Each month we share the things that make our spirits soar from the heart to the arts.
Please share yours with us, we’re listening.

	Tilt-shift effects aren’t new, but this video of aerial shots of Rio de Janeiro is so beautiful and watchable. I could play this over and over. The parade is magical.
	Olga Kotelko kicks … ! You may have heard about her. A new book, What Makes Olga Run: The Mystery of the 90-Something Track Star and What She Can Teach Us About Living Longer, Happier Lives, by Bruce Grierson, released in January of this year, and as a result, she’s been appearing in the media (see this from the Today Show, or read about her in the New York Times). Why Olga? She’s a 94-year-old Canadian track and field athlete with 23 world records (17 of them in her current age category), and she started training at age 77. Ever since I got wind of her, I’ve been soaking up her story as I deal with my parents’ issues with aging, as well as my—and everyone’s—“someday.” But, as the saying goes, being old is better than the alternative!
	Sir Terry Pratchett is pretty much a genius. If you are a fan of Douglas Adams and Mark Twain, you’ll enjoy his work – silly and irreverent, but thought-provoking all the same. I’ve been making good use of my Overdrive account, and have been thoroughly enjoying all of the Discworld books my local libraries didn’t carry. As of this month, there are now 40! Looking for a place to start? I began with “Equal Rites” which gives a good introduction to the mechanics of Discworld, Unseen University, and one of my favorite characters, Granny Weatherwax.
	Do you remember Evelyn Wood? Yes? No, no, no. Not the girl you slow-danced with in junior high school, I’m talking about the speed reading course. Words in chunks. Fingers scanning the page. That’s all over now. Come on Evelyn, let’s take a Spritz!
	It’s not everyone who would want to give something back on their birthday, but geek-icon Nathan Fillion (Castle, Firefly) does just that. For the past two years, for his birthday, he has teamed up with Charity: Water to get his fans and his 2 million+ Twitter followers to donate to this “non-profit organization [that is] on a mission to bring clean and safe drinking water to every person on the planet.” One lucky person who donates will even win a lunch or dinner date with Nathan (airfare + accommodations included!). Check out his page for more information and see how you can get involved.
	The crocus coming out of the ground is a sure sign spring is on its way! Every year we look for that little bulb to burst through the ground in glorious pink, purple or yellow. There still might be a chill in the air but just seeing those little bursts of color puts some pep back into our step knowing warmer weather is on the way!
	Front end web dev celebrity, Chris Coyier, recently had his website, CSS Tricks hacked. Instead of freaking out, well, maybe after freaking out, he used Skype to interview the dude that hacked him to learn his motivation and techniques!! So super interesting and insightful.

You may be an old hand with PowerPoint. You may be the main person crafting the slides, and you may even be the one who actually has to get up and present. Or maybe you’ve never touched it and it’s sitting in your applications folder, mocking you. Either way, whether you think you know it all or you think you know nothing, think again.

1. Everyone does not have the same fonts as you.

Why is this important? If you are the only one ever delivering your presentation, on your computer, then you can get a little more creative in the font choice department. But if you are creating a presentation for anyone else to use, especially if on a different computer, the way your text displays can be a toss-up. You don’t want to be in front of your audience before you find out that your carefully crafted wording has now run off the page or overlaps other text because those are just a couple of the ways that fonts can go wrong when using a computer that doesn’t have the font you intended.

If you use the basic fonts that Windows and Mac computers have in common—Arial, Georgia, Verdana—you can’t go wrong. (See our previous article: Website Fonts that Go Beyond the Basics.) To that I would venture to add fonts that come with Microsoft, like Calibri. It’s a nice alternative and looks well both bolded and in italics.

2. The Slide Masters: There for a reason.

This could honestly be an entire article on its own. The Slide Masters are your friends. If you use them well, they will save you countless hours of trying to use common elements and keep things consistent. Think of them as your style guide.*

Acquaint yourself with the different kinds of Slide Masters there are. You can have multiple masters, or stick to the basics. Whatever you do, plan them well. Do it right and you will not only save yourself countless hours of changes and tweaks, but your overall file sizes will be smaller because you’ll only be using that corporate logo once on the main master slide instead of copying it and pasting it to dozens of individual slides.

3. Sound effects and animation: Not necessary.

The quickest way to spot a newbie is the use of ALL THE EFFECTS! Just because you can use them, doesn’t mean that you should. The power of your message should come through in just that—the message itself. If you require a camera sound effect or a scrambled title to make your point, you may need to rethink what your message is.

Are all effects created equal? Of course not. The subtle and judicious use of certain effects can add depth to your presentation. But make absolutely certain that it adds something to your presentation, and doesn’t detract (or distract). Also keep in mind that different versions of PowerPoint may not have the latest effects you have on your computer. As noted above in point 1, unless you’re presenting on your own computer, you may run into incompatibility issues.

4. The “autofit text” feature: Turn it off.

Hopefully, you will never ever have to use this, because you will put the right amount of words on a slide (see below). But should you decide that only a bulleted list will do, make sure you disable “Fit to slide” option. And of course, you’ve already set up all of the correct paragraph styles in your Slide Master, right? So they’ll look good every time.

5. Less is more…

…if you use the right words and the right images. Best practices say to maintain a maximum of three bullet points per slide. Additional bullets may appear on the next slide. When text is too small and a venue is large, there is a danger that the audience may not be able to read (or see) the point being made. And even if they can see them to read it, you don’t want them reading instead of listening to you. Employ the use of infographics and a more stylistic approach, leading the viewer to focus on the next idea and not individual words. Don’t be afraid to use more than one slide.

*Seriously, another entire article. Your Slide Masters should ensure that everyone who uses your template is presenting a unified and consistent font and look across the board.

In writing for marketing and sales, advice from Spanish writer and philosopher Baltasar Gracián holds up after 400 years: “Never exaggerate.” On the subject of superlatives, Gracián said they “offend the truth and cast doubt on your judgment. By exaggerating, you squander your praise and reveal a lack of knowledge and taste.”

Rather than try to convince others by telling them how great you are, show them. Use specific examples, testimonials from independent third parties (this is why it’s called earned—or free—media), and metrics instead of adjectives. Consider David Ogilvy’s famous advertisement for Rolls Royce  whose headline reads, “At 60 miles an hour the loudest noise in this new Rolls-Royce comes from the electric clock.” Ogilvy found the twenty-year old quotation in an English automobile magazine. But it drives the point home. One engineer is then supposed to have said, “we’ve got to do something about that dammed clock!”

Rather than revert to the cliché, provide a story or even a sentence that brings your point to life. We could say, “That was the loudest noise I ever heard.” Heard that before. Or, an alternative, “The drowsy stillness of the afternoon was shattered by what sounded to his strained senses like G.K. Chesterton falling on a sheet of tin.” P.G. Wodehouse places you into the situation, without one superlative. He’s the best!

Baltasar Gracián (1601–1658) wrote, among others, The Art of Wordly Wisdom: A Pocket Oracle, a collection of 300 maxims on various topics giving advice and guidance on how to live fully, advance socially, and be a better person. Read online at the Internet Archive.

Our town recently held a spelling bee for all 4th and 5th graders across all the elementary schools. Having three kids who fell right into that range, my 5th grader, who we’ll call S, signed up, so immediately our 4th-grade twins P and A had to get in on it too. Sure! More spelling!

I figured we’d go, cheer everyone on, and have a good time. What I didn’t expect was to learn something about pride, sportsmanship, and bravery; all things that can come into play on a daily basis no matter what kind of team you’re working with.

Play to Your Strengths

Our 5th grader S is a voracious reader and loves words, so we figured a spelling bee was a natural thing for her. Although she is a bit on the quiet side, said she wanted to try. I thought she would get up, spell a few words, do her best (which is all you can ask of anyone), and see what happens.

What happened was that my quiet kid, who normally won’t open her mouth much in public, including school, was on FIRE. She was so excited to get up and spell, that at one point she ran on stage early and had to get called back. Round after round went by. Soon she was in the top 20 before being called out, but, after several others were too, she was invited back for a special spell-off to determine the finalists. Sure enough, S made the finals, ready to return in two nights for the next round. Her beaming face pretty much made my entire month.

Lesson Learned: Don’t think that just because you make a mistake once, that that’s the end of it. Stick around and keep trying—your next chance may come sooner than you think!

Be a Good Sport

The next night was the 4th grade competition. My twins, son P and daughter A, were set to go, showed up early, got their numbers, and sat in the front row, swinging their legs a few inches off the floor. P walked confidently to the microphone to spell his first word—and got it wrong.

He got his certificate, sat down, and said, “Mom, I KNOW that word. But what I saw in my head was not what came out of my mouth.” I hugged him and told him that getting up on a stage to talk to people is hard, and then having to spell random words in front of them is even harder. I reminded him that his sister and several other friends still had to go and that we needed to stay until they were done.

