior-level expertise at all stages of the agency-client relationship. She teaches PR writing at DePaul University and is the voice of APRwriter.com, a blog on writing and the foibles of the public relations profession, and an advocate for the unemployed older professional.

Jason J. Sprenger, APR, President Game Changer Communications, LLC

Email: jsprenger@gamechangercommunications.com

Website: www.gamechangercommunications.com

Award-Winning PR Executive Deborah Weinstein Introduces Colleague George Rosenberg's CAPRSA Presentation

When I attended my first PRSA Couneslors Academy Conference last year, I connected with a staggering number of incredibly accomplished and genuinely helpful and kind-hearted public relations executives.  It seemed almost inconceivable that such a talented group of top-level professionals would be so welcoming to a "newbie". 

Two of the people who selflessly shared their time mentoring and advising me were Deborah Weinstein, President and Co-Founder of the award-winning Strategic Objectives and George Rosenberg, Founder and Principal of the Rosenberg Group.   As luck would have it, George was actually designated as my "buddy" for the conference.  Talk about beginner's luck!

I am honored to host Deborah as a guest blogger this week, as she provides an introduction to George's  conference presentation on Monday, May 5th.  For more CAPRSA Conference information visit the website (or follow on Facebook and Twitter). 

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George Rosenberg: Seven Danger Signs of the Agency Management Trap -­ 
and HOW to Escape 
Monday, May 5 at 8:00 – 9:15 am 
 
A longtime attendee, supporter and friend of Counselors Academy, George Rosenberg, 
APR, brings a lifetime of PR agency and business-building experience to his breakout 
session “Seven Danger Signs of the Agency Management Trap -­ 
and How to Escape,” at CAprsa The Keys to Agency Business on May 5, in Key West. 
 
Founder and Principal of The Rosenberg Group Inc., www.georgerosenberg.com, 
George Rosenberg is an experienced counselor, strategist, and business advisor who 
provides consulting and coaching services to public relations and integrated 
communications firms across North America. 
 
George has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in the public relations world, including 
President and CEO of Cohn & Wolfe and a variety of account and management positions at 
Burson Marsteller. He founded The Rosenberg Group in 2002 to help PR agency leaders 
better focus on visioning, strategic planning, and how to manage firm growth, leadership, 
human resources, and operational issues. He also coaches key agency members on how to 
improve leadership and develop better management skills. 
George works with numerous Counselors Academy member firms, start-ups, virtual firms, 
and sole practitioners who want to grow their practice. 

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Read more from Deborah about #CAPRSA in her latest post for Strategic Objectives: Rites of Spring Why PR Agency Leaders NEED Counselor's Academy. 

Upcoming PRSA Counselor's Academy - May 4-6 Key West, FL

Welcome to my shameless plug for the upcoming PRSA Counselor's Academy Spring Conference scheduled for May 4-6 in Key West, Florida.

I attended the conference for the first time last year, and it was a truly extraordinary experience. I'll be posting more about my "newbie" experience in the next few weeks. It truly was one of the top professional experiences of my career.  More about that later...

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The theme this year is The Keys to Agency Management. (Clever little play on words, eh?) 

As managers, we rely on research and instinct daily.  I'll quickly employ a little of both to help persuade you to join us this year. 

Research tells me that May in the Keys registers average highs around 85 degrees and average lows around 70 degrees. With 13 glorious hours of daylight. 

Instinct tells me this conference will be attended by an array of brilliantly fascinating people who can toss back a few margaritas as adeptly as they can redirect a haywire press conference.  

Yet again, the conference schedule is full of amazingly talented and inspirational speakers. The networking will be top-notch.  And did I mention: May? Key West? 85 degrees?

Read more details and register on the conference website. 

We'll be posting speaker interview and blogs for the next 10 weeks. Please stay tuned via this website, Facebook and Twitter (@caprsa and #CAPRSA). Spread the word. Knowledge (and Cinco de Mayo parties) are always best when shared. 

Do yourself a favor and don't wait 10 weeks to register. Go ahead. In the words of the great Tom Haverford (fellow South Carolina native and public relations mastermind):  "Treat Yo Self".    Best Conference of the Year.

