1000! This is my 1000th blog post, and a chance for you to win

Let’s celebrate. We made it dear reader. Thirteen years and 1000 blog posts as of today.

All thanks to you. It’s been an absolute pleasure to write for you.

You’re always in the back of my mind

I can’t tell the number of days I see, read or hear something and think, “that would make a good post,” and I add it to my list of ideas.

A lot has changed over the past thirteen years:

• I moved to Nairobi, Kenya. My two kiddos graduated from high school here, then headed back to Canada, so now hubs and I are refeathering our nest.

• I’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with social change oriented clients and the adventures that come with that. For example I briefly worked in a conflict zone (Mogadishu), where checking into the hotel included recording my blood type. And just before I was to start a UN training the roof caved in.

• I’ve continued my love of tech tools.  Currently, I’m using Duolingo to improve my French and the Simply Piano app to learn how to play.

• The UN approved my monthly Learning and Development Roundtable to count towards annual UN-mandated training. (Though anyone who’s interested in learning, education, training, and generally how to be a good human is welcome, UN staff or not.)

• I’m on the cusp of celebrating ten years of said Learning and Development Roundtables! (Get in on the fun and sign up here to be a member.  It’s free.)

• When Covid hit I created loads of virtual team buildings for clients as well as a work-life balance course.

• I achieved a decade-long dream of putting my Life Lenses® assessment online.

• And perhaps most excitedly, I’m in the process of achieving another decades-long dream of having courses for sale on my site that you, dear reader, can take whenever you wish.

All in all, I’ve learned a lot writing a weekly blog post, including things that you can use:

• When inspiration hits, write it down!  I have a dedicated note on my phone where I keep track of my ideas.  Your takeaway: make sure you have a place to record your ideas.

• I have smooth as silk systems for the things that are needed to write a weekly blog.  Your takeaway: create systems to make your ongoing tasks flow easier and to give you time to focus on what really matters, aka, in this case, the writing.  Use checklists, or templates for example.

• I started ending my blog post with a section called “learn, laugh, and lead.”  The laughter section usually has a short, funny video related to the topic.  Your takeaway: introduce humour whenever you can.  As long as it’s appropriate humour, you’ll have a winner.

• Learning something new is one thing.  Putting it into practice is another.  That’s why I created the ‘lead’ section at the end of every blog post, as another way to encourage people to take action. Your takeaway: make sure you’re including ways to help yourself and others take action on what matters most to you.

Check out the top post from each of the past 13 years

• See this post for top blog posts from 2010 to 2013.

• This post shows you the top blog posts from 2014 to 2017.

• And this post for top blog posts from 2018 to 2022.

1000 posts and 13 years later I’ve had the privilege of sharing my thoughts and learnings with you about:

• Learning and Development

• Life Lenses™

• Tech Tools

• Training of Trainers

• Working Better Together

Click on any of the links above and you’ll see ALL of the posts I’ve written on that topic.

Now it’s your turn.

As a way of saying a heartfelt thank you for being part of my journey, here’s your chance to win free access to my very first online course that you can take whenever you wish.

My first online course is called “Ban boring online meetings; a quick-start, step-by-step approach to making your online meetings engaging, appealing, and actually effective.”

Simply leave a comment below and I’ll pick 10 random winners. Good luck!

Cheers. Stay well & safe. Stay creative.

Now go on and learn, laugh and lead

Learn

• Check out some of my top past posts based on the topic(s) you’re most interested in, using the links above.

Laugh

• Inhale the learning, inhale the insight – pack it all in – like Squishy the Squirrel.

Lead

• Remember, simply leave a comment and I’ll pick 10 random winners who will gain free access to my first online course – Ban boring meetings. Good luck!