That kid took a moment for himself, then moved to an aisle seat. He cheered like crazy when his sister or anyone from our school went up, and leaned out in the aisle to give high-fives to the kids coming past. I could not have been prouder of him.

Lesson Learned: When things don’t go your way, don’t be a sore loser. Remember the impact that you have on others, especially when you are part of a team. People will respect you for your graciousness and goodwill.

Do the Stuff That Scares You

P’s twin sister A has stage fright. Spelling does not come naturally to her. To my surprise, when the time came to sign up, she insisted on it. “I have to do it, Mom, because it scares me.”

In addition to my three, we also brought along S, a friend from their class who confidently spelled everything she saw out the car window on the way to that night’s competition. I prayed that each of them would make it through at least one round so they’d have a good experience, and we could go home whenever they were ready.

A spelled her word fine. Then her brother got out. And then their friend got out. A just kept on spelling! After about three or four rounds, she misspelled a word, received her certificate, and sat down next to me. We cheered like crazy and I gave her a huge hug. “I’m so proud of you!” She leaned in and said, “I am NEVER doing that again.”

I was pretty surprised, since she’d done quite well for herself that night, and doubly so for a kid with stage fright and spelling issues. She said, “Mom, S did it, and P did it, and loads of kids from our school did it. I didn’t want to miss out on anything, and if I didn’t try, I would always wonder. But now I know!”

Lesson Learned: Try the scary stuff, at least once. Challenge yourself and you never know how far you’ll be able to go. And you just might even enjoy it!

This month we’re inspired by children, our greatest resource; innovation; what’s cooking; and more. What’s inspiring you today?

	I’m totally impressed by Kickstarter’s milestone of $1 billion dollars donated by over 5.7 million people! I’ve personally contributed to a few projects, and I love the concept of regular people helping each other do the impossible with $5 and $10 dollar donations. The web at it’s very best!
	Been reading a lot about the culture changes in business these days. A real trend is emerging, and it is a welcome sign for anyone interested in creativity. I like this one from Fast Company, “5 Rules for a Creative Culture”: 1) Avoid rules, 2) Give yourself and your team permission to be creative, 3) Hire weird people, 4) Make meetings less about delegation and task management and more about cross-pollination of ideas (especially the weird ideas), and 5) Structure your company to be flexible. (Check out the full article though, there’s more to each of these than you see here!)
	I am constantly inspired by my twins, Angela and Peter, who turn 10 this week! They’ve inspired me for the past decade with their wit, humor, and boundless love and energy. One thing I marvel at is the fact that their very lives are a miracle. They were born 2 months early and spent most of that time in the neonatal ICU. We were told that, had they been born in the 90s, they most likely would not have survived. When they did get to come home, it was with monitors, medications, and therapy to make sure they progressed to the level of their non-preemie peers. Today, they are brave, proud, talented, artistic, and have a set of curls like their mama! I frequently say that God meant their lives for something special. I can’t wait to see the beautiful people they grow to become.
	Enjoy stats? I am limited to the backs of baseball cards, so I love when I find stats I can understand. Check out “Hans Rosling’s 200 Countries, 200 Years, 4 Minutes—the Joy of Stats,” from BBC Four.
	Cooking, baking, and creating, oh my! During the winter months I always feel better when I’m creating something in the kitchen. Especially when it’s something mouth watering and healthy. Recent creations have been steamed kale and onions drizzled with a zesty lemon mediterranean marinade accompanied by blackened chicken with a green olive tapenade. And don’t forget dessert. Nothing like old fashioned drop cakes with anise and cranberries. Now that will chase away those winter doldrums!
	Every year SXSW rolls around and every year I wish I was back in Austin soaking up all the festivities! Even though I am not there, I will be tapping into the fun with podcasts and Twitter feeds. Maybe next year I can get down there, but this year it will just have to remain my inspiration.
	These days, whatever I pick or want to pick is pink. I am excited to buy pretty things for my newborn daughter. So, of course, it’s pink for our princess.

A webinar audience is a special challenge. They are at work. Therefore, your presentation must answer the question: How does this benefit me? Otherwise, they will go right back to work. Ideally the slide should illustrate your idea in a word or an image. A slide should be easy to comprehend and command immediate interest; it’s a dramatic way to use content and keep your audience engaged. Otherwise, when each new slide comes into view, the human reaction is to start reading them. The more complex the slide, the greater effort your audience must make, fracturing their attention even more. Your slides will be understood visually, with the bulk of your audience’s attention on you, the speaker.

For inspiration, look at the master, Steve Jobs. There’s a micro-industry devoted to appreciating the power he brought to his presentations.

Good to Great author Jim Collins provides another perspective, the hedgehog principal, which can apply to webinars just as it does to transforming organizations. He says, “All good-to-great leaders, it turns out, are hedgehogs. They know how to simplify a complex world into a single, organizing idea—the kind of basic principle that unifies, organizes, and guides all decisions.” This is a wonderful way to consider how you build content in your webinar. You verbally provide the content, and the slides help your audience to understand the organizing principle, the value-added.

The best companies use an independent creative agency to provide what your colleagues may be unable to offer: brutal honesty. A creative agency can review, and/or create a style guide, and offer presentation guidelines to help your webinar slides avoid interfering with the spotlight, which should be on you.

“Decision is a sharp knife that cuts clean and straight; indecision, a dull one that hacks and tears and leaves ragged edges behind it.”
—Gordon Graham

Successful business depends on trust. It begins with decision-makers. Trust extends to your clients, vendors, colleagues, and anyone you serve or have served. The integrity we bring to the decision-making process is not merely your moral compass, but the strength of your commitment to be the best, and make good choices.

One dimension resides in the willingness and ability to ask questions. This means being unafraid to look for more answers, being open to the divergent voice, and understanding how the right questions can provide answers to make the best product or service possible. They should anticipate change.

The Source of All Knowledge

American novelist Thomas Berger put it succinctly, “Asking questions is the source of all knowledge.” The persons and organizations that are practiced at the discipline of asking questions may come up with unexpected answers. Disruptive innovation comes of disruptive questions. At Motorola, an engineer was asked to develop the next car radiophone. He began with asking a new question, “Why is it that when we want to call and talk to a person, we have to call a place?” He untethered the person from the car. In 1973 he made the first cell phone call, on a prototype that would become the DynaTAC 8000X, aka, “The Brick.” More questions and incremental change would follow. The Brick debuted at $4,000, with a battery life of 20 minutes. Back to incremental innovation, it is said that the company that cracks the code on battery life, may command the market.

In an address at Columbia University in 1982, Admiral Hyman Rickover, the “father” of the U.S. nuclear navy, discussed his management philosophy. “When doing a job—any job—one must feel that he owns it, and act as though he will remain in the job forever. … Every manager has a personal responsibility not only to find problems but to correct them. This responsibility comes before all other obligations, before personal ambition or comfort.”

When you and your colleagues work in an organization with this shared commitment, decisions are based on information contributed from everyone who shares a personal responsibility for success. Yes, decisions can go wrong. Then we have to be able to let go and admit mistakes, in order to move forward. Mistakes are valuable. Building on your body of knowledge contributes to the next decision, an informed decision. A decisive decision is based on shared responsibility, intellectual curiosity, past experience, and the commitment of your team. It cuts like a sharp knife.

We’re moved by the past. The future. Creation and innovation. Please enjoy what’s moved us this month and share what is inspiring you.