Walking Out with More than the Photos

12 Career & Life Improvements from 1 "Photography" Workshop

The Setting:  2013 Public Relations Society of America Counselor's Academy Conference

Pre-Convention Workshop: "Creative Braise" 

In full PR/Marketing mode, I walked into this workshop expecting 2 things:

1.  New mobile device photography tips.
2.  Fresh content creation ideas for clients with tight budgets.

During the workshop, my brain was firing left and right with ideas for improved branding efforts, fresh blogs, and enriched social media. The photos I took in the quick-fire photo assignments improved drastically with each lesson on unique angles, areas of contrast, tonalities, and shadows.

Before: Really Bad

After: Much Better

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Re-reading Creative Braise notes several weeks later, I had an “Aha!” moment. Strip away the technical details, and the lesson was essentially about perspective and perception - applicable to your career and your life.

My brain experienced a frameshift.

Read these tidbits (taken verbatim from my notes) and see what you think.

1. Comfortable is not the best fit. Push yourself further.
2.  There is nothing as creative as a deadline.
3. Scale is a critical element. 
4. You need areas of contrast. 
5.  Simplicity is more poignant. 
6. Negative space makes things more powerful. 
7. Lighting and tonality cut through the clutter. 
8. Set things up so that people can use their imagination to complete them. 
9. Manipulation can occur by changing the distance between the source and the object.
10. Consider all the possible angles. 
11.  Keep in mind both the foreground and the background. 
12. Most people won’t read your text anyway. ;) 

These 12 notes effectively guide me in project management, client relations, and team building each week.  And in my daily personal life. 

Boy did I underestimate that workshop.

5 Lessons I Learned in 20 Days Without Social Media

Personal accounts, volunteer commitments, and client site monitoring had me feeling like I was drowning in social media apps and digital connectivity.  I had a 12-day vacation planned to breathe the crisp, calming air of the Pacific Northwest. Perfect time to unplug and observe. 8 days back at home, and I'm ready to share a bit of what I've learned. 

The rules:  No social media of any kind (Apps deleted from phone.)  Client e-mails only. No internet. Phone calls and texts allowed. 

What I learned:

1.)   The first thing I touch in the morning (and the last thing I touch at night) absolutely should not be a phone. Or any other wifi-enabled device.  It should be something (or someone) soul-nourishing.  

21 Days Ago: Wake up. Check social media. Bathroom. Check social media.  Kitchen. Check social media. Workout clothes. Check social media. Work out. Check social media. Drive home. Check social media - in driveway. Shower and dress. Check social media - in the closet. Work. Log onto social media on desktop and ipad. Periodically check social media all day- from 3 devices, simultaneously. Evening activities with phone in hand. Drive home. Check social media- in driveway. Get ready for bed. Check social media. Climb into bed. Check social media. Sleep. Repeat. 

That. is. pathetic. 

I've been home 8 days. Dog snuggle time is up about 60%.  

2.) My dog was being ignored.  

If you know me at all, you know that Ernie's life is enviable by any standard. (homemade food, kayaking trips).  Ignored is relative.

But my downtime at home has been primarily spent with my face in front of a glowing screen, petting hands occupied by a tiny keyboard. 

Any creature that would sacrifice their life for me without hesitation deserves better than that.

3.) People I care about very deeply were being ignored. 

Not so long ago,  I was the Queen of Correspondence.  I abdicate.

One of the perks of living in 4 states in the last 5 years is having roots that run both deep and wide. One of the challenges in this blessing is the reality of time management.  Nurturing newer relationships while trying not to neglect the ones already in place can get quite tricky. For me, social media began as a way to streamline communications. What it turned into was a cop out. 

I found myself annoyed with people not regularly on social media.  Like it was somehow their fault that we weren't sharing life's milestones or making plans for dinner.  As my online hours increased, so did the back-log of voicemails.  I was spending more time seeing what football game some random guy from college was live-tweeting than returning calls from friends who just gave birth. Or had cancer. Or were mourning the loss of a parent. 

Admitting this makes me feel like an asshole. Because I've been behaving like one. 

