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Holiday Productivity Tip: Rest
It’s important to rest. It’s important to rest. It’s important to rest. I’m working on actually believing this. There is something in me that equates rest with laziness. Can you relate? Probably some deep insecurity I have. The fact is, that we all need to rest. A friend of mine once shared with me the importance of having periods of rest, rhythms annually, monthly, and weekly that include rest. This particular person takes a day off each week. Crazy! I know. So I come, as a fellow struggler in this area, to say to you this week, “You need to take a break.” So spend some time doing things that…
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Job Idea #1: Dishware Rental
A few years ago I was hosting an event for about 40-50 people. It was going to be a nice dinner with real plates and silverware. The only problem was that the location we were renting didn’t have plates and silverware. What did we do? First I priced renting plates, silverware, glasses, bowls, salad plates, tablecloths, etc. Then I went to Walmart to see what it would cost to buy these things. Turns out, if we ended up hosting two dinners for 50 people, we would pay the same at Walmart as we would for renting these things. The Job Idea: Go buy 50 settings for a nice dinner and…
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5 Tips for Year-End Gifts
If you are like me, you are probably preparing to send a check (or two or three) to your favorite charity in the coming week. Either you are catching up or you are pulled by a serious need that you can help meet. Whatever the reason, you are choosing to make a difference in the lives of others by giving financially. Here are some tips: 1) Monthly – After you give your year-end gifts, consider joining your favorite charity’s monthly financial support team. These commited givers form the core of every nonprofit. 2) Pick One – Rather than dividing up your donations over many charities, consider giving a larger donation to…
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How to Stop Being a Hoarder
I’m kind of a hoarder. You wouldn’t know it if you came to my house, but it is in my genes. My grandfather was a hoarder. My dad was a hoarder. I just can’t seem to let go of things. This includes physical stuff or information. On the latter, Evernote allows me to keep all kinds of information in one place (there is my Evernote plug for this post). I am. I am a hoarder. I have begun making some changes in this area of my life. A couple reasons for this are… 1) I don’t use most of the stuff. 2) I can’t find my stuff. (This is when…
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Job Ideas: An Introduction
“I have an idea.” This is pretty much my favorite phrase. I use it nearly everyday. It’s possible that I have a problem. I love dreaming…envisioning how things could be. Change is something that I, like many people, hate and love, all at the same time. When I see a problem, though, I want to fix it. In the end, I want to leave this world a better place. One of the ways this plays out is in career ideas. Whether it be in the nonprofit realm or for friends not happy with their present employment situation, I love coming up with ideas. If I had a bunch of money…
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Blogging Tip #3: Feed Yourself
I still have a lot to learn in regards to this whole blogging thing. As I am working on consistency and narrowing down my social media, I have found there is yet another key component…great content. Not that I have arrived, but it is definitely and underlying goal to produce better content. How does one do this? Consistency is step one for this. Step two requires one to be feasting on great content. As the old adage goes, Garbage In Garbage Out. If I want to produce writing worth reading, I need to be feasting on the good stuff. There is more though. In our information age, we are not lacking…
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2015 Goals: Get Specific
Have you started moving toward your goals for 2015? Previously I posted getting started with your 2015 Goals and making those goals SMART. Alright, time to get specific with some next steps to get from A to B. Goal: Lose 20 lbs by October 1st, 2015. 2014 Current Reality Very light morning exercise daily for 15 minutes. Limited desserts. Mostly drink tea (no sugar) and water. Drink some smoothies each week for lunch/dinner. 2015 Changes Continue morning exercise as is. Run 3 times a week. Start light on this and build up. No desserts. Only drink tea (no sugar) and water. Drink 3-5 smoothies a week for lunch/dinner. March 1st, see…
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When Words Fail Anyways: The Language of Pain, Suffering and Healing
Recently I had the opportunity to take a faith tour through Turkey. Many great stories to share. I’ll just pick one. First thing you have to know is that Turks are extremely hospitable people. Their kindness and generosity knows no bounds. It is not uncommon to meet a Turk and find yourself staying in their home that evening. This actually happen to me on this trip! Back to the story. I was walking with a friend down the streets of a small Turkish city. We came upon an old Turkish couple who spoke no English (and neither of us spoke Turkish). They invited us in for tea. The man was…
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Now Make Your Goals SMART
Previously I shared my plan to start my goals for 2015 this week. I left you with the assignment to narrow down to 1-3 of your own. Did you do it? Here is one of my 3 goals: Lose Weight. I have another personal goal and just one professional goal. I’ll stick to talking about losing weight for the purposes of this post, though. I have a good goal, but it has a couple problems. How will I actually accomplish this goal? Also, how will I know I have accomplished this goal? When will I know I’m done? I need to make my goal what Michael Hyatt calls SMART. Specific Measurable Actionable…