	I never would have splurged on this for myself, but my husband has always been one to encourage my love of photography. So for Christmas he got me Olloclip’s 4 in 1 iPhone lens which lets you shoot in wideangle, fish-eye, and in two macro modes. It’s been so much fun to experiment and lets me get really creative with my phone camera. My favorite subject — of course — has been my two favorite guys.
	The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2014 had its own slew of cool gadgets on display, but to me the Oculus VR is the best thing I have seen in a while. www.oculusvr.com. Virtual Reality has captured the imaginations of consumers and businesses for decades, and with the latest prototype code-named “Crystal Cove”, Oculus has taken a massive leap forward, eliminating the stomach-churning motion blur.
	I adore the Overdrive Media Console, a wonderful free app that lets me get my library fix anytime, anywhere. Snowstorm? No problem! I can go get any ebook, anytime. I can search multiple libraries, get an audiobook version if I want, and borrow a book in EPUB or Kindle formats. If the book you want isn’t available, place a hold and it will email you when it’s ready to download. For a girl eagerly working her way through the Game of Thrones series, with kids who will read almost anything if it’s on the Kindle, this is like having my library at my fingertips. Heaven!
	After a family visit to Germany in 1934, Michael King Sr. changed his name to Martin Luther. As did his son. On the day commemorating his birthday, we are treated to re-hearing his speeches. This line from the speech he delivered on April 3, 1968 resonated with me: “But I know, somehow, that only when it is dark enough can you see the stars.” It’s the foundation of inspiration. The speech was to be his last. It bears mentioning how this speech ended: “Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I’m not concerned about that now….” The text and audio are both available here.
	Watches, for me, are right up there with landline phones, floppy disks and cassette players. Unless used as jewelry I generally don’t care for them. But what if a watch could help feed the hungry, fund education research or provide treatment for AIDS patients? 1:Face Watch is a brand that just does that and for the first time ever, I’m excited to wear a watch. Learn more at 1facewatch.com/
	Traveling! Oh…how it rejuvenates the spirit. During the frigid winter months, booking a trip to a warm sunny place, whether it’s a weekend getaway or a trip booked in advance helps dismiss the winter doldrums. Bermuda, one of my favorite places, is once again on my list. Just by looking at the pictures everyday, gives me a glimpse of sun, fun, sand, and relaxation.
	Marilyn Minter paints like a boss and I have no idea how she does it. Check her out here and have your mind blown too.
	This awesome color-grabbing cube by SwatchMate allows you to go out into the world and, with the push of a button, record a swatch color for quick import into Photoshop. Check out their YouTube video to learn more about how it works, and if you’ve got an extra $80 in your pocket, buy me one!

“There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate.”
―Linda Grayson

We like sweets. It’s just true. We like sweets at work. We like sweets in the form of chocolate cake, and we like sweets in the form of positive feedback. It’s not that we don’t seek out constructive criticism, we do. When well-delivered it’s like verbal vitamins that help us grow stronger. But, toss us a few Hershey’s Kisses every once and awhile, and watch out!

Carole Spiers, motivational speaker on stress management, and author of Show Stress Who’s Boss, offers a few tips on giving feedback and reminds us that there should only be two kinds: positive and constructive. When giving positive feedback:

Never hesitate. Give the positive feedback on the spot. Sometimes things can be forgotten.

Make it public. Let everyone in the company know of the employee’s achievement. Private is fine, but stating it publicly not only encourages the employee, but also can uplift the entire company into a more positive environment.

Be specific. Let the recognition be spot-on for what the employee did right.

Offering positive feedback is a good discipline. Its alternative—negative feedback—not only threatens morale, it can be the source of an even more negative hidden message. Consider the following:

Try to avoid these negative phrases, and instead focus on constructive feedback. Here are some helpful techniques for tactful criticism:

Establish what’s good. But don’t sandwich the negative.
While it is important to acknowledge the positive, it’s also important to deliver negative news without hiding behind it.
i.e. You did a nice job mending the fence, however there are some areas that require improvement. Let’s discuss them so we can make it as good as it can be.

Every well-polished idea appears effortless, but rarely is. Never lead with a negative, you never know how long or how much effort it took someone to get to certain points in their project. Approach an ongoing project with positivity so you don’t come off as discouraging and unappreciative of their work as a whole.

Avoid sticking your “but” in where it doesn’t belong. Avoid using the word “but” at all cost. We have all heard “I really like this, but . . . ” This is an automatic turn-off to the person receiving the critique, and now your constructive criticism is falling on deaf ears. To be truly constructive, they’ll need to hear what you have to say.

The bottom line is that immediate and positive feedback is well received, it feels good to say it, it’s free, and it builds goodwill and positive morale. On the flip side, when criticism becomes necessary, avoid personal attack, focus on the constructive—and know the difference.

During that fastest time of year—the sprint between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day—we need to be prepared for a lot of thank yous. We receive visits, eat wonderful food, get gifts, attend parties, do good deeds, and thank yous are in hearty supply. There is a saying that seeing is believing…but saying? Instead of saying or texting or emailing, respond with something more lasting. Write a thank you note. Spill some ink. Write it by hand. Sign it, seal it, stamp it, send it.

Address Our Need to be Appreciated

Everybody agrees. Agreement reigns from how-to-win-friends-and-influence-people guru Dale Carnegie, to in-search-of-excellence expert Tom Peters. Peters, who many years after writing an article for Success magazine that listed 30 rules on making an impact, said,

Every list of 30, by definition, has got something that comes in first. And the one that I chose for first place is one that I would choose for first place all these years later. And it was: Don’t forget your thank you notes.

Peters cites no less an authority than the great American psychologist/philosopher William James, who said, “The deepest human need is the need to be appreciated.”

The cost is minimal in time and money. The risk is minimal. Can you go wrong? I’d suggest that misspelled names, followed by misspelled words, illegible handwriting, incorrect addresses, or a lengthy delay would detract from the benefit. Otherwise, you are good to go. Write it. Sign it, seal it, stamp it, send it.

In business, you don’t ever need to tell a potential client that you are responsive. You’ve shown it.
You demonstrated appreciation, even for the little things we often take for granted.

Your response, in as little as a two- or three-line note, will be de-facto memorable, simply because it’s unexpected. So few do so little. And thus, your note is more noteworthy.

A thank you note is personal. No need to worry about writer’s block. Keep it specific. Then write it. Sign it, seal it, stamp it, send it.

Dear Friend,
I appreciate your taking the time to read this blog post. Your comments mean a lot to me.

Thank you.

It’s going to be an inspiring year full of unexpected delight. We can tell. Join us and let us know what you’ve found to be inspirational too.

	I’ve long been a fan of NPR’s super-smart economics podcast Planet Money, which breaks down complicated financial issues into interesting and digestible bites. Their “Giant Pool of Money” podcast that ran on This American Life is a must-hear for anyone wanting to understand the 2008 financial crisis. And because I do lots of product development with MUTTScomics.com—including sourcing, design, and production management—their recent stories on how their Planet Money t-shirts got made were particularly fascinating. They even have a microsite devoted to the topic, with videos. Worth a watch if you ever wonder where the things you own really come from.
	I had a stroke of insight over the holidays and ordered groceries to be delivered in Bakersfield, California, for my sister and her family. Wow, why didn’t I ever think of that before? It’s perfect for some of the people on our list, so next year, I’ll remember that.
	The evocative and inspiring Linda Ronstadt autobiography, Simple Dreams, was released on the heels of her announcement of Parkinson’s disease, ending her singing career, and making the story even more poignant. She has a true gift for storytelling. If you’ve ever loved her voice and her gift of musical interpretation, do yourself a favor and read her story. Until then, revel in this rendition of “Heart Like a Wheel” (and have a tissue ready).
	The image of beauty and composure in spite of adversity. The Reuters Full Focus blog publishes top photo’s on a weekly basis.
	The Dell “Beginnings” video is a testament to how something so big can start so small. It pays tribute to startup companies and businesses suggestively founded on a Dell. It also includes Dell’s own humble beginnings in dorm room #2713 back in 1984 at the University of Texas.
	I love music’s power to trigger our memories. When I prepared to watch the updated, live version of The Sound of Music on television, starring Carrie Underwood and Stephen Moyer, I didn’t think I’d enjoy it. However, every single song brought vivid memories of my childhood; listening to, and watching the original movie during the holidays. What an uplifting feeling to remember all those good times. Another one that brings back a flood of memories is watching the original Babes in Toyland! It plays every Thanksgiving.
	POW (Protect Our Winters) educates and initiates community-based projects to fight global climate change. POW is lead by the winter sports community to help save winter, a season that doesn’t just provide us with fun winter sports like snowboarding, but with over 600,000 snow-based recreation jobs for people in the United States alone.
	It’s official. The 2014 season of the FIRST Robotics Competition has started. This year’s game is called Aerial Assist, and robots have to score yoga balls into goals that are seven feet off the ground, and collaborate with their partners for bonus points. Watch the three-minute gameplay animation for all of the details. The FIRST Robotics Competition always inspires me because high school teams all around the world create amazing, fully functional robots in just six weeks. When was the last time you started, tested, and finished a project in only six weeks? I can’t wait to see what my team creates!
	In a handicraft exhibition I came across amazing antique wooden furniture which made me want to buy everything for sale!! Since I can not, I satisfied myself with buying an antique wooden magazine rack.

Economist Noriel Roubini correctly anticipated the collapse of the U.S. housing market and the 2008-2009 recession. Since then he has become more well-known, and has more followers. And more critics. Often he is assumed to hold a bearish view on the market and economy. Some call him a perma-bear, and along the way he picked up the nickname Dr. Doom, but he argues that it’s not necessarily so. In making prognostications for 2014, Roubini said, “You don’t want to listen only to people who agree with you, you want to listen to people who disagree with you, and understand why . . . it pushes you to think harder about why they might be correct.”

Roubini’s critics might very well consider the same advice for themselves. For while both sides might agree on the difficulty of timing the market, many would now agree that Roubini brought insight into marketplace fundamentals that were obscured by the housing bubble.

