The Impact of Planning a Personal Retreat

Continuing along last week's self-care theme of work/life balance being a myth, I wanted to point you to a guest post I wrote recently for the Yellow Conference on "The Impact of Planning a Personal Retreat." Now that we're entering the second quarter of 2017, I know I find myself needing to reevaluate my goals for the year, as well as the work I've done so far.

Depending on the seasons in which your organization operates, you may even already be approaching burnout. Don't let it happen! Please take an opportunity to get away and reflect on the first quarter's progress, your role, and your plans for the next eight months.

Retreats differ from vacations because they have a purpose other than "relaxing." When I plan a retreat, I usually have a couple of large goals in mind that need to be accomplished outside of my normal environment.

And retreats, whether taken by yourself or as a team, can be invaluable for gaining clarity and perspective. 

I believe those who lead cause-focused organizations can easily reach burnout or become bogged down by the mission because of the nature of the work. True, this can happen to anyone, anywhere, but when your nonprofit or business exists to solve a social problem, the work feels more urgent. And often, you know the faces of those in need. Therefore, it's difficult to take a step back, no matter how necessary it may seem.

However, it's often when you bravely set aside the time for yourself, you can actually recharge and come back to the immediate pressures more equipped and able to tackle the tasks at hand. That is something you won't regret.

Learn more about my experience with a personal retreat, as well as a few tips for planning your own:

PLANNING A PERSONAL RETREAT

Or, if you prefer to watch a video with tips and advice, check out this Facebook Live from me:

IT’S TIME TO CONSIDER A BUSINESS OR PERSONAL RETREAT

---

---

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:

---

I'm Kristi Porter, and I started Signify to provide writing, consulting and strategy services to nonprofits and for-profit organizations with a social mission, primarily through copywriting, marketing and business communications. I believe that cause-focused organizations like yours are the future of business. You're proof that companies can both make money and do good. And I'm here to help you get noticed and grow. When you succeed, we all win.

---

Work/Life Balance is a Myth

Let me say it again: Work/Life balance is a myth.

Can I get an amen?

Whether you're a solopreneur, a small business owner or employee, a full-time volunteer, or the head of a multi-national corporation, you've been in search of this "white whale" for too long. And, friends, I'm here to tell you that it doesn't exist.

You've known this truth in your heart, but for so long, you dreamed of finding it—maybe at the end of the rainbow. It's kept you awake at night. You could even swear that you once met someone who said their cousin found it for a short-time, but then lost it. You've listened to podcasts, read books, joined groups, and prayed really hard, but that elusive work/life balance has continued to evade you.

Is there no hope?

Fear not. There is another . . .

Introducing: RHYTHM

I was introduced to this concept several years ago at a conference. I wish I could remember who taught it, because he/she has improved my life immensely with this idea, but sadly, I do not know who to credit.

The crux of the matter is that we can never achieve work/life balance. One will always be in conflict with the other. Despite our best efforts, it's a constant see-saw effect, and many of us tend to dip to the work side, even with our intense desire for the opposite. 

Then comes along the notion of rhythm. According to our friends at Merriam-Webster, rhythm is "movement, fluctuation, or variation marked by the regular recurrence or natural flow of related elements." 

I love the mental images this definition projects. I picture ocean waves. I find it relaxing, and that in itself is enough to make me chase this notion.

Think about it. When you consider the idea of "work/life rhythm," you are allowing for what is actually possible. And this means there is hope! 

The most basic approach is one you're probably already familiar with, and that is thinking about life in the form of seasons. By reframing your time this way, you intuitively understand that there is a beginning and end to the periods of stress and madness.

Rhythm in Work

These are the seasons we're probably more familiar with. And I'm in one of those right now. I've been up late most nights and on the weekends trying to catch up on client and personal work because I was down with the flu for a couple of weeks. So, I've been working my tail off to keep my head above water, and feel like I'm back up to speed on what I need to be doing. It's an effort to become more proactive than reactive. I'm not finished with this season yet, but I think I will be soon.

Obviously, some of these seasons last longer than others. Maybe you're in event planning mode. Maybe you have a launch right around the corner. Maybe you just had a staffer leave. Or maybe it's just one of the crazy times of year for your business. Inevitably, it happens.

