NKY Women’s Initiative
January 28, 2010
Today I joined 399 other local women at the SOLD OUT Kickoff event for the Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce Women’s Initiative. What an experience! LUCRUM’s own Suzanne Lorch is the Chair of the Women’s Initiative. In the last year, she and 50 other women who live/work/conduct business in NKY decided that the focus of the group should be “to help women Connect…Grow…Achieve”.
The programming over the coming months will include a monthly Happy Hour, mentoring programs and roundtable discussions. Additionally, they are establishing an on-line directory for their members which will include other women’s groups and organizations with similar missions.
The Keynote Speaker today was Maribeth Rahe, CEO & President of Fort Washington Investment Advisiors, Inc. She provided the group with her wisdom on how to succeed in business. She provided the group with these 13 pearls of wisdom:
The Rule of 13
- Be strong, not weak.
- Always be willing to do what is right for your company, your clients, your colleagues, and your community.
- Learn from experience – both yours and that of others.
- Be open minded, flexible, and change-oriented.
- Never settle for the status quo or anything expedient.
- Learn to trust your instincts.
- Earn your stripes, daily.
- Measure your performance.
- Support your team personally and professionally.
- Be encouraging, not negative.
- Celebrate success.
- Say “Thank you”.
- Think before your speak or act.
Thanks to Suzanne and Maribeth and all of the other wonderful contributors to the event. Hope to see you at the next one!
- Jodie
LUCRUM Radio – Episode 11, Daniel Johnson Jr.
September 25, 2008
Daniel Johnson Jr. is one of the most prolific users of social media in the Cincinnati region. Daniel is the founder of New Media Cincinnati, an avid blogger, podcaster, Facebook member, Twitter user, and participant in numerous other web platforms.
Daniel is successfully utilizing social media to make human connections – using the web to amplify his traditional networking activities. In doing so, Daniel has built a loyal and large following of friends and colleagues both locally and nationally.
In this episode of LUCRUM radio, Daniel shares his thoughts on the value of social media. He discusses how he got started blogging, and why he has continued to stay engaged in the process of creating and participating in conversations on the web. Daniel also offers some great tips for managing time and creating content on the web, as well as his strategy for maintaining multiple sites and platforms. (He has multiple blogs and 5 Twitter accounts and keeps them all on track)
Thanks to Daniel for taking the time to share his thoughts with us. It was great fun and very enlightening.
Listen in on this episode of LUCRUM Radio…
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Golf Anyone?
June 24, 2008
Golf and business. Business and golf. There are definitely two schools of thought on this topic. There are the avid golfers that SWEAR more business gets done on a golf course than in the office and then there are the non golfers who absolutely scoff at that idea.
I was part of the 2nd group for most of my sales career and I have done pretty ok without golf. I think Mark Twain said “golf is a terrible way to ruin a good walk.” For most of my life I was in total agreement with Mark on this one.
But I guess if I am brutally honest with myself I have always been curious about the “golfer.” I was probably even a bit jealous and here is why.
I have been on sales calls with coworkers or former bosses and I have witnessed with my own eyes a conversation between a potential prospect and the sales person go from lackluster to love when one asked the other “do you golf?” and the other said “yes!”
From that point forward, whatever these two individuals were discussing before this question was broached was just completely forgotten and the next hour would be spent talking about this golf course or that one, this new driver they just bought, or the “hole in one” they almost had on Tuesday and on and on and on…..I would just roll my eyes and wonder how in the world this happens? What is the allure of this sport?
Well, recently I had the chance to give this sport a chance. I was involved in a scramble with a bunch of girls who really didn’t keep score just wanted to socialize and get out in the sun and enjoy the day. It was very non threatening way to try it so I did.
Well folks, it has been a month since that first round and I will have to tell you that I have played almost every week and I cannot wait to do it again!
I guess there is something to be said for being on a beautiful course – no cars, no noise just trees and gorgeous grass for miles. It truly does have a way of taking your mind off the daily grind.
It is pretty tough too! I am amazed how on one hole on the course I can look like Tiger Woods (okay maybe not that good but not bad) and the next hole I am trying to figure a way to put 15 strokes on my score card without anyone noticing (yep – 15 strokes – did that!) I guess the unpredictability keeps you honest and it keeps the game interesting that is for sure.
But mostly I am excited that I can now answer yes when the golf question is inevitably going to be asked by one of my prospects over lunch.
Believe it or not, it is working – business and golf. I have a prospect that I have been working really hard to find common ground with and guess what – I have it – GOLF! He is spending more time with me now than he has in the past. I can talk the talk with him and it is fun!
So I guess as I move into the 2nd part of my life I am going to have to disagree with Mark Twain on this one. Golf is actually making my good walk a lot less boring!
