I am typically the last person to say this, but THE HELL WITH IT.  Right now I am crazy busy and don't really have time to create goals for the next year.  Does this make me a bad person?  Does this make me not ready to take on the future?  Does this make me a that Millennial that everyone is talking about?

No!

At some point you just have to take a moment and work on what you are doing now.  I spent most of my college career and the past 2 years working on where my future is going.  And beginning right now, right this minute I am going to do just what I am doing now and not think about the future past my wedding day on April 25, 2009.  I am going to trust that the planning I have done so far has brought me to where I need to be.

Right now, I am going to blog, class, League, YNPN, wedding plan, and work.  All of these things I have put in place to create a future for myself, and right now I am going to just do them and not worry about setting long term goals until I am done with my masters and until I am married (that just brings on a whole new life).

I am not going to make a personal mission statement, I know what I stand for right now.

I am not going to write down a bunch of goals to reach by the end of the year, I know all of them already.

I am not going to examine every opportunity based on where it will get me in the future, I am going to do what is right for me right now.

I feel secure where I am right now and instead of worrying about what I am going to do after my masters, what next job I am going to have, or what board I am going to be on next, I am going to just live for what I am doing right now.  I don't have to have my entire life planned before it happens.

Woot!  Just writing this post makes me feel better.  I challenge all of you who read this, and whom aren't in a transitional period (I am lucky to be in a stable spot right now) to stop thinking so far ahead just for a moment. I think it's going to be a glorious next few months!  What do you think?  Is it all possible?

I hear all the time "it's important to declutter your work space and home to get the most work done and to be stress free". This rule applies to my reading list as well. I tend to get anxiety over the amount of books or blogs on my list. There is an easy way to remedy this... I have to delete some of them from the list.

It's hard, I just want to read everything, but over my life time I will get to everything important. The things I set aside become less-a-d less important over time. So don't worry if you put something at the bottom of your list, you will get to it when you are supposed to. Well I guess unless you are completely procrastinating! And if you don't get to it, it must not have been that important.

To help keep my reading lists in order and to destress my reading time, I:

Eliminate blogs from my list I haven't read in a while, and books I don't ever think about reading or keep getting pushed down. This is hard to do, because half the time I think I will want to read it eventually or maybe something good will be in the blog next week. Well let's face it, if you have had a blog or a book in your list for two months and have been completely disinterested by it, you may never be.

Put books in a list (such as zoho.com or backpack) with a date and subject. By doing this you can read books according to subjects you are interested in at that time, and if a book is on your list for a year or more you can eliminate it. Here's a look at my booklist, I currently don't have dates but intend to put a date in next to every book I put on the list from now on.

Put blogs in folder or lists. This way you know which ones to read right now, which ones you like to read for fun, etc. I read once that the best thing to do is create a folder of blogs that says "Read Everyday". I personally like to just have mine in categories, but figure out what works best for you. Here's another look into my lists. As you can see I have a lot to read but organizing them helps me keep up with the ones I need to read now.

Lastly, when reading blogs, eliminate the unappealing ones first. When I go through my huge blog list I make a quick scan of all the titles and eliminate those that I don't think will interest me at all. Then I go back and read the entire blog. If it doesn't capture my attention in the first few paragraphs I don't continue to read.

Is there anything you do to keep your mind and workspaces uncluttered? I love all the helpful hints.

This week's resources contain some I have been saving up for a while and it's a day late.

• Women Entrepreneurs Just as Successful, But Less Confident in Start-up
• An AARP For Millennials?
• The Challenge of Social Entrepreneurs - Business Ethics - Leadership - Google.org
• Up All Night? How to Recover from Entrepreneur Insomnia
• Perspectives From the Pipeline: Podcast Interview With Robert Egger
• Five Common Mistakes People Make When Starting Up a Small Business: And how to steer clear of them |
• microfranchising: OneRoof swinging for the fence
• growing changing learning creating: Starts with a feeling
• New Voices Of Philanthropy: What Would Kiva Do (WWKD)?
• The Entrepreneurial Mind: Not All Good Ideas, are Good Ideas
• Home Biz Notes
  • Although this article is written for small business, it fits well with those wanting to start social entrepreneurships too.
• Social Business Blog: Becoming a Social Entrepreneur
• Smart Communities: Poverty Solutions Must Include the Community
• sam davidson: Attention Nonprofits: Watch Out for the Social Entrepreneurs
• Real social entrepreneurship - Columns
• Idealware: Should Your Nonprofit Use Social Networking Sites?

