From Panicked to Productive: How to Lighten Your Load While Getting Your Om On

Welcome to this week’s Association Chat, your weekly online discussion for the association community where we warm ourselves by the virtual fire with the topics of the day, welcoming thought leaders and trailblazers alike to join up in this online home for the community.

I am your host, KiKi L’Italien, CEO of Amplified Growth digital marketing and longtime host of this weekly chat that has been around since 2009 on Twitter, Blab, and now Huzza.

This Week’s Show.

It seems like everyone is talking about mindfulness and business, incorporating meditation and exercise, using apps like Headspace, and trying to remember to be grateful while also navigating the day-to-day hassles like scheduling meetings, writing reports, and optimizing communication...not to mention stacking all of that on top of family obligations and professional development. It’s overwhelming.

My guests today are no stranger to these complications and they even have some ideas to share with how to navigate them. In fact, the three of us are presenting a session at ASAE Annual called “From Panicked to Productive: How to Lighten Your Load While Getting Your Om On” which is – we hope – going to be a lot of fun and practical for people.

Cynthia D’Amour has worked with association leaders and staff to get more members involved using a marketing-savvy leadership approach for over 20 years. She is a frequent speaker at leadership conferences and conventions adding lots of can-do, high-energy fun to the events.

Scott Oser also comes with over 20 years of experience in the association and publishing industries, focusing on marketing with a special kind of savvy in developing, implementing and analyzing multi-channel direct marketing programs. He also speaks at many conferences and events and I should mention that both Cynthia and Scott publish articles frequently and Cynthia has written 7 books at this point.

Today’s chat is not a copy of what we’re doing in Salt Lake City for ASAE Annual 2016, but it is a chance for us to chat a bit about some of the philosophies, habits, and questions surrounding this topic. It’s also a chance for us to go into a little more depth on some of our experiences and tricks that can't make it to the official presentation, but are still important to share. Enjoy!

Upcoming Events and Association Chats.

• Do you know a young executive worthy of being named a TRENDS 2016 Young & Aspiring Association Professional? Please consider nominating him or her. Thanks! http://www.associationtrends.com/news/trends/commentary/nominate-trends-young-aspiring-association-professional @TRENDStweets
• In DC? Stay on top of some fun educational and networking events produced by area volunteers at http://www.meetup.com/Association-Networking-Group-ANEX/ #happyhour #networking
• Share your ideas on topics and speakers for future Association Chats at: http://bit.ly/1KnDATN #assnchat

8/2/2016	Association Analytics	How to Get the Best ROI Out of Data Analytics
8/9/2016	Tom Morrison	When Uber Meets Associations
8/16/2016	LIVE SHOW	LIVE at ASAE Annual
8/23/2016	JP Moery	Association Leadership – What I Know For Sure

You can check out upcoming chats at Huzza Channel: huzza.io/kikilitalien

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The Price of Honesty

Honesty can be really expensive. At least it seems like it. Because if I were to tell you a list of truths, you might make decisions about me that were not necessarily pleasant. For example:

I hate exercise.
I'm bored with green juice and the entire juicing craze.
I like wine - probably a little too much.
I'm productive from 7:30 am until about noon, and then the wheels fall off.
I love writing. I hate writing. Then I love writing again.
I procrastinate by reading articles about procrastination.

However, honesty can be misleading. Just like some people lie by leaving out part of the information, sometimes honesty leaves out pertinent information that can color this "truth."

I hate exercise. But I love dancing.
I'm bored with green juice and the entire juicing craze. Though I drank green juice this very morning.
I like wine - probably a little too much. I can't help but prefer to have a glass or two with dinner.
I'm productive from 7:30 am until about noon, and then the wheels fall off. I try to make myself more productive by using the last part of the day for calls and emails.
I love writing. I hate writing. Then I love writing again. At least I'm passionate about it.!
I procrastinate by reading articles about procrastination. Who doesn't?

I've been grappling with the question of transparency and authenticity lately. Advice for business from people I know varies wildly from, "always tell people you are doing great - no one wants to do business with a loser," to "have the courage to be honest and people will respond to that honesty."

My tendency is toward  the latter. I expose a lot. Maybe too much. Maybe not enough.

Recently, I went to New Media Expo (#NMX) in Las Vegas. This conference is for bloggers and podcasters - content creators of all types really - and it fed my soul. Although I haven't written in my blog for a while I realized that I still self-identify as a blogger and the only difference between feeling guilty about that and not is my writing a post more often.

Pat Flynn was one of the presenters there. He is a lot of things now: business owner, podcaster, passive income guru, author, and speaker. More than all that, he is astonishingly REAL. He shares his financial information, about the way he makes money, with everyone online. He spoke about authenticity with Cliff Ravenscraft at #NMX and it was the most powerful session I witnessed. They were both a refreshing change of pace from the typical do-whatever-it-takes-to-make-the-sale old-school nastiness I'm sick of. Pat seems happy and at peace with himself.

One thing I had to recognize for myself was that I'm happier creating ways to communicate with people, than not...usually using something like video to do so. I decided I want to pick up podcasting again (I miss doing the Social Media Sweet Spot) even if it is just for fun and not related to business.

All of this is to say that I am going to be testing out some podcasting ideas. If they stick, they stick. If not, I'm not going to worry about it. But I will be sharing them here on my blog, if you are interested.

What truth are you not telling? Do you think honesty really is the best policy or are there reasons to "keep your cards close to your chest?"

Non-Negotiable Time

Are you tired of the rat race and sick to death of your job and everything about it ESPECIALLY as we approach 2013? Fierce guru for women entrepreneurs, Marie Forleo, talks about her NNT (non-negotiable time) that she uses to avoid burnout and it really got me thinking. The holidays tend to overwhelm many of us (I am no exception) and so any ideas of ways to combat fatigue catch my attention. Forleo's NNT topic actually got me thinking so much that I took this idea of NNT over to my new community, Amplified Growth: A Group For Women Entrepreneur's so I could get their feedback.

So what's NNT all about? NNT consists of things you do for yourself on a daily basis to keep you on an even keel, avoid burnout, and maybe even help to inspire you along the way. Writing in a journal, prayer, meditation, a walk around the block, a coffee break, or even a daily retreat into a broom closet for 15 minutes of quiet time can count. The point is, it is non-negotiable so it is something you give yourself every day to keep you going. 

What three things do you do on a daily basis to keep you positive and forward moving as opposed to swampy and burned out?

I thought about this question and realized I had no good NNT plan in place! So I decided to test out a new one to see how it would impact my productivity and how it would make me feel about my work (and myself) at the end of the day. Here is what I'm testing out:

KiKi's NNT Plan
1. Each day list 3 brags, 3 gratitudes, and 3 desires I have. 
2. Incorporate green juice into every day for a boost of nutrients and energy.
3. Schedule 2 dance breaks (mid-morning and mid-afternoon) to boost my energy, metabolism, and happiness. I actually scheduled these on my calendar. The rule is I must dance to at least ONE full song before getting back to work. (I'm starting to keep track of my dance breaks and green juice on this blog, as well.)

What does your NNT look like, or do you need to create your own NNT plan? Please share below in the comments. 

Dance break #1 today was Maroon 5's "One More Night" - enjoy. ;)

My One New Thing for Improving My Productivity

I've heard from different sources over the years about the importance of either ending or starting the day with a list of priorities. I realized this morning that I have a tendency to turn on my computer and sort of blast away without first reviewing my priorities. How much has this influenced the way I spend my time online? I'm not sure, but after making my priority list I am realizing my work has taken on a much more efficient flow.

What are your best tips for being more productive at work?