The Super Allergy Girl Blog

Social Media and Social Money: Empowerment Workshop in San Francisco on May 18th, 2009

The full title of the upcoming Workshop sponsored by the Global Abundance Alliance is Social Media, Social Money:  Empowering People with Global Promises to Create Global Community.  Who do you know in the San Francisco area who might be interested in this workshop?  The workshop is being held on Monday, May 18th at the Terrace Cafe at Best Western El Rancho Inn located at 1100 El Camino Real, Millbrae, California from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM.  All I can share with you comes from the beautiful flyer: 

"Join us for a lively exploration of what it takes to truly be global with your Promise for the World.  Where are the frontiers we have to push through both personally and technologically?  Where are you not thinking globally?  Where are you thinking globally but not acting globally?  How do complementary currencies reframe the notion of money from barter/exchange to making a contribution to the world?How might using such currencies further your promise for the world?"

No, I don't get it, but I will be there on Monday, May 18th certain to expand my thinking and certain to learn new things.  The Global Abundance Alliance is a non-profit organization, which I belong to, dedicated to abundance for all people of the world.  You can visit them on the web at: 
http://globalpromises.wikispaces.com/WikiHome   or
http://globalpromises.wikispaces.com/GAAHome

This wonderful organization offers outstanding Learning Leader calls every month or so.  O.K. I actually have not yet made it on one, however they look really excellent!  And they are open to anyone to listen and learn.  Here is the site for learning leader calls: 
http://sites.google.com/site/globalpromisesorg/Home/LearningLeaderCalls

I'm learning about social networking and internet marketing.  I have no idea what a time bank is or alternative currency.  I have a commitment to serving the poor and those who need help.  I'll share with you what I learn when I get back.  Right now I have to finish up my poster for the Conference for Global Transformation, which starts this Friday also in San Francisco.  Have a Blessed Day.  And know that what you do makes a difference.
Love,
Lisa

Want Power? Make A Completion List...Here's how

I just did my completion list for 2009, something that I typically do in the first week of a New Year, and I am excited!  Now, I can't remember what year I started doing what I call a "Completion List", but I can tell you it was at least in 1998 because that was the year I did one that had a ton of house projects.  What I do is write down anything and everything that I can think of that is incomplete in my life.  My "Completion List" includes phone calls to make (usually ones that are hanging out there un-done for some reason), house repair projects, other projects that did not get done like organizing things, letters - you get the drift.  If you want power, this is one of the best activities to do as long as you set about to actually complete them.  There is no sense in making a list if you have no intention of checking them off!

My friend, Lanette, started doing this with me a few years ago!!  During the year we will check in with each other to see if things are coming off the list.  Just knowing that I was getting ready to do my list, I got in action and took care of two items so that they didn't even make it on the list!  It is fun to check the items off.  So, you are probably wondering, WHAT is on my list for this year?  Well here is a sample of what is on my list:
1.  Have Diane over for coffee
2.  Visit Sharleen in Maine
3.  Throw a party for the people who have helped us get to where we are
4.  Office all cleaned up and organized
5.  Access to a saltwater pool for the kids this summer so they can learn to swim w/out chlorine
6.  Pictures organized
7.  Find a church that will offer a scent-free mass and 'no germs' zone for us to be able to participate with (Roman Catholic)
8.  Fulfill on my promise to Edith Anderson for Epsilon Alpha Chapter history (and organize her docs)
9.  Be selected for an ABC Extreme Home Makeover OR somehow resolve our housing issues
10.  Clean out the attic

Well, you get the idea.  My 2009 Completion list has a total of 26 items on it, most of them not related to the cookbook because then the list would be 100 items long.  I have one item for business and the rest is in a category I'd call other.  One of the items, having matching dresses for my daughter and I, is a luxury that I have not been willing to spend the money on given our medical bill situation.  But, what I realized the other week was that I could sew the dresses myself for a fraction of what I could buy them ready-made, and if I didn't hurry up and do it soon - she'd be at that age where she was too old to wear a dress that matched "Mommy's".  Yes, they do grow up fast!!  So, now I'm using the matching dresses concept as a reward for completing 7 or 8 big work projects.  Projects that will take hours and hours and did I say hours to complete!!  Projects that I have either been avoiding or for some reason have not managed to finish.  That is providing incentive for me.  I can't wait to get those projects done now.

And that is the inner workings of a self-motivated person.  I set up my own rewards for completing X or Y amount of work or certain projects.  It lights a fire under me - assuming I have the right motivating rewards.  At any rate, I have digressed.  Writing up your own Completion List could provide you with lots of power if you will work to complete items on the list.  And now you can create your own "reward" program for doing such.  I hope that I have not bored you to death with my little motivational tricks!  Thinking about doing a completion list?  If you do, let me know!!  What gives you power?  How do you motivate yourself?  Let me know.

Have a wonderful and productive week.  I'm off to LA on Wednesday.
Love,
Lisa

Managing Your Time and Your Life: How Do You Do it?

