Being an Active 20-30ian is more than attending 1 or 2 meetings a month and giving a few hours at a service project. We’re often asked to lend our talents to a local or national committee, recruit new members, fund-raise, promote upcoming events online and through our networks, organize information and share best practices with other clubs and members.

So, my Friday Followup question is: how do you manage your work, life and Active 20-30 schedules? Do you block time each week to work on Active 20-30 items? Do you deal with tasks as they come? How do you balance your to-do list to make sure things don’t fall through the cracks or get pushed aside? How do you prioritize what gets your attention?

We’ve spent this week talking about promoting upcoming events. We can’t forget to leverage our successes and celebrate events as we complete them.

The Albuquerque club was recently highlighted on DoSomething.org, an amazing organization that helps connect volunteers with opportunities and organizations with partners in funding and support.

Valley of the Sun was featured in a number of locations in their local media for their part in our national project, the Active 20-30 Children’s Shopping Spree. The combined efforts of Bakersfield and Golden Empire were also cheered in the media, as were the Senoma County clubs, the Eugene club and so many others.

It isn’t just the shopping spree that deserves celebration after the fact. It’s all of the great service projects, fundraising events and outreach efforts. I’ll say it again - we spend so much time ahead of the event promoting what will be, but too often forget to take a minute and celebrate what we were able to achieve.

Don’t be afraid to sing your club’s praises or pat your chairs on the back publicly. Let your community see the difference that you make. At the same time, let the other Active 20-30 clubs see what you are able to achieve. Share with them what it takes to pull off the event you did and what you learned along the way. There are some amazing lessons to be learned from each other if we take the time to look back and share.

If you looked at your Facebook feed last Monday (the 30th), you might have noticed that Active 20-30 members are making quite the mark. In July, members of the Eugene Active 20-30 Club decided to celebrate Active 20-30 visibly twice a month - can you guess how?

That’s right, on the 20th & 30th of each month, members are changing their profile pictures to our national logo. Members from several clubs have quickly adopted this habit and helped to draw attention to the great work, social and service opportunities we offer young professionals in our local communities.

If you missed doing it last week or last month, it isn’t too late. August 30th is Monday. The trademarked national logo* is available on the national website’s library - download it and set it as your profile picture. Heck, why not mention why your picture changed, your next event or something great your club is working on in your status?

* In order to maintain a strong trademark and the brand integrity your national board and committees are working toward, we ask that you use either the three-color logo (red, yellow, blue) or the black and white version.

I subscribe to an email list called GapingVoid.com and get doodles like this one in my inbox, along with a short thought or message to go along with the theme.

This doodle made me smile and pause, so I thought I’d start the week off by sharing it’s positive message. Take it for what you will.

Do you agree that you are lucky (blessed, privileged, whatever you want to call it) to have the opportunity to be a member of Active 20-30, to serve in the capacities you do? When your commitments stop feeling like obligations and you find yourself saying how lucky you are to be able to give of your time and talents, everything seems to change, doesn’t it?

I’m not sure who is responsible for this phrase, but I do know we are all responsible for who we become and what we achieve. You can inspire. You can lead. You can be that person you’ve been waiting for.

On Monday, we talked about the importance of “promoting the why”. Today, I’d like to share a few tips on how to do this. These have been compiled by EventBright, a service many of our clubs have used with great success, based on what they’ve seen and experienced in the for- and not-for-profit event management worlds.

1. Smaller is better. Decrease your need for ticket sales; adjust your budget and event space and focus on critical mass.

2. Less is more. Ensure your collateral is simple and visually compelling. Don’t get into the details; that’s what your event website is for.

3. Push it to the side. When sending an e-mail campaign, use an HTML template that has a sidebar—highlight your registration links and details separately from your primary message. With the majority of your e-mail body focusing on building excitement, your invitation will be perceived as subtle yet well-connected to the value of the experience you’re offering.

4. Use testimonials. Promote positive feedback from attendees at a previous event. Make sure you list their names (and their companies if possible)—anonymous quotes are useless.

5. Feature faces. Use images from previous events showing people having a lot of fun (they should be close-ups of faces, not a documentation of the activity).

6. Build partnerships. Develop a small, loyal affiliate base from people or groups who benefit from a successful event. Highlight them, and their stories, instead of always talking about the event. Treat them well, and they’ll become ambassadors who are passionate and motivated to spread the word. Be a fan of theirs and they’ll return the love.

