What I Wish I'd Known 20+ Years Ago

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Words of wisdom from alumnae of the 1970's-90's to 2000's-'13, based on our successes, failures, experiences, yearnings and hopes.  I'm indebted to Barbara Laskey Weinreich for regularly hosting this gathering of women and to Karen Berlin Ishii for compiling this wisdom. Please pass it along - and add to it!

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  • Show, don't tell.
  • Know what you can control.
  • Show up! Be double-booked, put more stuff on your calendar than you can possibly do.
  • Use your skills and interests. The more you say it, you become it. Volunteer! Engage!
  • Be your own best advocate. Don't wait for someone to come along and say that you can do it; tell them yourself!
  • Don't be afraid to fail.
  • You can have it all, do it all, be it all – but not all three at once.
  • Just because you are good with people, does not mean you are necessarily a good manager.
  • It's good to feel a little out of your depth; that means you are learning something.
  • Ask people to talk to you. Talk to anyone who'll do so. Ask. Say thank-you.
  • Don't be afraid of men. It helps you understand and learn from them.
  • Take a 6 month "independent study" time off from your career.
  • Change on a dime by putting in a nickel.
  • Go into  a ….  experience.
  • Love yourself and those around you.
  • Ask for help.
  • Be gentle with yourself.
  • Take a leap and don't ever say you can't do that. (the men don't!)
  • Life's short: only do the things you want to do in it. Say "yes" more to hard things you want to do and "no" to those that you don't like.
  • Do something you're motivated in or you'll go crazy.
  • If you believe it can be that awesome, it can be that awesome.
  • Don't be surprised by your successes.
  • There's never a good time to have children - just do it!

 What would you add? Please share....

 

Changing One Thing Changes Everything

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Many of you are now familiar with the wisdom of my friend Jessica Esch.  Her posts on this blog always get a ton of hits.  I thought it was time you learned more about her, and how that could impact your organization...read, learn, and answer her question.
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In 2011, I pitched a new job at my old job and became a full-time illustrator and storyteller for a non-profit. I founded United Way of Greater Portland’s LUbrary—the LIVE UNITED storytelling library—and forever fused my personal and professional lives.

My job was to distill complexity and draw people into the organization by explaining the issues, describing the work, and highlighting the great things happening in our community.

It was all good in theory.

But telling stories was the easy part. Having them seen and heard was more challenging. Content strategy became my job too. And then it started to take over as I became responsible for crafting engagement strategies to show others internally and externally how our stories could support their work.

Seeing the world differently is not the same as changing it. It can be lonely, frustrating and a little like climbing Everest without a Sherpa.

So I wrote about it.

I wrote it all down because I knew I was onto something. I knew that how you engage online could impact behavior offline in the physical world.

I needed allies.

I needed to find my tribe.

I uploaded Online Affects Offline: Learnings From the Field to Flickr using sets as chapters on July 4 as a declaration of my independence. I've chosen to let people read it for free because I need their attention more than their money. It covers my love of social media and obsession with photo management to the lifecycle of events and what it is like to try to change an organization from the inside. It’s a work in progress as well as a beacon for my tribe.

Are you my tribe?

Read Jessica's book here: http://bit.ly/onlineaffectsoffline

Find Jessica here: Twitter (@jesch30), Facebook, Website