Meeting 11: Personal Branding Presented by Chris Wells - Friday, January 27, 2017 at ITProTV
For the first meeting of 2017, our very own fellow thinker, Chris Wells presented on Personal Branding. Whether you know if or not, you've created a personal brand. Was your brand developed deliberately, or did it happen accidentally? Why does your personal brand matter in business and how can you take control of it and put it to work for you?
Meeting 12: WTH is SEO? Presented by Kelly Thompson - Friday, February 24, 2017 at Liquid Creative
We gathered together to hear Vice President of Creative Services for Liquid Creative Kelly Thompson present on SEO and all the confusion that typically surrounds this topic. She reviewed some of the basics, touched on strategies for being both effective and efficient, and reviewed some of the ways to draw more digital presence for your company.
Meeting 13: Citizen Centered Gainesville Presented by Anthony Lyons - Friday, March 31, 2017 at ITProTV
Gainesville City Manager Anthony Lyons presented to our group about the idea of a citizen-centered city, such as his hopes for Gainesville. He shared his ideas to break the typical government mold and focus energy and investment back onto the things that matter most. He also shared some lessons learned as well as some of the challenges he’s overcome in his career.
Meeting 14: Minimum Viable Brand Presented by Frank Avery - Friday, April 28, 2017 at ITProTV
When budgets are tight, one of the first things executives cut is communications. This logic can spell disaster for a small business and a communications' professionals career. So how do we weigh the need for a business to stay lean against the inherent expense of marketing and communications activities? Frank Avery spoke about his experience working with executives, communications professionals, and volunteers to grow a common understanding around what business writer Denise Yohn calls the Minimum Viable Brand. Frank also discussed how to build a common model around the role of communications, how to justify investment in communications - especially when times are tough (are they ever not?) - and how to build communications models that are responsive to business needs.
Meeting 15: Finding the Balance Between Business & Relationships Presented by Chris and Carlee Marhefka - Friday, May 26, 2017 at Eat The 80
Ever wonder how to build a business, while in a relationship, without destroying both? Growing your business, while also taking care of your relationships, is challenging no matter how you spin it. Business Owners of B3 Gym and Eat the 80 Chris Marhefka and Carlee Marhefka shared some of their secrets to success as business owners, and as husband and wife.
Meeting 16: Video Best Practices Presented by MaryBeth Head - Friday, June 30, 2017 at United Way of North Central Florida
Creating video content for your business or organization can be relatively easy. Anyone with a smartphone and a couple of apps has the ability to quickly create a basic video and launch it onto social media outlets. But there are drawbacks if you aren't careful. While content is king and video has become content royalty, bad video can do more harm than good. A Best Practices Guide for video is essential to establish the standards you expect everyone in the organization to follow. Owner of Two-Head Video MaryBeth Head guided us through the process of developing our own guide to confidently engage our audiences using this powerful tool.
Meeting 17: Trello Workshop Presented by Sara Emmanuel and Ginny MacKoul - Friday, July 28, 2017 at United Way of North Central Florida
One topic from meetings past that garnered quite a bit of interest was Trello. Talking Heads Co-Founders Sara and Ginny hosted a workshop all about Trello. Whether you’re familiar with Trello or not, everyone learned something new. They started with the basics, then dove into all the great and fantastic ways to utilize this powerful yet simple tool. Sara and Ginny even shared some of their live working boards and reviewed all the great ways it can really streamline your daily operations, and the workflow and organization for your entire company.
Meeting 18: Improving Personal Productivity Presented by Jim Lilkendey - Friday, August 25, 2017 at United Way of North Central Florida
Given our ever-changing and ever-accelerating world, who among us doesn't feel pressure to do more with less? We pulled back the camera from traditional time management techniques and explored ways to be more productive by more effectively managing our energy, rather than our time. Principal of Apogee Coaching Jim Lilkendey spoke about his practice dedicated to leadership, team and organizational growth and transformation. He touched on our shared desire to sustain and develop high-performance teams, leadership and cultures of growth and engagement.
Meeting 19: People, Process, & (Mobile) Technology Presented by Matt Donovan - Friday, September 29, 2017 at United Way of North Central Florida
Every step towards a more effective business starts with your people, integrates to a process, and is (typically) executed with technology. Co-Founder and CEO of txtsignal Matt Donovan discussed working with small businesses to maximize their output and connect with their customers with easy-to-execute strategies and tools. He also shared about his career and how he got to where he is today.
Meeting 20: Mindful Awareness at Work Presented by Jim Lilkendey - Friday, October 27, 2017 at United Way of North Central Florida
Back by popular demand, Jim Lilkendey presented “Mindful Awareness at Work”. Work, for most of us, represents our single largest investment of life energy. Are we investing that energy wisely? Might bringing more mindful awareness to our work day result in greater fulfillment, engagement and resilience? In this session, Jim lead a discussion and shared simple, experiential practices designed to help us explore mindfulness and its relationship to our working lives.
End of the Year Social - Tuesday, December 12, 2017 at First Magnitude Brewing Company
To wrap up another amazing year, we gathered together at First Magnitude and celebrated together with a few beverages. We shared our gratitude for the support of our members and our community and shared some of the exciting things to look forward to in 2018.