7. Add value, don’t discount. Consider removing early-bird rates or special offers—set the value of the event and stick to your guns. If you need to boost sales, add benefits and give attendees more for their money.

Please share your thoughts and experiences in the comments.

Let’s get some discussion going, shall we? We can all agree that many of our clubs - including our national association - relies heavily on passing along knowledge orally. This can add a personal touch, but also leaves room for something to get missed.

This applies to new officers and existing members as they become more involved. It also applies to new members, which is where I’d like to focus today. What do you do to welcome new members into your club? What information do you provide them to make sure they’re aware of everything Active 20-30 has to offer and expects from them?

Do you do a new member night? Do you provide written information? Do you pair new members up with established ones? If so, what wisdom is the established member expected to impart?

Let’s learn from each other, share ideas and continue to make the Active 20-30 experience what we all strive for.

Promote the Why, Part 1
It takes only a quick look at the weekly announcements and national website to see that we’re coming into a busy time of year for fundraising and community events. These all take a great deal of planning and require unwavering focus on the details of each event.

It’s important - as we select and publicize the location, time, make the case for what a great and unique event it will be - that we don’t forget the WHY. We must remind ourselves that our work is more than just hosting a great event - it allows us to serve kids in need. It allows us to buy them school supplies, Christmas presents and experiences they might not otherwise have.

We must remind our members of the same thing as we encourage them to serve on committees, solicit auction items and promote the event themselves.

Most importantly, we need to remind our guests, attendees and those who are unable to attend about the why. Yes, it’s fun to put on such events. Yes, we all have a good time at the event. But there is something bigger.

How do you - before, during and after an event - remind your members and guests why this was so important to you, Active 20-30 and the kids around you? In Wednesday’s post, I’ll discuss some tips and tricks you can use in promoting your events, but I’d like to hear your thoughts first.

7 Step Process for Execution of a Crazy Idea

In the process of moving this week, I came across a memo a former co-worker, Rob Harris. He was one of those guys who inspired me to think and try and want more out of everything I took on. I wish I could remember the conversation that spurred him to write this to me.

Enjoy and see if you can’t also use these 7 steps to executing your own (seemingly) crazy idea.

7 Step Process for Execution of a Crazy Idea

1. Dream up some ridiculous idea or activity.
2. Resist thinking about the short- and long-term consequences to the idea or activity.
3. Tell as many people as you can about what you are going to do so that at this point you have to do it.
4. Resist thinking about the short- and long-term consequences THEY point out.
5. Execute your idea or activity.
6. Rectify any of the short- or long-term consequences of your actions, apologizing profusely to those you care about (or those that care about you), if necessary.
7. Enjoy a lifetime of bragging right / story telling and know that when you are old and spend all of your time in a recliner watching the weather, that there was once a time when you were actually among the living.

In the comments, please share a crazy idea that you (or your club or your team at work or your family) is going to undertake. There have been a great number just within our national organization that have turned into Active 20-30 legends. Will yours?

Active 20-30 is a volunteer-based organization and it takes volunteers at all levels to make us successful. On the national level, in addition to your national president, regional directors, etc., the association relies on the work of committees to help achieve our goals and progress our mission.

I’d like to take this opportunity to introduce the committees and their chairs for the 2010-11 term. If you have an interest in learning more or serving on any of these groups, please post in the comments, contact me directly or drop a note to the committee chair (all contact information is in the directory on the national website).

Awards :: Lisa Green (Eugene)
Budget and Finance :: Karin Shine (Greater Sacramento)
Convention :: Jason Deshayes (Albuquerque)
Foundation :: Evan Hershey (Santa Rosa & Immediate Past National President)
Grants :: a chairman is still needed.
History :: Jason French (Bakersfield)
International Relations :: Amy Williams (Golden Empire)
Laws and Regulations :: Evan Hershey (Santa Rosa & Immediate Past National President)
New Charters :: Gioia Hershey (Redwood Empire)
Membership Growth and Retention :: Keith Engel (Eugene)
National Project :: a chairman is still needed.
Past Active Liaison :: Tony Cervo (Sacramento)
Public Relations :: Julianna Landrum (Napa)
Sponsorship :: Ashley Ulinger (Valley of the Sun)
Technology :: Amber Jewison (Greater Sacramento)

Would you like to hear more about the projects these committees are working on? Do you have questions about how you can help them achieve their goals or what they are focused on? Have you served on one or more committees and would like to share your experiences? Leave a note in the comments and help us develop future blog posts about their good works.