Soccer for Success after-school program makes net gains in nutrition

By Jo-Ann Barnas

Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

Most of the students have arrived ready to play — bright orange jerseys pulled over their school clothes.

Sacks of soccer balls and pop-up goals are moments away from being transported to a fenced playground outside a back door at Roberto Clemente Academy in southwest Detroit.

But first, Karla Ramos must settle the nearly 40 boys and girls — third- and fourth-graders — who have gathered around a pair of cafeteria tables before the fun begins at Clemente’s Soccer for Success afterschool program….For the whole Detroit Free Press story.

Blogging, microblogging, social media usage all deliver an opportunity for original content to create new connections and conversations.  Organizations and individuals have the opportunity to increase brand awareness while asserting a thought leadership position.  Here are a few best practices when considering how to manage new content:

• Create meaningful and authentic content – it matters and readers can tell if your passion shows!
• Be consistent.  If you are giving tips one month and selling pens next month, it’s not going to fly.
• It only takes a few minutes every month to post something.  We try for 2x per month and 15 minutes for each go round.  Don’t stagnate!

Share with us your tips on content…!

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton

On March 22, Secretary Clinton will receive Transparency International-USA’s Integrity Award. Transparency International-USA (TI-USA) is an international leader in anti-corruption advocacy in government, business, and development assistance. TI-USA’s Integrity Award recognizes Secretary Clinton’s efforts to promote transparency and integrity around the world. The event will begin at approximately 7:30 p.m.

Event pics

To Register: www.womcom.org

Steve Jobs

Albert Einstein once said that “imagination is more important than knowledge” and the contributions of Steve Jobs and Apple render this statement a fact.   Jobs taught all of us what it means to fall in love with technology and how to go beyond what any of us thought possible – all using imagine as the engine.  We blogged about a presentation that Jobs gave in 2009 and one of my favorite points was “sell dreams, not products.”  Jobs clearly took his own advice.

I had breakfast yesterday with the mother of a toddler and during our meal she shared her daughter’s home video taken on the iPhone.  The toddler had learned how to unlock the phone, press the right application and the video started rolling as they were out for a morning walk.  The technology that Apple creates is easy enough for a two year old and yet complex enough to live by the applications and functionality that their products provide.  Jobs and Company make technology cool and accessible by imagining a world that none of us could. They took us from thinking that tech is for science geeks and delivered us global culture on a single platform.

With Jobs passing we are relying on the next generation of technologists to use imagination as the engine to propel us into the future.  We can’t wait to see who and what fills Jobs shoes, but we’ll sure miss him.  Thanks for everything, Steve.

On the long trek to where I am now, a small business owner with big business clients, there is comfort in 20/20 hindsight. So here is the limited wisdom that I impart job seekers here in DC and anywhere else in the US. I’m always happy to add to this list of highlights, so feel free to drop a line or a comment and add on.

1. Get connected. Even academics say so – there is a new study out confirming that it’s all about who you know. It’s very true. I got one of my first jobs because a CEO recognized my drive and skills through our interactions in a networking organization. If you want to be in a certain industry i.e. government, marketing, technology, then the best bet is to find networking opportunities and dig in. I tell most people to go find a Meetup.com group and start there. Are you shy and don’t know what to say when you get there? Just remember that not everyone knows each other and you’re not the odd man out. There are always new faces at every event.

2. Speaking of not knowing what to say…I always advise developing a 10-30 second statement about who you are in case someone asks. The worst scenario is not being able to sell yourself! So get a few sentences together that tell your story and what you’re looking for, then practice in the mirror. Memorize. The next time someone asks, “what do you do?” it won’t be paralyzing.

3. Use new online tools and clean up the old ones. Take down or make beer pong FB pics from college private in some way. If you have a Twitter stream and its personal then you might want to lock it. LinkedIn is generally for the over 35 crowd and this is *good*. It’s where seasoned pros and decision makers dwell online. You want to be found here, so put up your full resume and give yourself a title. I’m “communications strategist” as it’s really a broad explanation of what I do. Simple.

4. Get feedback on your resume from people in and outside of your field. A few perspectives never hurt. Watch the grammar and punctuation – they really do count. Create an eye-catching cover letter that shows who you are and how you bring value to their business.

5. Finally, don’t be afraid to be unique. For example, I had one of the best interviews with someone who described an antique tea pot collection in the “interests” section of their resume. In addition to her great skills, it showed that she was well rounded. She got hired.