The point is to hunker down, work hard, and make the best of it. No, it probably won't be fun. But it also won't last forever. The wave is crashing on the shore all around you right now, but there will come a time when it rolls back off the sand. You can do this!

Rhythm in Life

These are the seasons when we have more time for friends and family. We take vacations. We leave the office a little early. We go to the movies. We're having a lot more fun. And honestly, these are the times we wish could last a lot longer than they do.

But, alas, it's only a season. Before we know it, our calendars and To Do lists will be full, and our attention will be pulled in a million directions. The tide turns once again. I'm not trying to be a downer, but I am offering some perspective.

The point of this season is to, first and foremost, appreciate it! Whatever you do to show thankfulness, now's the time! Be grateful, and enjoy every minute of it. Next, consider what things you can do during this period of time to get ahead. Put systems in place, work ahead, sharpen your skills, develop your team, etc. There are numerous ways to utilize this time so that the hard seasons are a little bit easier. Use the margin in your schedule to your advantage. 

Applications

You may be wondering what this post is doing on a blog about marketing and communications for cause-focused organizations. Fair question. 

I think this post points to self-care, which I think is essential for everyone, but especially those who lead in, and serve at, nonprofits and purpose-drive for-profits. When we are led by a strong, social mission, it's easy to drive ourselves into the ground. After all, the work is never done. The champion of a cause can always do more. But the champion is also of little use to the cause if he/she is suffering from burnout.

I'm here to help you look and sound better to those who support, purchase from, or donate to your organization. I want you to get noticed and grow. And to do that, you need to make whatever season you're in right now work for you, not against you.

Work/life balance is a myth. However, work/life rhythm is guaranteed. 

If you redefine this concept in your mind, you'll be more equipped for your current season, better prepared for the next, and happier overall. 

Stop chasing the white whale, and instead, find your rhythm.

If you're reading this post, it likely means you're at a point where you're feeling overwhelmed. If so, I have more good news! I've outlined five things you can stop doing today to jumpstart your organization's marketing and communications. That's right—five things you can cut out this week to free up your time, energy and focus. What are you waiting for?

---

---

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:

---

I'm Kristi Porter, and I started Signify to provide writing, consulting and strategy services to nonprofits and for-profit organizations with a social mission, primarily through copywriting, marketing and business communications. I believe that cause-focused organizations like yours are the future of business. You're proof that companies can both make money and do good. And I'm here to help you get noticed and grow. When you succeed, we all win.

---

Ask the Experts: Social Media Trends and Strategy

Each month, I'm inviting guest contributors to speak about additional timely, relevant and sought-after topics that are important for cause-focused organizations to be aware of as they grow. For April, I've invited my friend and former co-worker, Jen Wilder, to share about social media since that is always a hot topic.

Q. What are the latest trends in your industry?

A. In social media, we continue to communicate more and more in videos, live streams, and images. With the addition of Instagram Stories last year, we see people letting us into the organic texture of their lives that isn’t readily perceived through their perfectly staged and lit product shots found in the standard Instagram feed.

This year, Instagram added a gallery option where multiple images are shared in one post, accessed by the user swiping to the right. And Facebook continues to dominate with making live streaming available to all users. We get some inside looks we want to see, and others we don’t. Ha!

Lately, I’ve been reading about “Dark Social,” which is the traffic websites receive that isn’t linked to a referral, such as Facebook, Twitter, etc. Dark Social is sharing that’s happening one to one in private emails, or via texting, or even through texting apps. In fact, some estimate that Dark Social is responsible for 80+ percent of traffic to sites. Hootsuite has a great article about what Dark Social is and how to attempt to measure it—though, it won’t ever be completely measurable.

Q. What is the biggest mistake you see people making in terms of their social media?

A. Some of the businesses that I see struggling lack imagery, lack personality in their copy, and lack consistency. It’s mind-boggling how much more we click on links with images than static text links. So, add images! And images with copy overlaid get even more clicks. Sites like Canva and Adobe Spark make it easy to create these shareable images.

With copy, you want to make sure you sound human, that your headlines are intriguing, that you’re asking questions to get those scrolling on Facebook to stop and click. Be authentic and interesting in your approach.

