Sunday, December 29, 2013

As 2013 closes, a look back at 360 Convos


In looking back through the five years of writing for 360 Convos, a couple of things stuck out -- one, there's not a lot of blogging during the first month of the year.

This January post, though, I thought had a good suggestion:
Unlocking better habits is like winding a watch. You have to do it everyday. If you don't, your watch or your good habits stop. There is no battery for life to keep you on track and ticking, except your own desire. January 2011

February is a lot about social media, including this scary sounding Social Media Policy from February 2010.

March is usually a focus on business and business contacts, and one of my favorites was a conversation with an ex-newspaperman: Convo with former journalist Steve Woodward from March 2010.

April normally presents an opportunity for personal appearances: Writer and website wrangler Carol Doane to appear... from April 2012.

Best May ever for 360 Convos was 2010. That was the year the Social Media Awards of the Pacific Northwest called to say "top finalist!" No trophy came home, but the night was huge and included the Big Boys and Girls in Social Media and Me.

June includes bittersweet memories, Business smoked out, books destroyed but not the heart and demonstrates how a small business can rise through crisis like a phoenix and teach us to never give up.

July cannot slip by without a tad of humor, my favorite: More people spoke positively about kittens this week.

Never fails, but sometime during the year aggravation accumulates with the churls who think that the only way to measure the success of anything is by the numbers, how high, how big, how many, how much. You can catch an August rant in: Is spending more the only way to measure America?

September reminds us, be fully present from a blog titled Mental Cruise Control.

October presented itself with a moment in which I was humbled by my daughter's kindness to a stranger. On her personal blog she wrote a poem about her experience taking a bottle of water and a granola bar to a street beggar that was recapped in a post she called Adventure Hour and 360 Convos called, How Deep is Your Social Community.

Back in the beginning of 360 Convos, November 2009 in fact, I posted my bio. On the first go round, I did it without sharing my name. I've since overcome my Internet shyness and added About Carol Doane to the navigation bar.

December? At the moment I'm organizing the storage area and uncovering a plethora of holiday decorating items I had long forgotten. Blowing off dust sent pieces of nostalgia through the stale air of the basement and made me wish we could have Christmas all over again.

We can't.

We can only go forward, and that is the best part of a new year -- the forward momentum it gives us, the challenges we give ourselves, the need to be better than we've been and do more than we ever thought possible.

Have a magical year,


Friday, December 27, 2013

Tips for choosing an end of the year charity

The clock is ticking on 2013, but there is still time to make an end of the year donation. Consider giving both goods and cash.

Here’s some quick considerations:

Pack it up and cart it out.
Find a charity close to home and deliver a donation. The Salvation Army, Goodwill or a local ministry are good choices where your gently used goods can have a second life. In my neighborhood there is Divine Consign, Habitat for Humanity Restores, and Second Hands Thrift Shop to name a few that top the 360 Convos list.

In Portland, Oreg., one of our favorite haunts is the Community Warehouse. They have mastered the art of making the most of everything that crosses their doorstep and write some very entertaining blog posts promoting their finest and oddest donations.

But the all time favorite organization for 360 Convos is Open House Ministries. There are many reasons, including administration that labors in love with very little pay, but mostly because they are open 24 hours.

Someone is always at the front desk, so when you are done sorting and cleaning you can drop all items in the car, dash downtown, deliver and be done.

Give cash where it makes sense.
Find a charity far away from home and make a cash donation where your dollars both go far and truly go far. If you don't know where to look consider Dining for Women. They investigate their featured organizations thoroughly and monitor the results. 360 Convos featured two articles on Dining for Women:
  • Can a good dinner change the world?
  • Educate a girl, change the world.

Consider the pay of the charity’s CEO. Would reasonable people consider the administrator’s pay reasonable? The Columbian Newspaper researched nonprofit’s in SW Washington noted the top earners in an article called, Digging into Clark County nonprofits’ top earners. While the database at the end of the article is cumbersome to use, reading the article offers insight.

Consider the charity’s reputation. Have they been plagued by scandal or praised in the media?

Consider the charity’s work. Does the work align with your values? It’s pretty simple, if it makes sense to you, it makes sense to support them.

And while your thinking of donating, go to the Red Cross or SW Washington Blood Bank and make a very personal donation.

Who knows, before the year starts you may have saved up to three lives.

What other tips we can add to this list?



Thursday, December 26, 2013

Top three reasons to subscribe to 360 Convos

A recent survey disclosed the top three reasons to subscribe to 360 Convos:
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  3. Free subscription!



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