The Forces of Human Nature
There are forces of human nature that make listening difficult, beginning with a tendency to not fully turn off the I-disagree-with-you button before you get a full airing of the opposing or contrarian point of view. Rather than listening and planning your rebuttal (a presumably persuasive argumentative response) consider cataloging those points with which you (surprisingly?) agree. Then, think about how the points with which you may still disagree may be held by others. Can you understand it from their point of view? Does it help inform your own view? With a new understanding of Roubini, one might disregard his predictions and instead focus on the flashpoints in the world economy to develop or reinforce your own conclusions.

People generally … hear what they listen for. 
In To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus Finch says to Scout, his daughter, “If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view […] until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.”

In seeking to bridge understanding from disagreement you may even find yourself facing friendly fire. Politics and policy is embattled by a news cycle that is often hyperventilated by the speed of social media. The bridge may be burning as soon as you set foot on it. In 2008, then-Senator Obama was criticized on the campaign trail for praising former President Ronald Reagan as being a transformative leader. As the flames of controversy died down, it was easier to understand what Obama meant—it was an endorsement of the power of change, not of policy. But the critics had come out in force, even from his own party.

Napoleon was quoted as saying, “The people to fear are not those who disagree with you, but those who disagree with you and are too cowardly to let you know.” As a leader, Napoleon knew that the information can help us make an informed action—maybe one with grave consequences—can be uncovered by listening and encouraging communication from those with whom we disagree.

Effective Business Communications
In your communications, consider how disagreement impacts understanding. Those who disagree with us may listen selectively, may not listen at all, or may transform our message to fit their point of view. If they aren’t listening, you’re not communicating. The better we are at understanding the perspective of those who disagree with us, the more our chance of having an effective communication that can anticipate the disagreement, and maybe find a common point of agreement to move forward. Let them know that even though you disagree, you understand their point of view. That just might get their ear.

We’ve had a great time thinking, writing, and sharing ideas over the past year.

At year-end, we thought we’d take a little break from writing a new post, and instead highlight the top 10 posts that received the most interest.

Why voracious readers make better designers
Being an insatiable Reader is more than just plain old fun. Arguably, it can prepare you to be a great graphic designer.
Read full article

Designer’s roundtable: PRI’s design team weighs in on Yahoo!’s new logo
After 30 days of previewing logos, Yahoo! finally presented their new logo design. PRI’s design team—Elena Nazzaro, Allyson Murphy, Dany Petraska, Rebecca Terranova, and Sara Reffler—weigh in on what they felt worked and what didn’t.
Read full article

Cloud hosting: Selecting the right option
Choosing where to host your website can be difficult given all the available options. The most cost-effective and scalable solution points toward using cloud-based servers. To help explain the differences between the three main hosting options let’s start with soda.
Read full article

What a handful of Goldfish crackers can teach about estimating time
How good of an estimator are you? Can you size up a project and accurately guesstimate the time and resources it will take to complete? When you see a glass, is it half full of Goldfish crackers or half empty?
Read full article

Dale Carnegie’s first golden rule
Rules are meant to be obeyed. A brief parsing of Dale Carnegie’s golden rule on becoming a friendlier person.
Read full article

Give your ALL: Client courtesy before a holiday
Keep your clients in-the-know on holiday closings.
Read full article

Great design does not come automatically
You can’t simply stretch and resize a design to fit different versions. With a little preplanning, we can anticipate all your needs.
Read full article

The struggle to be understood
Two essential elements to are the ability to be clear and concise. The better they work together, the more likely you will be understood.
Read full article

Duly noted: Breaking news from Las Vegas!
PRI was on the scene in Las Vegas at the 2013 Legal Marketing Association Annual Conference.
Read full article

Just because I say it’s so
We need copy editors. The more we write, the more likely that our mistakes either become embedded in an historical record, or originate from a mistake made elsewhere.
Read full article

Coupon clipping? Most of us have, at least once. Receive a discount price for something you were going to purchase, regardless. That’s a good thing. You’re ahead of the game by a few cents or more –and the sponsor gets customer loyalty and feet through the door. Business Week reports on a version of the grocery market circular on e-roids—how McDonalds is testing the concept of pushing coupons into your smartphone with an app called “McD”, and pulling customers through its golden arches. Kevin Newell, chief brand and strategy officer for McDonald’s U.S. calls it product engagement. Technically, the roll-out is easier for company operations to implement than mobile payment apps like the one introduced by Starbucks, or one requiring even more sophisticated operational changes like an app that allows one to order for takeout via smartphone.

The considerations made by a company must include availability—when you push out a deal, ideally your business should be nearby. And, in addition, you don’t want to get criticized for draining your customer’s smartphone battery. The description provided by McDonald’s in the app store is: “Welcome to McDonald’s USA’s official mobile app, designed to help you find your nearest restaurant, get official nutrition info, check for employment opportunities and get the latest on our promotions.”

Even with what would seem to be a well designed application, some of the reviews posted in the app store remind us, unsurprisingly, that like any product, the roll-out is best if perfected and market tested. Responded one recipient, “Very poorly done, “amateurish” at best. In my attempt to locate a store, the mileage was 42,405. It appears the assumption is I’m attached to the satellite….” Another user opined, “The app is as good as the food is for you!”

Steve Easterbrook, McDonald’s executive vice president and global chief brand officer, described a vision for McDonald’s digital future during the investor meeting: “Imagine a customer walks [into] their local McDonald’s and receives a message on their smartphone that welcomes them back to the restaurant by name and a message that offers them the ability to place their favorite order, perhaps a Big Mac Extra Value Meal from their phone. Maybe then support it with a personalized offer to being a loyal customer or perhaps a customer-relation management program that gives loyal customers access to fun and exciting rewards that only McDonald’s can deliver.”

Even with growing pains, app-based coupons will be an emerging trend.

Did you ever use a phrase, then realize that you are no longer sure what it means? Like “added value.” We learned in Management 101 that added value was what happened during manufacturing. For example, take a piece of copper and roll it into sheets. Then cut it to length, put it through a sheet metal bending brake, and you have customized copper flashing. That’s added value in manufacturing. Time, materials, machinery, and expertise. Looks good, works as it is intended. Lasts forever.

But the term has become broader to embrace the service industry. It’s how the neighborhood hardware store competes with Walmart.

Experience is intangible but it contributes to added value. The silver-haired veteran may not land at the top of the interview pile, but they are the go-to person when a business runs into trouble. Help! Get us out of here! Correct it. Solve the problem. When management turns into leadership, that’s added value.

I have a friend who has been a hairstylist for over 30 years. Color? She knows color. Many is the time when a teary-eyed young client sits in her chair, begging for the correction to make it right. The picture on the box that she had taken home from the drugstore, well it didn’t quite match up to what she saw in the mirror. A couple of hours later, the clouds part, the sun shines through, tears dry, and all is right for Saturday night. That’s added value.

But what of the non-emergency situation? In what other circumstance does added value make a difference? Often it appears in avoided opportunity costs, and reputation management. Some of the qualities that comprise added value include:

1. Responsive—delivery, on time.
2. Collaborative—requires active listening.
3. Presentation of options—relies upon depth of experience and awareness of bleeding-edge practices.
4. Quality assurance—testing, editing, proofing, trial runs; all require time that is factored in from the start.
5. Effective business communication—combines an understanding of urgency, audience, and accountability to save time, money, and protect your reputation.

Effective Business Communication

Business is built on trust and communication, so effective communication provides added value. It includes active listening and the understanding of three critical components:

1. Audience
   In marketing and communications it’s our job to know the  target audience and their wants, needs, and desires. We need to be responsive listeners. And to collaborate with our colleauges. The marketing director gets the full set of details, and the company’s executives, well—they get the executive summary.
2. Urgency
   The urgency of anything is contextual, and depends on understanding the consequence of success or failure.  Added value requires an understanding of urgency, and responding in kind.
3. Ownership (a.k.a. Accountability)
   This is delegation. A team effort requires that numbers 1 and 2 above are addressed for effective communication to take place. But when many are involved, one must assure that a feedback loop is clear to move forward and avoid losing momentum.

Added value is not just something that happens in manufacturing. It can be how effective communication saves time, money, and protects your reputation.

During a recent writing experience, my colleague found factual errors. I was reminded how we need to be our own copy editors. It is imperative. Most of us don’t have vigilant colleagues like I do. My colleague lives in a world of disbelief. She doesn’t believe anything that’s stated as a fact. Instead, she looks it up. And then she asks for clarification.

The more we write, the more likely that our mistakes either become embedded in an historical record, or originate from someone else’s mistake. Just because I say it’s so in writing, does not make it so. What if my mistake is picked up by some other author who has used Google to search for information, and repeats it verbatim? Or what if I get the correct information, but type it up incorrectly?

