 a lot about work-life balance from different generations of colleagues. Your board will think more of you if you show up rested, refreshed and energized for 45-50 hours a week than they will if you’re exhausted and struggling through 70-80 hours. Keep your priorities in order and doing so will pay great dividends. Your career, mental well-being, and physical health will be stronger. Again, you will send a signal to your staff and board that you have your act together. Work hard, play hard! You’ll have fewer regrets.
#3 – Give it some time. The number one thing I would change about my chamber career journey is to have stayed longer in my positions. Longevity allows you to reap the benefits of the time and effort you put in. I can justify each move I made, most of them driven by family-related decisions. And fortunately, my departures were always optional and not mandated. However, staying longer at each stop along my journey and seeing the results of my hard work would have provided great satisfaction. It is very difficult to see the true impact of your exceptional expertise if you change jobs in less than five years. Stay put, friends. Cultivate, train, and lead your teammates and volunteers to develop and grow organization relevancy and stronger communities.
#4 – Always re-invent yourself and your organization. A chamber that operates today as it did 10 or 20 years ago will be much less likely to successfully exist in another 10 years. If you are a seasoned professional, or even new in your career, keep learning! If you’re lacking certain skills, think about hiring team members to fill in the gaps and support you in those areas of expertise. Also, keep learning. It is never too late to get training and more education. After all, we can do so with a click of a button! Never have we needed Chamber CEOs to lead our communities and organizations more than today. If you are an I.O.M., C.C.E., congratulations! But those credentials alone won’t be enough to sustain your career. Stay involved in your state and national professional organizations. This is vitally important to your strength and longevity in one of the greatest professions on earth!
I hope that these lessons-learned have been helpful. These are just a few things I’ve learned along that way and I hope these lessons-learned are helpful, regardless of your role. Remember that I, along with my team at Georgia Power, am here to provide ongoing guidance and consulting at every stage of growth for chambers, communities, and businesses. Let me know how we can help you!
Specializing in custom residential and commercial furniture, Redeemed Woodworks is dedicated to the past by making it part of the future. They believe each piece of lumber reclaimed from barns and buildings built a century ago have an opportunity for a new purpose, to show their inner beauty beneath the decades of use and abuse. Each board used in the creation of unique, custom, hand-crafted furniture carries its own unique identity that can be appreciated for generations to come.Copper Mine Miniatures New figures (Kickstarter) with a launch 15% sale and N'tastic 20% presale
We have today added the Kickstarter figures to 
and added a 15% SALE across all CMM ranges. We have also launched 2 NEW figures the 2 police figures not released in the Kickstarter. The 15% sale will last until the end of March or while stocks last. Postage rates have also been reduced slightly recently. We have also recently announced a 1/148 range of road vehicles that is on Presale at 20% discount (that discount runs to the end of Feb, click here to see the range The German Hotel and Restaurant Association (Dehoga) opposes the introduction of caloric information in restaurant menus based on the British model. In England, the government wants to use the measure, which applies to bars and larger chains, to promote the fight against obesity. “Dehoga is clearly against the mandatory indication of calories on local restaurant menus,” said Dehoga’s general manager Ingrid Hartges of the German Press Agency.
The association points out health aspects, as well as possible additional work in the industry. “The indication of calories for each menu item is not practical, there is no relevant demand,” explained Hartges. Furthermore, the indication of energy values ​​is not an adequate means to combat obesity in society: simply counting calories is not a substitute for a healthy and balanced diet and exercise.
“Imagine the bureaucratic effort for companies with offerings that sometimes change daily, who would have to calculate the calories of the individual ingredients in the respective amount for each dish,” Hartges explained. “Even today, our businesses have to comply with numerous regulations when designing their menus, such as the obligation to label allergens or the declaration of additives. The menu must remain legible,” he demanded.
Which dish has how many calories?
In England, in April, a requirement came into force that chains, restaurants and cafes with at least 250 employees must indicate on their cards which dish has how many calories. Some restaurants complain after media reports about costs and effort. Critics also fear that restaurant calorie lists could have undesirable side effects, for example, for people with eating disorders.
Jessica James Interview
Today I have an interview with Jessica James the author of Shades of Gray. Shades of Gray is a civil war novel that I read and enjoyed quite a few months ago. Read my review here.
Other stops on her blog tour:
Dec. 2-3 Visit Favorite PASTimes. (BOOK GIVEAWAY)
Dec. 7-13 Say hello at the Historical Novel Review
Dec. 15 I'll be guest posting on The Printed Page blog
The week of Dec. 15 BOOK GIVEAWAY on UpForGrabs
Can you tell us a little bit about your background and your journey towards becoming a published writer?
I always loved two things: animals and writing. Animals won out when I first when to college, resulting in a degree in veterinary technology. That career lasted about three years – too depressing – so I went back to school and earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism/public relations. I lasted about 18 years in this profession, starting out as a newspaper reporter, then moving up to editor. During that time, I tinkered a little bit with fiction writing, but it felt like such a big leap from writing straight news that I wasn’t sure I could do it. In time, I got my brain muscle retrained and it became easier and much more natural. After I’d finished the first draft of Shades of Gray, I quit my full-time editor job so I could concentrate on re-writing (and re-writing and re-writing). That process took the better part of a year. Saying it was “done” was one of the hardest things I had to do, but there came a time when I had to let go.
Were there any surprises along the way on your journey to publication?
Yes, there were many surprises. Make that very many surprises. I didn’t really know anything about the publishing industry, and had the same naïve ideas about becoming a published author as most people probably do. Learning the ropes took a lot of time, but it was a fun and interesting journey. Along the way, I’ve become more proficient at Internet marketing – which is probably the biggest area of surprise for me. The publishing industry is so competitive that authors have to be really creative to sell books. Luckily, Shades of Gray has received attention for winning some pretty prestigious awards, but it’s still a great deal of work.
What inspired you to write Shades of Gray?
I have always been amazed at the common soldier’s intense commitment to God, honor and country, and the terrible heartbreak and sacrifice that occurred as a result of the War Between the States. The more I read about the Civil War era, the more inspired I became to put a story down on paper that reflected these values, as well as the affection and devotion that existed between those who vowed “’til death do us part.”
Many readers are not interested in reading a dry book about the Civil War, so it became a mission for me to weave a story around the facts, create characters with real feelings, and make history come alive. If readers are entertained and fall in love with the characters, they won’t even know they are learning something.
I also became driven to set the record straight over the common misconception that the War Between the States was caused by slavery. The current trend toward political correctness, which involves banning Southern traditions, songs and symbols, also inspired me to educate readers about the principles and values that both sides fought for so valiantly.
Have you always been interested in history? In the Civil War?
I live in Gettysburg, Pa., so I’ve always been surrounded by Civil War history. But I really didn’t fall in love with it until I moved to Virginia to work at a horse hospital (back when I was still a veterinary technician). Learning about Col. John Mosby riding across the rolling hills down there gave me “the bug” and I’ve had it ever since. Mosby is every writer’s dream of a great character: gallant, valiant, handsome, and chivalrous. My main character, Colonel Alexander Hunter, is based on his legendary life as a Confederate officer.
What do you love—do you love—the research process that goes into writing historical fiction?
Yes, I do love the research – maybe too much. It’s hard to stop and it’s hard to have to cut things that I find interesting when it just doesn’t fit. Hopefully, I’ll be