But images and copy don’t matter if you’re not consistent. When you show up sporadically, even if your content is killer, it will be hard for people to stay engaged and interested. To stay in front of your audience on social, you have to show up in their feeds regularly. Set up a schedule and get your great content in front of your customers’ eyes!

Q. What is your best piece of advice for people regarding social media?

A. It’s hard to nail down THE best piece of advice, so I’ll probably give you a couple here.

It’s okay to pick one social channel—Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.—that fits your brands communication style and put your efforts into it first. You can develop into other social channels, certainly. But start with one and put out great content—content that your audience wants to see and read more about.

And that leads me to content. If we think back to when I mentioned Dark Social, and the fact that upward of 80% of Web traffic may be shared one to one, then that tells us that content is driving those shares. It also tells us that the Web, sans the myriad of social channels cropping up day in and day out, is already social. We’re going to share good content whether there’s a Facebook or Twitter or Instagram.

Be intentional about thinking through the problems and questions your customers are asking. Then create content around answering your customers questions, solving their problems and showing them that your company is their solution.

Q. What is one thing readers can do this week to improve their social media?

A. Go to one of the image-design sites and create images to go with your blog articles, or to ask questions of your customers. Post that to social media with a link to your site, or one of your blog articles.

Q. Anything else we should keep in mind?

A. One thing I didn’t yet cover is the importance of developing an email list. With an email list, you have very personal access to your customers. So, come up with a resource you can give away—a white paper, worksheets, coupon codes—and ask people to sign up for your email list. Having this email list tells you that these are people who want to hear from you. They like you and they want whatever it is you’re selling. So, be a good steward of this email list and give them a high amount of value and time.

---

Jennifer Wilder is a social media professional who helps brands reach customers through online conversations. Over the last decade, she has worked with LifeWay Christian Resources, Leading The Way, The reThink Group/Orange, and The John Maxwell Company. With her husband, she is soon to be buying a new house and getting a dog . . . and maybe a kid or two.

Jennifer is available for freelance social media consulting and voiceover work.

---

---

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:

---

I'm Kristi Porter, and I started Signify to provide writing, consulting and strategy services to nonprofits and for-profit organizations with a social mission, primarily through copywriting, marketing and business communications. I believe that cause-focused organizations like yours are the future of business. You're proof that companies can both make money and do good. And I'm here to help you get noticed and grow. When you succeed, we all win.

---

Spring Clean Your Marketing and Communications

We're just over a week into both spring and the Daylight Savings time change. I don't know about you, but more sunshine equals more productivity for me. Though I am the pale, freckled, poster child for skin cancer, I always feel a little bit like Superman in that my powers are directly tied to the sun. I tend to find renewed energy and deeper concentration when winter days give way to spring ones. 

And I love a good spring cleaning! Is that weird? I just can't focus amongst clutter. I need a neat and tidy workspace, car and home to function well. So, this past week, I began the process of ship-shaping those three areas. 

Today, I want to help guide you what spring cleaning your marketing and communications might look like. And maybe dust off those New Year's Resolutions (or goals) too. It's time for a fresh start!

SPRING CLEAN YOUR WORKSPACE

While it's true that there are a unique few who can thrive in chaos and actually know what is located in the heaps and piles on or around their desk, I don't think that's true for the majority of us. I think most of us get stressed out and distracted by those things, and it compromises our brain power, and therefore our work, by not dealing with it. 

ACTION STEP: Over the next week, take the time to do some thorough sorting, sifting, recycling, tossing and sharing. Yes, I know you don't have time. But you need to sacrifice a few hours for the clarity it will bring you after its done. Whether you have a small desk in your guest room, a corner of the dining room table, or the corner office in the high rise, your productivity will increase by eliminating these distractions.

SPRING CLEAN YOUR COMPUTER

While it's true that I don't like physical clutter, I am a serial saver—at least as far as online articles are concerned anyway. I've mentioned before on this blog that I love learning. And it takes no more than a few minutes on social media, reading through emails, or scanning messages in Facebook groups to have a dozen or so windows opened with things I want to read or go back to later. I'm also bad about downloading resources to my desktop and saving them there with the intention of going back "soon" to read them. Pretty soon my computer desktop is a mess, my email is overflowing, and I can't shut down my computer for days at a time because I need to keep all the tabs open. Anyone relate?