Before circulating a document, do a quick check on anything that you found from a third-party source. Name? Of course you want the correct spelling. But, did someone change William to Willie? Did you assume that Wilie is a man? Does Willie use a middle initial? And what about Willie’s title? Has it changed since the last recorded usage? Check it out. Just because you find it online, that doesn’t absolve you of getting it right. Didn’t your mother tell you not to believe everything you read online? How about calling that person’s office? Check a source. Then another. Ask them about official usage, names, dates, titles. Don’t be guilty of passing along someone else’s typographical error or short-cut.

When you receive information from a third party, treat it like testimony from an ex-con. Anything that has the sound of a fact, can be mistaken, misrepresented, or distorted. We like this little video, that captures the legitimacy that some confer on anything found on the internet. A little due diligence will go a long way to building and protecting your reputation, and you just might uncover something valuable along the way.

After 30 days of previewing logos, Yahoo! finally presented their new logo design. PRI’s design team—Elena Nazzaro, Allyson Murphy, Dany Petraska, Rebecca Terranova, and Sara Reffler—weigh in on what worked and what didn’t.

Allyson Murphy

Overall, the new logo does evoke the sort of whimsical look Yahoo was going for, though the letters themselves appear too thin when the logo is reduced to a small size (like in the banner of Yahoo! pages). However, it just doesn’t feel like the powerful, solid logo I would choose to represent an Internet company worth billions (if we can judge by their recent Tumblr purchase) who is trying to gain traction in the slippery world of the web.

I question their decision to post 29 cast-off designs before revealing the finale. It was obviously a quest to gain interest and chatter on the interwebs (and look, it worked—here we are blogging about it!) but it seems like it muddies the water and introduces a lot of “not as good” representations of the new company before finally coming out with the winner. From a branding perspective, this dilutes the reveal of a new and (hopefully) well-thought-out refresh. It takes years to establish brand recognition, and this seemed to be a month of confusion and rejected ideas.

Rebecca Terranova

As a child I used to look forward to the chocolate-filled advent calendars that my parents would buy me around the holiday season. The thing that I would realize on the third day of following my advent calendar was that the company manufacturing the calendar was more focused on providing you with small daily treats for about a month and put little to no effort into the manufacturing of the actual chocolate treat. It was waxy, cheap, misshapen in the mold, and had a bad taste. The biggest letdown was on the last day of the calendar because there was always an even larger version of this bad chocolate. The daily disappointment I felt with my yucky, chocolate-filled advent calendar is how I felt about Yahoo’s “30 Days of Change.” Yes, there were 29 different logos. Yes, it made me talk about Yahoo! every day for 30 days. But, like the chocolates in the advent calendar of my youth, I am not really impressed by the tasteless, misshapen, poorly manufactured product I received. For a company with an exclamatory for a name, their new logo seems a little stuffy and leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Elena Nazzaro

“Underwhelmed” was my overall feeling on these logos. I didn’t mind the 30 days of logos rollout so much, but at least they all should have been possible contenders. When we met and discussed these as a group, we were grasping at straws to figure out which one we’d prefer over the one they picked (if any). Many of them seemed to just be “Yahoo” typed in a funky font, or sometimes four funky fonts that either came with their computer or they downloaded off the Internet. Typographically, the gaps in kerning and random stretching of letterforms were disconcerting. And the others that we didn’t mind as much were too reminiscent of other logos and styles—one looked better suited to sell yogurt, one evoked eBay, another looked like a Star Trek-roller coaster hybrid. We weren’t feeling any of them.

Perhaps most telling was when, at the end of our discussion, we viewed the old and new logo side by side, and realized that the old logo ran circles around the new one. The old logo was quirky and whimsical, but was immediately recognizable and stood out well at a small size in their banner (something the new one fails at because of the lightweight lettering). Please don’t get us started on the bevel effect that seems like they were trying to copy Google.

Who was the design guru responsible for this? It all comes out now that it was CEO Marissa Mayr’s idea, as she notes on her Tumblr that she loves Adobe Illustrator: “I’m not a pro, but I know enough to be dangerous [smiley face].” And that she and her inhouse design team sat down “one weekend this summer” to redesign the logo. Yeah . . . that explains an awful lot right there.

Dany Petraska

I knew they were working on a new logo, and that it was all part of a publicity campaign, but I wasn’t watching this playout. So I was only fully aware of what they’d done the day the final logo was announced. At a glance on the morning news, I couldn’t see the difference. I could see it once compared side-by-side though and my first reaction was that it was thinner. And that was about the extent of my reaction! When we gathered to discuss this event, I looked further into the process they used and do not understand the strategy behind the 30 days of logos. Though it might have been a cool idea to show how the logo morphed over 30 days! Once the final was chosen, go back and show the first draft, second, etc., to illustrate the design and decision process between a design firm and their client, which should always be collaborative. So, unless the designer was presenting 30 different ideas and they chose the one they chose, the 30 days of designs were almost meaningless?

Do I like the new logo? Did I like the old logo? In my mind, it almost doesn’t matter, it’s all about what I feel when I see their logo (or any company’s logo). Is it familiar? Do I immediately recognize it? What is my experience with the company? Its logo? This is especially true when the logo is typography. If it’s readable, I know it’s Yahoo! (or Google, or pri, or Dell, etc.). Psychology-wise, you can argue that a logo could influence how I feel about a company, and I agree: when I don’t know anything about the company. Once I’m a company fan, it’s their service and product that will sway my opinion, not their logo at that point. But maybe that’s just me: if Yahoo! is trying to update/change/improve their branding, I say make sure you sing that “Yahooooooo!” yodel as often as possible. And stay away from branding their CEO, as CEO’s will come and go. Don’t turn it into a do-I-like-her-or-not campaign (e.g., statements regarding workers working remotely, did she or didn’t she create the logo herself, etc.).

Sara Reffler

I was excited by the social buzz that Yahoo! was generating around their new brand—first they bought Tumblr, now they were announcing a redesign of their logo and site, I was hooked and I wanted to see more. For the first few days I followed along with the campaign, looking at what seemed to be logos mocking other sorts of stuffy logo concepts (one that looked to me like a yogurt company, one that looked like a makeup company, etc.), but I just became more disinterested as time passed. For me, this entire campaign was like the last hill of a roller coaster—as you climb another hill you have all of this adrenaline in your system, you’re excited for what’s over the crest, and then as you reach the bottom, you’re disappointed, because the ride is over and you have to go back to your normal life.

Nothing seems exciting or interesting about the Yahoo! logo, the bevel feels gimmicky and dated, the shapes seem arbitrary instead of logical or mathematical. Perhaps the most disappointing part was that there was a lot of potential to rebrand Yahoo! and recreate the same kind of success that AOL had with theirs. Yahoo! might have received a lot of media attention for the change, brought their brand back into the discussion of big web industries, but I think this tweet explains the whole thing best: “‘Everyone is talking about our brand!’ is not the same as ‘Everyone loves our product!’” Overall, the whole campaign, not just the logo, fell flat and short of my expectations.

After 30 days of previewing logos, Yahoo! finally presented their new logo design. PRI’s design team—Elena Nazzaro, Allyson Murphy, Dany Petraska, Rebecca Terranova, and Sara Reffler—weigh in on what worked and what didn’t.

Allyson Murphy

Overall, the new logo does evoke the sort of whimsical look Yahoo was going for, though the letters themselves appear too thin when the logo is reduced to a small size (like in the banner of Yahoo! pages). However, it just doesn’t feel like the powerful, solid logo I would choose to represent an Internet company worth billions (if we can judge by their recent Tumblr purchase) who is trying to gain traction in the slippery world of the web.

I question their decision to post 29 cast-off designs before revealing the finale. It was obviously a quest to gain interest and chatter on the interwebs (and look, it worked—here we are blogging about it!) but it seems like it muddies the water and introduces a lot of “not as good” representations of the new company before finally coming out with the winner. From a branding perspective, this dilutes the reveal of a new and (hopefully) well-thought-out refresh. It takes years to establish brand recognition, and this seemed to be a month of confusion and rejected ideas.

