Working amidst the networking opportunities

We had a day full of networking opportunities and meetings at InSights today. I overheard a conversation from a woman who was wondering when she would have time to get any work done. Interesting question, considering I have the same dilemma. So, here we are late at night and I am writing a blog post, twittering, and updating my facebook account. Where does the balance come in to the in person social activites that are so important for growing our contact spheres? Does anyone have any advice on their strategy and how to keep it all simple?

What does corporate culture have to do with it?

Oh, just about everything. Think about it. The culture that a company maintains is just as important as everything else that they do. What is the culture of the company you work for, whether it's a large company, or just yourself. Is the focus fun and personal growth, or is it bottom lines and profits? Here's a cool glimpse of corporate culture

What is your culture? Are you living up to your potential? What changes could you or should you make in your life to create a culture that sings to you? Or, are you already living it?

Anniversary Celebration

To recap yesterday's festivities, we began the day with a Next Michigan (non-profit foundation) chapter meeting with a special guest speaker, Todd List. Todd did an excellent job of entertaining the crowd and educating us as well about some of the history of Michigan, where we've been and where we are headed. He has a great and positive outlook for the next stage in Michigan's growth. Thank you Todd! Our next, NextMI event will be the second Tuesday in February. Please join us in supporting the conversation of creating opportunity through connections here in this great state!

We couldn't have anticipated the awesome turn out for our Goal Setting Workshop and Celebration event. We certainly enjoyed ourselves, with a full house of over 100 people in attendance, and hope that you did as well if you were able to attend the event. Thank you to our guest hosts who jumped in to help in every way possible: Alan Smith, who helps us with membership and event coordination, Todd List, Dr. Ann Burton, Dr. Kathy Jerore, Pam Baumkratz, Michael Eaton, Leslie Dunham, and a special thanks to Merry Sherman for delivering our anniversary cake and being able to put it together with very, very short notice. We appreciate you all! If I didn't mention your name, I sincerely apologize, please forgive me. The day was amazing, most of it passing by in a whirlwind!

Later in the day, we enjoyed our first InSights Group Toastmasters club meeting as an officially chartering club. This group meets every Thursday from 6:30-7:30pm and is a great place to practice your public speaking in front of a group.

Our final event of the day was when we recorded our commercial for HUB-TV, with extra performers from our TM group. They filled our village and looked like professional networkers as Lauren Alm, a talented singer/songwriter and guitar player who recently graduated from Howell High School, wrote, performed and recorded our Jingle for the 30 second spot. Look for this to be released very soon. Lauren is a regular performer at the Open Mic Nights at InSights, as well as having performed at our Holiday Party. She is on track to a great success! We appreciate her talent and willingness to step in. Please, stop by this Saturday beginning at 8:30pm to hear her perform.

Now, some housekeeping...we are accepting appointments for 30 minute business consultations if you attended the Goal workshop and received a golden ticket. This ticket also allows entry into any InSights Sponsored event at no charge. To make these easier to identify, you will see *IN on the title of events on the calendar. Any event marked with *IN is eligible for the golden ticket pass, so take advantage of as many of these opportunities as you can!

We planned yesterday's events as a celebration for our business, and didn't touch much on membership costs and fees. You can visit this link to review membership choices and more. Please call if you have questions, or are ready to take the next step in becoming a part of our awesome and amazing membership group here within the InSights Community. We will have our next Membership Q&A Meeting on Wednesday, January 14th at 9am. This is a great opportunity for our current members to come together with individuals considering membership, and brainstorm new ways to enhance the community. When the tide rises, all the ships rise with it. What can we provide that will help you and your business?

We've come a long way, in just a short year. From our very first meeting with 5 people, we have seen hundreds and hundreds of individuals seeking personal and business growth and opportunities come through our events, programs, and visit the facility. We had an exceptional year in 2008 and know that together with our members and friends that 2009 will be even better. We will be offering monthly goal setting workshops and check-ins to stay on track with reaching for our visions and making them a reality. Won't you join us?

Forever appreciative, inspired and uplifted by you, with hugs and gratitude,

Al Curtis and Sandi Maki, Co-Founders of the InSights Group

Tuesday's Notes

Today was a fantastic opportunity for networking and meeting some new people. MCC had their live lunch in Novi where there was plenty of conversation. Running back to the office I found a new group of people who were interested in learning more about how to use the web to promote their business. Cool conversation around what to do and not to do online, as well as discussion of it's not what you say, it's what people hear. Wrapped up the day taking a few more RSVP's for the goal setting seminar.

What did I learn today? After sending emails twice a month for a year, some people have decided to take action and come to our goal setting event on Thursday. What does this mean?

Believe in your message.
Market to the universe even if you don't see immediate results.
Be yourself.
Be persistent.