ACTION STEP: Decide how important things things are to you and make a plan to tackle them this week. I did this last Friday. I was sick and didn't have a lot of brain power for creating and problem-solving, so I focused on this project. It took a few hours, but my computer desktop is clean, my email is manageable, and I shut down my computer over the weekend. It's a great feeling! And guess what, I learned a few new things in the process!

If you just don't have the time, or know the piles will only get larger, then give yourself a break and start deleting, knowing that new information will soon come your way. If you do decide to sort it out, then start getting excited about the new information you're about to digest. Grab some coffee, an easy chair, your laptop, and enjoy the process. I found some new resources to share with my Facebook group, learned a few tricks from fellow entrepreneurs and watched two webinars for upcoming personal projects. I also did a fair amount of deleting. Whichever path you take, deleting or sorting, find the determination to just do it.

SPRING CLEAN YOUR MINDSET

This is admittedly the hardest. The previous two categories require cleaning out "stuff" which I think is a lot easier, or at least it is for me. You can also see the changes much faster. Now we are moving onto the real work. Remember I mentioned those pesky New Year's Resolutions/Goals in the beginning? Here's where we tackle those.

I am a very goal-driven, task-oriented person. And with this being my first full year in business, I had a lot of things I wanted to do. One of those was developing my first online course during the first quarter of 2017. Now if you mosey on over to that section on my website, you'll still find "Coming Soon!" as we head into quarter two. That is just one example, but I assure you, there are others. Now, I did hit one goal, which was to attend more human trafficking events this year. I've actually already made it to two. But for every goal I hit, there is at least one I didn't. Know the feeling?

It's easy to get stuck in the headspace that tells you that you're behind, failing, or never gonna make it happen. But I'm asking you not to. I have to ask this of myself regularly. And because you're working for a cause, it's hard not to feel the pressure of things left undone. Everything is important. But these are the times we have to stop, reflect and reevaluate.

ACTION STEP: I'm going to give you two weeks for this assignment because it's more difficult, though, actually, it may take the least physical amount of time. In fact, if you get down to business, you might be able to do this homework in about an hour. But I think you need to walk around with the question in your mind, letting it occupy the back of your brain, for a few days or even a week.

Then sit down and reevaluate your marketing and communication priorities for 2017. What were your goals back in January? How do they need to shift? Maybe timelines need to be extended. Maybe projects need to be put on hold. Maybe they need to move to 2018. Maybe they just need to be scrapped. That's all okay.

First, determine your big priorities for the year. It's quite possible they've changed in the past three months. Then, assess the resolutions or goals you made and figure out which bucket they should fit in. Finally, feel good knowing that you've made some progress. After all, reevaluation is still progress. It's going to help you move forward for the next nine months.

NEXT STEPS

Okay, so you've cleaned your physical space, your digital space and your mental space—or you will very soon. It should feel amazing! It should give you clarity. It should bring a big smile to your face. You've just done some really powerful things.

By tackling these three categories, you've just set yourself up for success in your marketing and communications for the rest of the year. You'll be better prepared, focused and productive. 

We all get so hyped up come January. We're ready to take on the world! But life happens, work happens and we quickly realize that we didn't have a lot of control anyway. It's easy to get discouraged. That's why this spring cleaning is essential.

A New Year takes a little getting used to. I mean, hello, is anyone else still writing 2016 on everything?!?! So, when you take the time to stop, reflect and reevaluate your current efforts, you can make the shifts necessary to lift the fog, get out of the funk, and tackle that To Do list.

Oh, and once you've done your homework, don't think you're off the hook! The next step is to set a date on your calendar three months from now. The year will be half over, and it'll be time for a good summer cleaning!

Have you done anything else to spring clean your marketing and communications? If so, please tell me!

Need some help with your reevaluation? Contact me for a Communications Strategy Session. I'd love to get you on, or back on, the right track.

---

---

PIN THIS POST FOR LATER:

---

I'm Kristi Porter, and I started Signify to provide writing, consulting and strategy services to nonprofits and for-profit organizations with a social mission, primarily through copywriting, marketing and business communications. I believe that cause-focused organizations like yours are the future of business. You're proof that companies can both make money and do good. And I'm here to help you get noticed and grow. When you succeed, we all win.

---