Rebecca Terranova

As a child I used to look forward to the chocolate-filled advent calendars that my parents would buy me around the holiday season. The thing that I would realize on the third day of following my advent calendar was that the company manufacturing the calendar was more focused on providing you with small daily treats for about a month and put little to no effort into the manufacturing of the actual chocolate treat. It was waxy, cheap, misshapen in the mold, and had a bad taste. The biggest letdown was on the last day of the calendar because there was always an even larger version of this bad chocolate. The daily disappointment I felt with my yucky, chocolate-filled advent calendar is how I felt about Yahoo’s “30 Days of Change.” Yes, there were 29 different logos. Yes, it made me talk about Yahoo! every day for 30 days. But, like the chocolates in the advent calendar of my youth, I am not really impressed by the tasteless, misshapen, poorly manufactured product I received. For a company with an exclamatory for a name, their new logo seems a little stuffy and leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

Elena Nazzaro

“Underwhelmed” was my overall feeling on these logos. I didn’t mind the 30 days of logos rollout so much, but at least they all should have been possible contenders. When we met and discussed these as a group, we were grasping at straws to figure out which one we’d prefer over the one they picked (if any). Many of them seemed to just be “Yahoo” typed in a funky font, or sometimes four funky fonts that either came with their computer or they downloaded off the Internet. Typographically, the gaps in kerning and random stretching of letterforms were disconcerting. And the others that we didn’t mind as much were too reminiscent of other logos and styles—one looked better suited to sell yogurt, one evoked eBay, another looked like a Star Trek-roller coaster hybrid. We weren’t feeling any of them.

Perhaps most telling was when, at the end of our discussion, we viewed the old and new logo side by side, and realized that the old logo ran circles around the new one. The old logo was quirky and whimsical, but was immediately recognizable and stood out well at a small size in their banner (something the new one fails at because of the lightweight lettering). Please don’t get us started on the bevel effect that seems like they were trying to copy Google.

Who was the design guru responsible for this? It all comes out now that it was CEO Marissa Mayr’s idea, as she notes on her Tumblr that she loves Adobe Illustrator: “I’m not a pro, but I know enough to be dangerous [smiley face].” And that she and her inhouse design team sat down “one weekend this summer” to redesign the logo. Yeah . . . that explains an awful lot right there.

Dany Petraska

I knew they were working on a new logo, and that it was all part of a publicity campaign, but I wasn’t watching this playout. So I was only fully aware of what they’d done the day the final logo was announced. At a glance on the morning news, I couldn’t see the difference. I could see it once compared side-by-side though and my first reaction was that it was thinner. And that was about the extent of my reaction! When we gathered to discuss this event, I looked further into the process they used and do not understand the strategy behind the 30 days of logos. Though it might have been a cool idea to show how the logo morphed over 30 days! Once the final was chosen, go back and show the first draft, second, etc., to illustrate the design and decision process between a design firm and their client, which should always be collaborative. So, unless the designer was presenting 30 different ideas and they chose the one they chose, the 30 days of designs were almost meaningless?

Do I like the new logo? Did I like the old logo? In my mind, it almost doesn’t matter, it’s all about what I feel when I see their logo (or any company’s logo). Is it familiar? Do I immediately recognize it? What is my experience with the company? Its logo? This is especially true when the logo is typography. If it’s readable, I know it’s Yahoo! (or Google, or pri, or Dell, etc.). Psychology-wise, you can argue that a logo could influence how I feel about a company, and I agree: when I don’t know anything about the company. Once I’m a company fan, it’s their service and product that will sway my opinion, not their logo at that point. But maybe that’s just me: if Yahoo! is trying to update/change/improve their branding, I say make sure you sing that “Yahooooooo!” yodel as often as possible. And stay away from branding their CEO, as CEO’s will come and go. Don’t turn it into a do-I-like-her-or-not campaign (e.g., statements regarding workers working remotely, did she or didn’t she create the logo herself, etc.).

Sara Reffler

I was excited by the social buzz that Yahoo! was generating around their new brand—first they bought Tumblr, now they were announcing a redesign of their logo and site, I was hooked and I wanted to see more. For the first few days I followed along with the campaign, looking at what seemed to be logos mocking other sorts of stuffy logo concepts (one that looked to me like a yogurt company, one that looked like a makeup company, etc.), but I just became more disinterested as time passed. For me, this entire campaign was like the last hill of a roller coaster—as you climb another hill you have all of this adrenaline in your system, you’re excited for what’s over the crest, and then as you reach the bottom, you’re disappointed, because the ride is over and you have to go back to your normal life.

Nothing seems exciting or interesting about the Yahoo! logo, the bevel feels gimmicky and dated, the shapes seem arbitrary instead of logical or mathematical. Perhaps the most disappointing part was that there was a lot of potential to rebrand Yahoo! and recreate the same kind of success that AOL had with theirs. Yahoo! might have received a lot of media attention for the change, brought their brand back into the discussion of big web industries, but I think this tweet explains the whole thing best: “‘Everyone is talking about our brand!’ is not the same as ‘Everyone loves our product!’” Overall, the whole campaign, not just the logo, fell flat and short of my expectations.

Share in the things that we found educational, delightful and inspirational over the past month — from fine type to country fairs, real stories of exceeding one’s personal best, the newly hatched and the oft’ re-read. And more!

	Attention type nerds! You think you know how to kern? Test your skills on this beautiful, interactive game. It’s super fun on the iPad too. And then go ahead and brag about your nearly perfect score (like I did).
	It’s fair season! Last weekend I went to the Cornish Fair in New Hampshire, and plan to hit a couple more over the next month or so. Where else do you find such quaintness? The big raffle prize at the Cornish Fair was a truckload of firewood (second place was a smaller truckload of firewood). We took a helicopter ride, watched the Flying High Frisbee Dogs, the Free-for-All Oxen Pull contest, bought homemade fudge, and ate homemade Moose Tracks and Black Raspberry ice cream. Next: The Tunbridge World’s Fair September 12-15, and the Peru Fair September 28. Find fairs where you live too!
	My family and I were riveted these past few days by the 110-mile swim of Diana Nyad, the absolutely amazing woman who just completed her lifelong dream of swimming nonstop from Cuba to Florida. What’s even more inspiring is that she’s 64 years old. Think about that—she attempted the swim at age 30, didn’t swim again until age 60 when she saw nobody else had managed to do it, and tried four more times before finally achieving her goal. Upon reaching the beach, she said, “I have three messages. One is, we should never, ever give up. Two is, you never are too old to chase your dreams. And three is, it looks like a solitary sport but it’s a team.” And if all that isn’t inspiration enough for you, check out her TED talks.
	Life crawls into ocean. They moved, I was moved. By the light of the moon, and the sound of the waves, and under the protection of the Tybee Island Sea Turtle Project, I watched as newly hatched loggerhead turtles made their way down the beach into the ocean surf. The volunteers commanded me: “Stop. Stop walking. Stop! No, no flash photography, the light will confuse them, they are responding to the moonlight.”
	I’m inspired by a great book that I’ve read and reread many times. It never gets old or goes out of style: Meditations for Women Who Do Too Much, by Anne Wilson Schaef. It provides a famous—and inspirational—quote for each day of the year, for women like me. They each also include a statement and interpretation of the words, which is a nice added touch.
	As a vegan lady, I have found there is a learning curve when it comes to preparing some of the ingredients. One blog that I frequent for easy recipe ideas and great step-by-step instructions is (the always entertaining) Vegan Zombie. It’s a great place for beginner vegans to start (every recipe is delicious, including many comfort foods) or for regular vegetarians to find vegan recipe alternatives. I have recommended it to many people asking me for recipes and have always wished that they would come out with a cookbook. I am happy to announce that the Vegan Zombie Cookbook is in the process of actually happening thanks to their kickstarter, and I can’t wait to buy my copy!
	This weekend we visited the Liberty Science Center, for NJ FTC Volunteer Appreciation Day. It’s been many years since I last visited, and I forgot how much fun the museum can be with all of its hands-on activities, and well-designed exhibits. We made a 5-foot bubble sheet, raced toy cars using solar power, played our own Jenga game using cardboard boxes, even built my friend into a notched, wooden house! The trip was a great reminder not to take life too seriously—who says you have to grow up!?
	Calvin from Bill Waterson’s cartoon Calvin and Hobbes has always inspired me back to life whenever I am not so much into it . . . his silly comments take me back to my childhood. I simply adore Calvin, and I keep searching for more comic strips, so I was more than happy to come across this blog, from which life’s lessons are derived from his silly comments.

Share in the things that we found educational, delightful and inspirational over the past month — from fine type to country fairs, real stories of exceeding one’s personal best, the newly hatched and the oft’ re-read. And more!