I just got finished reading Grassroots Philanthropy. I have been meaning to read it for awhile; thought it would a good look at entrepreneurs in the foundation world. I will have to say it was a good first look!

It was refreshing to hear someone from a foundation talk about real community change, while taking risks on the areas of the community that need it the most. From what I have heard about most foundations, they are stuck a lot like many nonprofits are. There have to be changes made in both nonprofits that do the service and those that fund it, and Bill Somerville provides his readers with some great ideas for how to make those changes in the foundation field.

Somerville doesn't hold back when describing his experiences in the foundation field. He has had some unique ones as a foundation director and shares them, along with his very strong ideals about how foundations should be run.

Somerville gives five flaws of lackluster philanthropy. Most of which are not very surprising. And provides his readers, he states as all foundation employees, with fixes to each of them.

His five fixes include:

1. Locate outstanding people doing great work. Somerville says get out of the office, don't wait for the good grants to come to you. He believes many foundations are missing out on great opportunities.
2. Move quickly (and shred paper) - he suggests getting rid of most of the application process and setting up systems to respond more quickly to all applicants.
3. Embrace risk - simply, don't be afraid to fail.
4. Focus on ideas instead of problems - look for solutions.
5. Take initiative - don't wait for organizations to create the solutions or the programs the community needs, create these opportunities yourself.

These flaws and fixes are just a small glimpse of what foundation professionals can get from Somerville's book. It's also a very insightful read for nonprofit professionals looking to get a little insight on innovative practices in foundations. His book is a good reminder of the struggle foundations have for staying new and fresh, for providing real solutions for our countries problems.

I recommend this book as a quick summer read, with great information on how to keep your organization or foundation entrepreneurial and relevant to your community's needs.

So, what is a Meme you ask? A meme is like an internet chain letter, with depth. One blogger posts a topic or call to action, then tags 5-10 other people to follow suite and add to the ‘meme.’ I decided it may be fun to participate, especially since the book sitting next to me now is one I have been reading in phases for two years.

Here is what I am supposed to do:

1. Pick up the nearest book.
2. Open to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people, and acknowledge who tagged you.

The book I have is Anna Karenina and I seriously have been reading it for about two years. It's a fantastic book but long. Every time I start reading it I really get into it, knock out another 200 pages and then something else takes my attention. I am determined to finish it by the end of the summer.

Here's my meme (and I'm not cheating like Social Butterfly ;) ):

'Well, what of it? I don't understand...'

'Maybe Kitty refused him?...She didn't tell you?'

'No, she told me nothing either about the one or about the other. She's too proud. But I know it's all because of that...'

The conversation is part of a story relating to Kitty a young socialite in Russia that refused a proposal for love, something not done during this time in history.

I suggest the reading if you have the time to devote to it.

I tag:

Have Fun • Do Good

Amy Sample Ward’s Version of NPTech

The Raiser's Razor

Never the Same River Twice

ALEXANDER PASCHKA

]]> http://socialcitizen.wordpress.com/?p=115 Tue, 27 May 2008 15:15:16 +0000 socialcitizen http://socialcitizen.wordpress.com/?p=115 Last week I wrote about the need to be heard in the workplace and how many Gen Yers feel the same way.

To follow up, I just ran across this article from Harvard Business Journal, written by a Baby Boomer, about how he needs to listen to Millennials more. Thank you Mr. Bronwyn Fryer!

I can't speak for all Millennials, but I know I don't know everything, but I think I have a tendency to think outside the box and sometimes I do have good ideas!