As a master of time management, I typically make a weekly list of things to do.  As this is the beginning of a New Year, this is the time that I reflect and look back over the past year and assess, how well did I do for managing my time.  One of the tools that I use for looking at this is how many weeks out of the year did I actually take the time to make up a weekly list of tasks to accomplish and things to do.  In 2008, I typed up 43 lists of weekly tasks out of a total of 52 weeks (using an assumed number of weeks in a year as 52).  That produces a percentage rate of 82% for the year of weekly lists made.  Now, 2008 was not just a regular year for me.  As some of you know, my Mother had a health crisis at the end of March and almost died.  I spent several weeks traveling back and forth from Buffalo to Hershey, Pennsylvania and later Camp Hill, Pennsylvania.  I am happy to report that not only did my Mother survive her brain aneurysm and stroke(s) and the several surgeries, but she is at home functioning exceptionally well!!  She is a miracle and a testament to miracles.

But I digress.  For a few weeks, notably in April, I did not write up my weekly lists.  Had I done that I would have coasted in with an 88% for weekly lists.  Not a record for me, but a respectable percentage of weekly lists I would say.  The weeks that I don't do a "To Do List", I work off of the previous list.  Each week I put approximately 40 items on my list of what, in an ideal world, I would like to accomplish.  My rate of success or percentage of tasks completed varies greatly depending upon many things.  As a range, it varies from 45% to 85%.  And NO, I don't calculate the percent of tasks completed for each week.  I'm not that anal or compulsive.  Every once in a blue moon I'll take the time to calculate it.  For the most part, this weekly list functions as a guide taking me through the week.  It works very, very well for me.  The weekly list in combination with my Franklin Covey Planner and my overall list of Goals and 5-Year Plan work in harmony to move me forward day by day.

It is a New Year.  How do you manage your time?  What tools work for you?  Do you have a list of goals that you would like to accomplish this year or in your life?  How are you managing your time?  As someone who finds time to be a friend, I'd love to hear what works for you and what isn't working for you.  Time management is a skill that you can hone and develop.  Is there anything that I can do to support you in this area?
Sending you lots of time and peace,

Love,
Lisa

Count Your Friends - Count Your Blessings

Yesterday I had the divine delight of receiving a call from one of my college roommates!!  Stacey and I have known each other for 29 years!!  God gave me one of the biggest gifts of my life when he gave me Stacey as my roommate my freshman year at Penn State University!!  She has given me so many gifts in the past 29 years starting way back in 1979.  Who ever thinks that a random pick of a roommate will net a dear friend for life?  So today I blog about friendship.  I have been blessed by a multitude of friends many of whom also lived on my freshman dorm floor.  Hoyt Hall had some great karma in that time period.  I'm still friends with my Resident Assistant, Patty, as well as Becky, Celeste, and Connie from Hoyt Hall.  My sophomore year I had the joy of living with Kim and receiving the many gifts that she would provide.  How did I ever get so lucky?  I'm not sure they were so lucky!!

Over the years, I have been Blessed to keep my Penn State friends and develop many new friends.  In the last ten years that I have lived in Buffalo, I have been honored to make new friends both in my neighborhood and from the Buffalo Alpha Omicron Pi Chapter, and later through Toastmasters, the celiac support group, Landmark, the Autism Society Chapter and other organizations.  Friends are a blessing who will support you in the difficult times and be joyous with you and for you in the great times. 

There is a saying that people come into your life for "a reason, a season, or a lifetime".  I can't imagine my life without my friends.  How are your friendships?  Do you cultivate and care for your friendships?  Are they a source of joy for you?  I'd say that I probably don't tell my friends often enough how much they matter and what a difference they make in my life.  Thank you to all of my friends, you are one of my biggest blessings.

Love,
Lisa

Toastmasters International - A Great Place to Grow & Develop

I have been involved with Grand Pioneer Toastmasters for over five years now, and it is a source of great pleasure and growth!  Tomorrow night I will be the Toastmaster for the evening which means that I have organized the meeting and will facilitate parts of it.  I have been credentialed to the Advanced Toastmaster Silver Level, Competent Leader levels, which means that I have basically done 3 levels of speeches (30 speech projects completed) and one leadership track.  For those of you who are not familiar with Toastmasters International, it is a non-profit organization established in 1924 to help people overcome their fears about public speaking and learn leadership skills.  Eighty-four years later, Ralph Smedley's dream that began at the YMCA in Santa Ana, California flourishes and is international in scope.

Toastmasters offers personal growth and development at your own pace.  You can be laid back or more aggressive about how much you learn and grow.  The members learn not only about public speaking, but also how to run effective meetings.  You can find a Toastmasters club near you by checking the Toastmasters International website at: www.toastmasters.org and use a tool found on the homepage to find a club close to your home or office.  You can visit most clubs for free and several times at that.  Clubs that meet at restaurants often expect you to place an order for a sandwich or meal item as that is often part of the meeting arrangements with the restaurant. 

What I have been recommending for several years now, is to shop around and check out several clubs in your area.  Different clubs have different temperaments or personalities if you will.  You may want a small, quiet club.  Others may want a larger, boisterous club.  There are no rights or wrongs here, just different clubs to fit different people.  We frequently have people visit our club multiple times before they join.  What growth and development could you use in your life when it comes to public speaking or running meetings?  How much training in this area have you had in your life?  Are you up for learning in a fun environment?  Maybe it would be worth your while to check out a local Toastmasters Club!  If you are in Buffalo, I'd love for you to visit our Grand Pioneer club (2nd & 4th Monday Nights at 7 pm at Lasertron off Maple Rd in Amherst).
Love,
Lisa