	Attention type nerds! You think you know how to kern? Test your skills on this beautiful, interactive game. It’s super fun on the iPad too. And then go ahead and brag about your nearly perfect score (like I did).
	It’s fair season! Last weekend I went to the Cornish Fair in New Hampshire, and plan to hit a couple more over the next month or so. Where else do you find such quaintness? The big raffle prize at the Cornish Fair was a truckload of firewood (second place was a smaller truckload of firewood). We took a helicopter ride, watched the Flying High Frisbee Dogs, the Free-for-All Oxen Pull contest, bought homemade fudge, and ate homemade Moose Tracks and Black Raspberry ice cream. Next: The Tunbridge World’s Fair September 12-15, and the Peru Fair September 28. Find fairs where you live too!
	My family and I were riveted these past few days by the 110-mile swim of Diana Nyad, the absolutely amazing woman who just completed her lifelong dream of swimming nonstop from Cuba to Florida. What’s even more inspiring is that she’s 64 years old. Think about that—she attempted the swim at age 30, didn’t swim again until age 60 when she saw nobody else had managed to do it, and tried four more times before finally achieving her goal. Upon reaching the beach, she said, “I have three messages. One is, we should never, ever give up. Two is, you never are too old to chase your dreams. And three is, it looks like a solitary sport but it’s a team.” And if all that isn’t inspiration enough for you, check out her TED talks.
	Life crawls into ocean. They moved, I was moved. By the light of the moon, and the sound of the waves, and under the protection of the Tybee Island Sea Turtle Project, I watched as newly hatched loggerhead turtles made their way down the beach into the ocean surf. The volunteers commanded me: “Stop. Stop walking. Stop! No, no flash photography, the light will confuse them, they are responding to the moonlight.”
	I’m inspired by a great book that I’ve read and reread many times. It never gets old or goes out of style: Meditations for Women Who Do Too Much, by Anne Wilson Schaef. It provides a famous—and inspirational—quote for each day of the year, for women like me. They each also include a statement and interpretation of the words, which is a nice added touch.
	As a vegan lady, I have found there is a learning curve when it comes to preparing some of the ingredients. One blog that I frequent for easy recipe ideas and great step-by-step instructions is (the always entertaining) Vegan Zombie. It’s a great place for beginner vegans to start (every recipe is delicious, including many comfort foods) or for regular vegetarians to find vegan recipe alternatives. I have recommended it to many people asking me for recipes and have always wished that they would come out with a cookbook. I am happy to announce that the Vegan Zombie Cookbook is in the process of actually happening thanks to their kickstarter, and I can’t wait to buy my copy!
	This weekend we visited the Liberty Science Center, for NJ FTC Volunteer Appreciation Day. It’s been many years since I last visited, and I forgot how much fun the museum can be with all of its hands-on activities, and well-designed exhibits. We made a 5-foot bubble sheet, raced toy cars using solar power, played our own Jenga game using cardboard boxes, even built my friend into a notched, wooden house! The trip was a great reminder not to take life too seriously—who says you have to grow up!?
	Calvin from Bill Waterson’s cartoon Calvin and Hobbes has always inspired me back to life whenever I am not so much into it . . . his silly comments take me back to my childhood. I simply adore Calvin, and I keep searching for more comic strips, so I was more than happy to come across this blog, from which life’s lessons are derived from his silly comments.

Sooner or later, most of us who work in an office eventually complain about sitting behind a computer. That’s not all. Contributing to the 8+ hours of physical inactivity, family chores, or commuting, is a lack of time for exercise, either before or after work. Running low on time makes trips to the gym a challenge, and unhealthy food choices a real temptation.

I interviewed Nina Chou-Ellis (pictured at left), a personal trainer and nutrition advisor at 24 Hour Fitness in Burbank, California. Chou-Ellis helps people with desk jobs from turning into achy, whiny, slumping blobs (which is what I feel like at times). I contacted Nina so that she could help shed some light on how to do a good job with your health while continuing to do a good job…at your job.

Q. You have been a personal trainer for more than five years, but prior to that, you had a desk job. What did you find to be the biggest challenge to staying healthy while working behind a desk?

A. It is a challenge to muster up the motivation to do a workout after a day at the office. In my case, after only a few weeks I started to experience lower back pain, which affected my entire right leg down into my foot. After a day behind my desk, I felt stiff and without energy.

Q. What were eating habits like in your office?

A. For the majority of my co-workers, lunches were catered at least three days a week, and there was a fully stocked kitchen with plenty of junk food. The free food made it easy for temptation and convenience to prevail, and eat whatever was on hand. But I have a motto: Just because it’s free doesn’t mean you have to eat it! Less healthy choices often result from eating out, versus bringing your own pre-cooked meal.

Q. What is the biggest complaint that you hear from your clients who work at a sedentary job?

A. If it’s not chronic lower back pain or some type of lower back issue, then it’s typically a neck and/or upper trapezoid-related problem.

Q. Making time for the gym is difficult. Can you offer some solutions for someone with a busy work schedule?

A. If you know that a day at work interferes with the self motivation to exercise, then hiring professional assistance can be a good decision. For some, making a financial investment to engage a trainer provides the necessary discipline. An appointment equals accountability. Often, just having a gym membership won’t cut it. Over 60% of gym members without trainers only use their membership once a month or less.

Q. What are some of the biggest challenges that prevent people from eating a healthy diet?

A. Refusing to cook at home. Or convincing themselves they don’t have the time. If you have time to go to a restaurant two to four times a week, you have two to three hours at least once a week to prepare and cook all your food for the week. YouTube posts videos on cooking in bulk. Note that the majority of the videos are made by physique competitors, however they can be done by anyone who strives to consistently eat healthy. It’s way easier than it sounds, but its a great way to stay on track with your diet if time is a factor. Food prep and cooking food in bulk was the only thing that kept me from eating all the free unhealthy food at my former desk job. It may help you stay on track to a healthy lifestyle, and limit you from making poor food choices.

Recommended links:
Meal Prep
Diet Prep
Weekly Meal Prep
Muscle Nutrition

Q. How do you stay motivated to eat healthy and stay fit?

A. I set goals. They are specific, and I create a plan to achieve those goals—otherwise there is no measure of accountability.

Sooner or later, most of us who work in an office eventually complain about sitting behind a computer. That’s not all. Contributing to the 8+ hours of physical inactivity, family chores, or commuting, is a lack of time for exercise, either before or after work. Running low on time makes trips to the gym a challenge, and unhealthy food choices a real temptation.

I interviewed Nina Chou-Ellis (pictured at left), a personal trainer and nutrition advisor at 24 Hour Fitness in Burbank, California. Chou-Ellis helps people with desk jobs from turning into achy, whiny, slumping blobs (which is what I feel like at times). I contacted Nina so that she could help shed some light on how to do a good job with your health while continuing to do a good job…at your job.

Q. You have been a personal trainer for more than five years, but prior to that, you had a desk job. What did you find to be the biggest challenge to staying healthy while working behind a desk?

A. It is a challenge to muster up the motivation to do a workout after a day at the office. In my case, after only a few weeks I started to experience lower back pain, which affected my entire right leg down into my foot. After a day behind my desk, I felt stiff and without energy.

Q. What were eating habits like in your office?

A. For the majority of my co-workers, lunches were catered at least three days a week, and there was a fully stocked kitchen with plenty of junk food. The free food made it easy for temptation and convenience to prevail, and eat whatever was on hand. But I have a motto: Just because it’s free doesn’t mean you have to eat it! Less healthy choices often result from eating out, versus bringing your own pre-cooked meal.

Q. What is the biggest complaint that you hear from your clients who work at a sedentary job?

A. If it’s not chronic lower back pain or some type of lower back issue, then it’s typically a neck and/or upper trapezoid-related problem.

Q. Making time for the gym is difficult. Can you offer some solutions for someone with a busy work schedule?

A. If you know that a day at work interferes with the self motivation to exercise, then hiring professional assistance can be a good decision. For some, making a financial investment to engage a trainer provides the necessary discipline. An appointment equals accountability. Often, just having a gym membership won’t cut it. Over 60% of gym members without trainers only use their membership once a month or less.

Q. What are some of the biggest challenges that prevent people from eating a healthy diet?

A. Refusing to cook at home. Or convincing themselves they don’t have the time. If you have time to go to a restaurant two to four times a week, you have two to three hours at least once a week to prepare and cook all your food for the week. YouTube posts videos on cooking in bulk. Note that the majority of the videos are made by physique competitors, however they can be done by anyone who strives to consistently eat healthy. It’s way easier than it sounds, but its a great way to stay on track with your diet if time is a factor. Food prep and cooking food in bulk was the only thing that kept me from eating all the free unhealthy food at my former desk job. It may help you stay on track to a healthy lifestyle, and limit you from making poor food choices.

Recommended links:
Meal Prep
Diet Prep
Weekly Meal Prep
Muscle Nutrition

Q. How do you stay motivated to eat healthy and stay fit?

A. I set goals. They are specific, and I create a plan to achieve those goals—otherwise there is no measure of accountability.

Whether you are a graphic designer, a content manager, or on your company’s marketing team, choosing the right image to complement your company’s message is an important job. There’s a reason the old adage insists that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” It is one of the main things your audience will connect with.

How does your organization want to be portrayed? Of course professional, hard working, and dependable come to mind. But what about the things that make your company stand out? Think about how you can you define your conference, campaign, or magazine, and tie it back to your message.