It is almost hard for me to write this post, considering over the past year or so I have been working on gaining my confidence in my career, but I think if my opinion was validated sometimes I may feel better about the ideas I do have.  And in the end gain the confidence that will make me a better employee where ever I end up.

I am sure through out my life I will have many very bad ideas, many that kind of work, and some that are actually a home run.  For now I would just like some of my thoughts to be listened to.

I have heard from other Millennials that feel they are not being validated in the workplace by their older peers either.  It is hard to gain their trust and as soon as one little mistake is made you feel like you have to start all over.  Don't get me wrong I have some older peers that would love to hear what I have to say and trust me to get things done, but there are always those few that I don't feel validated by.

For now all I want is to be part of the conversation.  Joining the conversation not only helps me to feel a little more confident in my work, I will also be learning from the problem solving minds of others. 

Although it may seem like jumping through hoops sometimes, it is also important for younger staff members to put themselves in the situations where they can be part of the conversations.  We have to prove ourselves & gain trust.  Everyone has to prove themselves at some point and we can't always believe everything will be handed to us.  We have to work for it!

Millennials may enter the workforce with confidence, but our older peers don't always see us in the same way.  Now are the formidable years for our generation, and we have to make the most of them and prove that we can run these organizations some day.

To my older peers I would like to say, "Just ask me."

The CivicMinded Companion - Dictionary for nonprofits, philanthropy, civic engagement
This article defines social citizen. A formal definition? Since I started my blog I have noticed the phrase around more often, I should probably relate that to Google Alerts. I wonder how many people are using the formal definition?

Bay Area Studios Blog: SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR
A quick example of why social entrepreneurship is becoming more popular.

der Trans Gen
This blog explains the innovative efforts at COF 2008 for introducing individuals to Next Generation leaders and those that support them.

microfranchising: CareShops in Ghana: Conversion Microfranchises
Example of a good microfranchising program & social entrepreneurship.

Rise of Piggy Bank Philanthropists
"Do gooder" Millennials are on the rise. A blog from another Social Citizens blog. This whole blog has some great articles.

This blogger justified Sam Walton as a social entrepreneur:

Sam Walton started with a very basic idea of offering the community what they needed and wanted straight after the Second World War - stores that offer goods at the lowest possible prices and that stayed open later during key holidays. He passed on the saving he made from buying from lowest priced suppliers to his customers. A basic social need of the time developed into a business model social entrepreneurs have duplicated ever since - give people what the need at a price they can afford. If it works, give it to more people.

Alright, so maybe Mr. Walton started out with the idea of giving the community something they needed, low cost goods, but what happened?

I would not consider anyone who creates a business such as this to be a social entrepreneur just because they see a need in the community. I would call Mr. Walton and others like him "smart profiteers", who have taken their idea too far, and have now destroyed the community's they originally wanted to "help" (as the blogger stated).

To the bloggers credit, he/she does say later in the article:

The challenge for most companies is to remember why they started in the first place and ask themselves - are we still serving a social need? And for our future growth - what social need can we serve to continue to grow as a company, still be socially relevant and needed by society.

I am hoping through this statement the blogger was trying to say, Mr. Walton may have once been a social entrepreneur, but he forgot about his roots.

There are two lessons to learn from this article, one about corporate social entrepreneurship, and the other about selling goods in nonprofit organizations.

1. Many corporations are taking on social enterprise efforts, giving back to communities in a new way, by returning profits to their mission, to do more good. I am just cautioning these organizations to look at Walmart. If it's true that Mr. Walton created Walmart because he truly wanted people to get what they needed, even if they couldn't afford it; then it is up to these corporations to keep themselves socially responsible. It's alright to expand your efforts, as long as it's not at the expense of small nonprofits, who tend to be closer to the people, and as long as it doesn't mean destroying communities in the long run.

2. The second lesson is for nonprofits taking on fee for service efforts or selling items to offset the costs of their services. These ideas are fantastic, as social entrepreneurs, it is important to take these types of risks and to be innovative in gaining revenue, but you can't be so innovative you start to forget about your mission. Ask Peter Brinckerhoff about this one. I get scared sometimes seeing all the pink groceries and tools you can buy related to Breast Cancer Awareness. I am a supporter of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and I hope they are not so worried about their next product they are not actually raising awareness about the disease of breast cancer or the research taking place.