4.)   Less photo sharing = more authentic moments.

Instead of worrying about taking instantly post-worthy perfect images, I took just a few meaningful ones. Without filters. And got right back to enjoying the moment.

21 Days Ago: (internal dialouge) "Wow! Amazing dinner, amazing people, amazing restaurant. Check -in. Take photos of the food.  And the decor. And my friends. Apply some filters to the pics. Retake. Post pics before I forget- on 3 different apps. Tag them, add hashtags. Confirm posting. Oh, wait-someone already commented! Who? Oh, too funny. Comment back. Tweet the restaurant and chef. Shout out to the waiter! Come to think of it- Client X would love this place. Send meeting invite."

On this trip,  I talked to my friends face-to-face. I thought about why the moment was meaningful enough for me to capture it.  I wrote a clever caption in my head.  And I did not care one bit how unglamorous this photo would look online.  Because I was enjoying the Puget Sound on a stunningly beautiful autumn day with one of  my closest friends.   (I kind of dig my Dolph Lundgren hair.)

5.) My social media love cannot go unbridled. 

So, what's getting me back online?  In the marketing and communications business, connectivity and the pulse of consumerism are pretty critical. I like paying my bills. And I like what I do for a living.  

Altruism helps me out of the bed most mornings.  I have friends with upcoming fundraisers/volunteer projects, and I value social media for things like making inquiries and generating buzz on their behalf. 

I'm still working on the details of establishing boundaries. For now, I'll be setting time limits and consistently asking myself, "Does this interaction authentically better me or someone I care about?" 

Not too shabby for 20 days. Not too shabby at all.  

 (And before you ask, the social media I missed the most was the Charlotte Area Tweet Tarts Facebook page.)

Note: Thanks to my colleague, social media guru  Jenifer Daniels of Bridge PR, for the inspiration to take a breather.

Building a Personal Brand Quickly & Inexpensive

 Last month Charlotte Observer Editor Rick Thames spoke at Packard Place (a hub for area start-ups) about the importance of being extraordinary when trying to attract media attention. 

Rick Thames, Editor Charlotte Observer. Photo from www.charlotteobserver.com.

I help clients capitalize on what makes them unusual or exceptional, finding the things that pushes them beyond their competitors. Extraordinary - this sums up my  philosophy on effective marketing and communications.

Boom! Hello, case study. And so began my personal branding exercise - a path to show just how simple it can be to make yourself extraordinary.

All I needed was a little moxie, 3 weeks and $275 to stand out and be memorable.

Three Initial Steps

The first extraordinary thing people usually notice about me is my name. Start with the basics.

1.) Went to zazzle and ordered over-sized, brightly colored business cards featuring feathers.  ($43, including rush shipping)

2.)  Built a simple website on sqaurespace ($192/year) using feather imagery from my own photo library and purchased a few from photo.com ($27) to ensure I had the proper rights to the images. A few dollars for a photo is absolutely worth not having to worry. Please inform yourselves about legalities.

3.)  Purchased 2 envelopes of inexpensive, colorful craft feathers.  ($8)  

Giving it a go.

My first testing ground for the new brand was at last week's Public Relations Society of America Counselor's Academy conference in Austin, TX. PRSA Counselor's Academy comprises many of the top public relations agency owners and executives in the country.  I was a newbie, and didn't know a single attendee. Getting them to remember me was going to be no small feat. 

In Sunday's pre-conference photography class, I made sure to incorporate some of the craft feathers into my "10 Images in 10 Minutes" assignments.  Throughout the conference I posted additional images to the group Facebook page to keep my brand top of mind.

A brand is more than a logo or catchphrase. It's how people feel about you. I needed to build awareness and foster familiarity.

Knowing feathers alone wouldn't be enough, I decided to tap into that moxie.  I wore a colorful dress in a print that resembled layers of feathers. (One that was already in the closet, so don't add that to my tab.) In our group songwriting competition, I did not shy away from a leadership role despite my intimidation.  (I taught public school for 7 years - I am programmed to organize chaos.)  