LÛCRUM Calendar – Networking Made Easy
March 7, 2008
Do you think that networking is valuable? How about educational seminars. I do. One of the most difficult parts of networking is just knowing where to go. In this day and age business people are so busy, that combing the web for events to attend just isn’t a practical use of time. Still, you know that going to networking events and meeting new friends and acquaintances is one of the best way to build your business. Well, what if all of the networking event in Cincinnati, Dayton, and Northern Kentucky were on one, easy to find, easy to read, regularly updated calendar? Would that be valuable to you? Chances are the answer is yes. In our quest to try to make life better by using technology, we offer the LUCRUM Calendar. This one calendar is full of events from around town. Certainly we have a wealth of IT events, but it does not stop there. The calendar features events from area chambers, professional organizations, and more. It is a one stop networking shop. Give it a look. Is there an organization missing or an event you think we need to add? Let us know. We are always trying to improve what we do, and your feedback is valued. Thanks and enjoy the calendar. Hope to see you soon at a networking function.
Calendar | TheFutureValueofBusiness.com
Recession-Proof Your Software Development Career
February 28, 2008
Some time ago I answered the LinkedIn question, “What does networking mean to you?” Suzette West, a west-coast real estate broker, asked the question, and she marked my response the best answer. Here is how I responded:
For me, networking is local. Although I have global and regional reach through LinkedIn and social networking sites, my most valuable contacts are local. Local, that is, through my sphere of influence. Folks I reach out to gain some level of immediate trust due to my proximity to them, whether geographical or relational. Then, it’s up to me to take the first step and add value.
Because most of my most valuable networking relationships are also geographically local, part of my next step is a face-to-face meeting. Connecting with the best-of-the-best becomes very difficult without a face-to-face meeting. Of course this takes time, effort, and generally some small amount of money for coffee or lunch. And when we meet I’m looking for ways I can offer them value. If my colleague understands networking, I’ll quickly receive value from them. If not, then I’ll follow up our conversation with email or a phone call when I have the ability to offer more value. Eventually my colleague will catch on and begin offering value to others as part of the cycle.
So my philosophy towards networking is, “What can I give?” I view my role as building community and bringing others together. I subscribe to the notion of what goes around comes around, and I’ve been amazed more than once at what has come around to me when I’ve least expected it. I suppose another way to look at this is, those who are the luckiest work the hardest.
That’s what networking means to me.
Networking is having value and then giving that value away. It’s serving. It’s mentoring. Networking is sharing for the benefit of others. It’s looking for ways to help without an expected reward. Suzette and I share this philosophy and have since become long-distance friends encouraging each other’s networking activities.
I look to serve the Cincinnati IT software developer community. My goal is to strengthen this community and make it a place that people want to be a part of. I devote most of my time and energy bringing folks in this community together. And I’ve been able to watch a number of other folks do the same thing.
I especially look around at local developer events that take place about 10 times a month and think of folks like Mike Wood, Kishore Subramanyam, Mark Windholtz, Melissa Messersmith, and Marco Morena. These folks lead local user groups and spend countless unseen hours organizing, preparing, and presenting in order to bring the most valuable information to our local community. Why? Because they believe in our IT community. Do they ask for thanks? No. In fact, these folks usually give things away at their events on top of all the time they spend. Because they are givers.
Here is a snippet of an email that Natasha Allie recently sent me:
Networking is defined as developing an extended group of people with similar interests or concerns who interact and remain in informal contact for mutual assistance or support. It needs to start well before you need something. Indeed, it is a continuous long-term proposition that’s about building positive win-win relationships. We live in an unpredictable world. We don’t know when a recession will hit, if we’ll lose our job, or if a contract will be cut short. We don’t know if our skills will be relevant or if we’ll outgrow our current careers. Having a strong network helps us deal with those eventualities. A network is a safety net. If you’ve done your job well, developed relationships, given more than you’ve received and kept in touch, your network will have no problem helping and supporting you when you need it most. Eighty-five percent of all jobs are filled through personal references and contacts. It’s how you meet future clients, employers, life long friends and business partners. It’s how you find amazing employees, unearth tremendous opportunities and learn how to transition your career. It’s also how you establish information avenues, solve problems and mentor other people. Networking accelerates your career and business success.
I don’t know how accurate the statistics are, but I do know that software developers generally don’t pay attention to their network “well before [they] need something.” And many do not spend time, at least professionally, giving to their network more than they receive. My understanding may not be entirely quantifiable. My first-hand experience is. I attend quite a few of the Cincinnati IT community events, and I probably meet or see a total of 200 people a month. I would bet this is about 5% of the total community.
So my admonition, especially in the face of a recession, is to start to understand networking. Get out there and give of yourself a little. You have a job today? Great! That is the best time to start. So you’re introverted or shy? That’s okay, too. Find me at an event. I’ll start a conversation with you. I’ll also introduce you to the folks you should probably get to know. Consider yourself having an insider that wants to show you the ropes. These events give the developer community an opportunity to network together, branch out, and build relationships outside of their glass-walled corporate towers. I bet you’ll see that you’ll be welcomed. And when you *need* your network, you’ll be glad you came.
- Andy