I am a strong supporter of social entrepreneurship (I think you already know that), I just hope the idea of being one doesn't just become something "everyone's doing". It's important for social entrepreneurs to weigh the affects of everything they do on their mission.

Have you seen any other organizations/corporations getting out of hand with their new social enterprise, fee for service, or next brilliant idea?

There's only a short list this week.

Social Entrepreneurship

Social Entrepreneurship: New Approaches to Changing the World | Tactical Philanthropy
- A fantastic summary of a social entrepreneurship panel at the Council on Foundations Conference this week. The panel featured some heavy hitters in the social entrepreneurship role.

HeraldNet: Social entrepreneurs think outside the box
- An article defining social entrepreneurship.

Social Enterprise

Social enterprise is the future of non-profit organizations : Fifth Quarter
- According to this article, social enterprise is the funding source of the future for nonprofits. I agree! Read this article for helpful hints on starting your own social enterprise.

ISC | Social Entrepreneurship
- Creating social enterprise in transitional countries.

Others

Have Fun • Do Good: Interviews with 30 Social Changemakers: Big Vision Podcast 2nd Anniversary
- 30 podcast interviews of social changemakers.

Tristram Hunt: The business of giving
- An article about corporate giving.

This blogger justified Sam Walton as a social entrepreneur:

Sam Walton started with a very basic idea of offering the community what they needed and wanted straight after the Second World War - stores that offer goods at the lowest possible prices and that stayed open later during key holidays. He passed on the saving he made from buying from lowest priced suppliers to his customers. A basic social need of the time developed into a business model social entrepreneurs have duplicated ever since - give people what the need at a price they can afford. If it works, give it to more people.

Alright, so maybe Mr. Walton started out with the idea of giving the community something they needed, low cost goods, but what happened?

I would not consider anyone who creates a business such as this to be a social entrepreneur just because they see a need in the community. I would call Mr. Walton and others like him "smart profiteers", who have taken their idea too far, and have now destroyed the community's they originally wanted to "help" (as the blogger stated).

To the bloggers credit, he/she does say later in the article:

The challenge for most companies is to remember why they started in the first place and ask themselves - are we still serving a social need? And for our future growth - what social need can we serve to continue to grow as a company, still be socially relevant and needed by society.

I am hoping through this statement the blogger was trying to say, Mr. Walton may have once been a social entrepreneur, but he forgot about his roots.

There are two lessons to learn from this article, one about corporate social entrepreneurship, and the other about selling goods in nonprofit organizations.

1. Many corporations are taking on social enterprise efforts, giving back to communities in a new way, by returning profits to their mission, to do more good. I am just cautioning these organizations to look at Walmart. If it's true that Mr. Walton created Walmart because he truly wanted people to get what they needed, even if they couldn't afford it; then it is up to these corporations to keep themselves socially responsible. It's alright to expand your efforts, as long as it's not at the expense of small nonprofits, who tend to be closer to the people, and as long as it doesn't mean destroying communities in the long run.

2. The second lesson is for nonprofits taking on fee for service efforts or selling items to offset the costs of their services. These ideas are fantastic, as social entrepreneurs, it is important to take these types of risks and to be innovative in gaining revenue, but you can't be so innovative you start to forget about your mission. Ask Peter Brinckerhoff about this one. I get scared sometimes seeing all the pink groceries and tools you can buy related to Breast Cancer Awareness. I am a supporter of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and I hope they are not so worried about their next product they are not actually raising awareness about the disease of breast cancer or the research taking place.

I am a strong supporter of social entrepreneurship (I think you already know that), I just hope the idea of being one doesn't just become something "everyone's doing". It's important for social entrepreneurs to weigh the affects of everything they do on their mission.

Have you seen any other organizations/corporations getting out of hand with their new social enterprise, fee for service, or next brilliant idea?