When I jump on the computer in the morning I often crank up the music.  I have tons of songs that I’ve ripped from my CD’s or downloaded from eMusic.  I use Windows Media Player or when I’m on the go I’ve got my Sansa Clip.  (iPods are overpriced and overrated IMO).  Back in the day we had “jam boxes.” Yes I’m a child of the ’80s.

Speaking of which the soundtrack for today began with Prince.  Since I’m now not just on my own but actually in a real office I put on headphones.  Of course that does not stop me from dancing or occasionally singing along… to the amusement of my office mates.

What’s the soundtrack of your day?

A couple of months ago I completed a certification course in Nonprofit Management.  Now lo and behold my face is in the newspaper holding my shiny new certificate.  The program is sponsored by the Non Profit Management Center of Wichita Falls, The Priddy Foundation, the Center for Nonprofit Management in Dallas and MSU, our local university.

The program brings in some of the best experts and trainers for one intensive class per month.  While taking this course I was extremely impressed by the presentations, the material presented and everything about it.  We were showered with great resources, including a free book at each session.  Plus all of our handouts went into a big 3 ring binder.

One of the greatest benefits of the course was learning the material alongside other non profit managers.  Everyone could share their own experiences – ideas that worked for them as well as questions.  There was a variety of ages and causes represented in the classes.  There was also a wide range of experience – some people who had worked in non profits for many years, others who were only a year or two out of college, and others who were exploring a change from the business world.  While many of the attendees were full time staff there were also volunteers and board members too.  I believe in the program so much that I’m sending two of my team members, Tracie and Liz, to the introductory class later this month.

I really enjoy going to these kind of trainings, seminars and conferences.  I guess you can say I’m a seminar junkie.  I take pages and pages of notes and keep a separate list of “action items” that I need to implement when I get home.  Of course many of those on the list don’t get done right away.  Some not at all.  But many months or years later I can flip through the book and may just find the perfect idea and the time is finally right to take action.

So what about you? Are you a lifelong learner?

One of my favorite things about blogging and running a website is the connections that I’ve made with people all over the world.  In the past five years I have spoken via email and phone with people on every continent except Antarctica.  (Heck there may even be some shivering scientist on the south pole reading this site right now, who knows?)

Last week I wrote a post on Step by Step Fundraising called The New Community: Citizen Web that explored how technology is really bringing people closer together.

(Thanks to Tracie for letting me know about the Today Show video!)

I love to travel and have a list a mile long of places that I’d like to visit. In the past couple of years I’ve also traveled quite a bit to conventions as my business has grown. Even if I’m traveling primarily for business I always take time to enjoy some of the sights. Of course most of my travel booking and research is done online.

There are thousands of travel related websites out there. But if you are looking for the best travel deals just go to this one site, Travelzoo.com. They publish a weekely Top 20 newsletter that will refer you to incredible deals on airfare, hotel, cruises and more. They publish discounts that you are not likely to see on any other travel sites, or even on the travel provider’s websites. On our recent vacation to Colorado Springs I found a great airfare deal from Frontier airlines in the Travelzoo newsletter just a week or so before our trip.

Another site I really like is Trip Advisor. What I really like about this site are the hotel reviews posted by members. They also show how the hotels rank by city or area.

If you like going on cruises, check out Crucon Outlet. They have great deals on cruises all around the world. When we went on a Mediterranean cruise a couple of years ago, and purchased it through them. Not only was it a wonderful cruise, the customer service from Crucon was top notch. In the days when travel agencies are becoming few and far between this is one agency that I hope sticks around for many years to come. Oh, and guess where we found Crucon? on Travelzoo.

Getting places on time is not my strong suit. There I admit it. I’m not usually that late, but just a few minutes enough to stress me out. So when it comes to traveling I always have this fear that I’ll be reenacting the scene from Home Alone where the whole family (except the kid) are running for the plane. (And for the record that has only happened to me once.)

But what my friends and family who travel with me really enjoy kidding me about is losing things. I’ve lost not one but two cell phones either at the airport or on a plane. When Tracie and I went to PubCon last December I kept leaving my boarding pass laying around. It’s a wonder we made it there and back. [Read more...]