Rule #1: Start Off Right

Make sure you know how this image will be used, so that you screen out any that do not meet your purpose. Visualize your ideal standards and usage so that you can set your sights on getting what you want. You’ll want to think about:

• Color: Should the color command attention?
• Background: Should it have large expanses of a uniform background color or texture so that you can place text on it?
• Orientation: What will work best? If I need an image for a magazine cover, I’m not going to bother looking for landscape (horizontal) or panoramic images.

Now that I have a general idea of what kind of image I need, I’m ready to refine my search according to my rules.

Rule #2: Know Your “Cheesy”

One person’s cheesy may be another’s height of elegance. In this section I’m going to point out how we look for images for our different clients, but if you work in-house, this still applies—different divisions or departments in your company may have their own unique characteristics that must be relevant, and tie back to the main brand. I make it my business to know how each of my clients’ tastes run, and I can guarantee you that they differ. Know what’s appropriate and what’s not before you present your image ideas. It’s your job.

For one client, I know that stock images of people—any people—are considered trite and confusing because they aren’t images of their actual employees. That is important to them. I will always look for an image that’s more symbolic, or doesn’t show people’s faces. I try to evoke a mood or a feeling.

Examples:

Another client doesn’t mind a good photo of a friendly person. But they also go for a certain kind of illustration—either photorealistic and dramatic, or painterly and sophisticated—so I will include compelling images along those lines as well.

Examples:

A third client enjoys something more colorful and light to send to their audience. We know from working on a book and email series with them that they will appreciate really good, colorful vector illustrations. Their work carries a very different tone and flavor from the two previous examples, but it is no less professional. (Not to mention, it’s also won us an award.)

Examples:

Then there are images that are just off limits, meaning a client might not mind, but, as an art director I won’t ever go with it because it hurts my brain and offends my design sensibilities. These include: clip art; pixelated images stolen from the Internet; silhouettes of people, especially with a reflection; generic 3-D artwork of nondescript people with big heads (bonus points if they are gold); art created straight from Wordle; paper dolls; and anybody scantily clad. I’m sure you have your own list of off-limits graphics.

Examples: Just Say No!

Rule #3: Keep It Positive

Suppose disaster strikes and your company issues strong advice to help your clients make the best of a bad situation. Always go for the positive image. Always.

It may be tempting to search for the scandalous, the horrible, the don’t-let-this-happen-to-you picture, thinking that it will grab more attention. But what are you really reinforcing with that kind of an image?

Here’s an example of possible images for advice in dealing with the aftermath of a disaster:

Set 1:

Set 2:

Which set makes you think that the company knows how to cope with these problems in a professional, competent, and positive manner? Obviously, Set 2.

We’ve learned through experience that the best responses follow when your company offers help, recovery, and healing, rather than an image that reinforces a crisis. This goes for natural disasters, recessions, stock market crashes—any kind of hardship. Be uplifting.

And as for the third image in Set 1, I have no idea how anyone would ever think that’s appropriate for anything, unless it’s the cover of a YA paperback novel about a boy who can outrun twisters. I may have to write that book, just to make sure that image gets used by someone.

The Takeaway

One size does not fit all. Make sure you protect and enhance your branding by choosing positive, consistent images that reinforce your company’s vision.

Whether you are a graphic designer, a content manager, or on your company’s marketing team, choosing the right image to complement your company’s message is an important job. There’s a reason the old adage insists that “a picture is worth a thousand words.” It is one of the main things your audience will connect with.

How does your organization want to be portrayed? Of course professional, hard working, and dependable come to mind. But what about the things that make your company stand out? Think about how you can you define your conference, campaign, or magazine, and tie it back to your message.

Rule #1: Start Off Right

Make sure you know how this image will be used, so that you screen out any that do not meet your purpose. Visualize your ideal standards and usage so that you can set your sights on getting what you want. You’ll want to think about:

• Color: Should the color command attention?
• Background: Should it have large expanses of a uniform background color or texture so that you can place text on it?
• Orientation: What will work best? If I need an image for a magazine cover, I’m not going to bother looking for landscape (horizontal) or panoramic images.

Now that I have a general idea of what kind of image I need, I’m ready to refine my search according to my rules.

Rule #2: Know Your “Cheesy”

One person’s cheesy may be another’s height of elegance. In this section I’m going to point out how we look for images for our different clients, but if you work in-house, this still applies—different divisions or departments in your company may have their own unique characteristics that must be relevant, and tie back to the main brand. I make it my business to know how each of my clients’ tastes run, and I can guarantee you that they differ. Know what’s appropriate and what’s not before you present your image ideas. It’s your job.

For one client, I know that stock images of people—any people—are considered trite and confusing because they aren’t images of their actual employees. That is important to them. I will always look for an image that’s more symbolic, or doesn’t show people’s faces. I try to evoke a mood or a feeling.

Examples:

Another client doesn’t mind a good photo of a friendly person. But they also go for a certain kind of illustration—either photorealistic and dramatic, or painterly and sophisticated—so I will include compelling images along those lines as well.

Examples:

A third client enjoys something more colorful and light to send to their audience. We know from working on a book and email series with them that they will appreciate really good, colorful vector illustrations. Their work carries a very different tone and flavor from the two previous examples, but it is no less professional. (Not to mention, it’s also won us an award.)

Examples:

Then there are images that are just off limits, meaning a client might not mind, but, as an art director I won’t ever go with it because it hurts my brain and offends my design sensibilities. These include: clip art; pixelated images stolen from the Internet; silhouettes of people, especially with a reflection; generic 3-D artwork of nondescript people with big heads (bonus points if they are gold); art created straight from Wordle; paper dolls; and anybody scantily clad. I’m sure you have your own list of off-limits graphics.

Examples: Just Say No!

Rule #3: Keep It Positive

Suppose disaster strikes and your company issues strong advice to help your clients make the best of a bad situation. Always go for the positive image. Always.

It may be tempting to search for the scandalous, the horrible, the don’t-let-this-happen-to-you picture, thinking that it will grab more attention. But what are you really reinforcing with that kind of an image?

Here’s an example of possible images for advice in dealing with the aftermath of a disaster:

Set 1:

Set 2:

Which set makes you think that the company knows how to cope with these problems in a professional, competent, and positive manner? Obviously, Set 2.

We’ve learned through experience that the best responses follow when your company offers help, recovery, and healing, rather than an image that reinforces a crisis. This goes for natural disasters, recessions, stock market crashes—any kind of hardship. Be uplifting.

And as for the third image in Set 1, I have no idea how anyone would ever think that’s appropriate for anything, unless it’s the cover of a YA paperback novel about a boy who can outrun twisters. I may have to write that book, just to make sure that image gets used by someone.

The Takeaway

One size does not fit all. Make sure you protect and enhance your branding by choosing positive, consistent images that reinforce your company’s vision.

Choosing where to host your website can be difficult given all the available options. The most cost-effective and scalable solution points toward using cloud-based servers. To help explain the differences between the three main hosting options let’s start with soda.

Cloud Hosting

unlimited soda drinkers, unlimited straws, unlimited sodas
Soda fountains solve the problem of summer’s higher demand by using a variety of sources to offer all-you-can-drink specials! Cloud hosting is based on the same principal, drawing from a group of servers on the fly, it provides an unlimited capacity to ensure that your site has what it needs, as it’s growing.

This isn’t the future, it’s now. As cloud computing technology continues to evolve and grow, hosting companies can now provide all the benefits of an all-you-can-drink cloud environment for anything from 1-10 page websites all the way up to an extensive CMS–based website with thousands of content pieces. These new platforms allow us to host and scale applications on the fly. When your business takes off a year from now, you won’t need to “move” your website before expanding its content.

With cloud hosting, a cluster of servers with unlimited resources are available on demand. Compared to a traditional hosting set up, that means it’s:

• scalable
  Your site infrastructure can grow and shrink as your demand grows and shrinks. For budding websites on a growth path, the infrastructure can grow with the website.
• fail-safe
  Cloud infrastructure has a number of servers connected with a cloud controller. Each server is a node in the cloud and all resources are shared across the nodes. The controlling server manages the resource allocation. If one node goes down, the controller can delete the node, wipe it out, and reset it with barely any performance impact on the rest of the infrastructure.
• redundant
  Your website is hosted on multiple nodes throughout the cloud infrastructure so there is no single point of failure. If one server goes down, other servers are standing by to keep your site up and running
• available on demand
  A customer can provision a cloud server typically within minutes. This eliminates the need to build out servers, install operating systems, etc.
• economical, you pay only for what you use
  Many businesses experience cyclical demand, with ebbs and flows during different times of the year. With cloud infrastucture you can reduce or increase your server capacity to ensure you are ready for the big intensive spurts and also scale down when there isn’t a lot of traffic hitting the site.

I’ll take a keg of root beer, please.