"We've Got the Power" written and performed by the S*** Kickers with considerable help from Brandon Hill www.bandingpeopletogether.com

In retrospect, I came on too strongly.  One group member later jovially called me "Hurricane Forest".  <blush>  Perhaps a little overcompensation for my nervousness. Lesson learned. But mission accomplished. People knew who I was on Day 1. Our group song won the competition, and I made sure I was front and center.

The Results, So Far

Image edited by Paul M. Bowers. 

1.) Paul Bowers, elite photographer, edited and posted one of my feather images on Monday. 

2.)  Gini Deitrich, founder of Arment Dietrich and lead blogger at Spin Sucks, included two of my photographs in a post "Four Tips to Take Photos for your Content" on Tuesday. (Over 87 comments on her informative article to date.)

After the presentation with Eric Morgenstern. So flattered!

3.) Eric Morgenstern, founder and CEO of Morningstar Communications, showcased my business card and "Be Extraordinary" tag line in his Tuesday morning presentation about attraction marketing and effective networking skills. He pointed me out to the entire room!

4.)  Engrained in the brain! Dozens of attendees later greeted me just to see if I'd reply to their salutations with "Extraordinarily well, thank you." My name and tagline were sticking. 

5.) Social Media traction. Check out a screenshots from one of the Facebook interactions. Even after the close of the conference, my BRAND was still on the brain.  To note, Dana Hughens was the Conference Chair and this was her post.

Return on Investment

Getting to know this group of people was a life changing and inspiring experience. One with immeasurable value.  Becoming a small part of the conference culture was incredibly flattering - and a mini-case study on the effectiveness of low cost personal branding and how quickly it can gain traction in a targeted market.   Not a bad return for under $300.

An Extraordinary Man

​Craig & Ashley, his incredible  wife.

       There are people who come into your life that alter it forever. Craig is one of those people, and I found him early in life.  It was a quick and extraordinary friendship.  We met in middle school and quickly formed a connection that was probably beyond either of our understanding at that age. We were just meant to shape each other's lives.  I'd like to be able to tell you dozens of stories about decades of shared vacations and camping trips with the kids. But, like many friendships whose paths get altered by geography and too-busy schedules, ours is more a song composed of decracendos interrupted by some poignant and well-timed staccatos. I could tell you dozens of hilarious tales of pre-teen idiocy, teen angst, college debauchary, and phone calls always arriving at the precise moment you needed to hear that voice.  I'd happily share.

     There are moments in life that take your breathe away. One of those moments came recently when Craig's best friend called to tell me Craig had late-stage cancer. Trust me when I say this - cancer met it's match when it decided to tangle with this family. Craig and his wife have a depth of love, a strength of faith, and a quality of character that literature and cinema could only hope to capture.  I simply stare at them in awe.  (If you doubt me, just read Ashley's daily Facebook posts to the Craig's Cause page.)  For the past few weeks I've wondered what we all do in these situations: What could I possibly do to help? Why a young father? Is sending prayers and love enough?

What does this have to do with this website?

     Having spent most of the last few days staring at this computer screen, I took a long walk with my dog around the neighborhood yesterday.  I'd already selected the feather imagery for this website, new business cards, etc. I had even written a bunch of cheesy "come take flight with me text" that I couldn't stand to read, but just couldn't delete.  I'm not really into birds, and I kept wondering why I was clinging to feathers for my new personal branding.  About ten minutes into my walk, two things hit me.

• Craig has called me "Feather" for twenty-four years.  He was the first, and is one of few.  I'm just not a nickname kind of gal.  But those who do use it are among my dearest. 
• Craig would read me passages from Lonesome Dove  by Larry McMurty over the phone for hours when I was upset, lonely, or just plain bored.  He also tricked me into thinking he had written the words himself.  (Like I said, pre-teen idiocy.) 

Without knowing it, Craig has shaped part of my life yet again. He's the kind of man that men should be.   Keep up the good fight, my friend.  There are many more years of unsung tunes ahead. 

“The older the violin, the sweeter the music.”

“It’s a fine world, though rich in hardships at times.”

“It ain’t dying I’m talking about, it’s living. I doubt it matters where you die, but it matters where you live.”

— Larry McMurty, Lonesome Dove