Spring Is In The Air! And my hat....

I am really looking forward to our March EWI meeting, for a couple of reasons. Programming Chair Kelly Vander Hooft of Urban Studio Interior Design has been doing such an amazing job organizing our meeting venues and Paradise Canyon Country Club is another fabulous find. Having been to many functions there I anticipate the food will be yummy and the scenery is always spectacular.

Another reason our March meeting is so special is that it is our Membership Drive and a great opportunity to show off our organization. With that in mind, here are some of the benefits of EWI as suggested by our members:

• An opportunity to connect with like-minded peers
• Fun and impact-ful (is that a word?) volunteer involvement with local groups
• Exclusivity of business categories
• Being part of (and proud of!) the best fashion show this city has ever seen!
• Tapping into a supportive network of southern Alberta business women who've been there for advice or a listening ear
• Opportunities for networking both inside and outside EWI
• Great speakers
• Free professional development through top level presentations and webinars
• Showcasing your business with a Firm Night
• Opportunities to learn from the collective wisdom of our membership during our roundtable business focus question

These are just a few... what else could you add about what makes EWI such a great organization to be part of? Let's show off our group by each inviting one or more prospective members to join us March 17th, and I will donate a gift certificate to the member who brings the most guests! See you there...

Colette

February News from EWI Lethbridge

Can anyone relate to feeling overwhelmed with the demands of work? As a business owner since 2004, I have gotten used to the never-ending sense that there is always something important falling off the back of the truck; if I have a rare moment of feeling caught up on projects, then surely I am falling behind on sales, or networking, or advertising, or my web content, or....

Right now seems particularly hectic, and I had a couple of days last week that brought me to the brink of giving up in the face of what seems like an endless to-do pile. Perhaps you have had moments like this?

But thankfully, instead of reaching for the Help Wanted section of the Herald I happened to pick up a copy of "Work From the Inside Out" by Nancy O'Hara. In the introduction she suggests three concepts upon which the rest of the exercises are based:

- Keep it simple.

- Be patient.

- Be compassionate toward yourself.

That alone might help, but it wasn't until the chapter on Understanding and Acceptance that I started to feel better. She points out that, no matter how successful/unsuccessful, how busy/unbusy, how lazy or productive we might see ourselves in any given moment, we are not in control. 

I can't control time, my clients and their budgets, endless telephone tag, the part of the Alberta economy that affects my funding, or a million other unseen factors that might be contributing to my feelings of 'not-getting-enough-done'. In the moment of understanding this, I felt the weight lift knowing that all I can control is my choice to make this one phone call, write this one news release, attend one meeting. Ahhhh... these things I can do.

So, for this morning my task is... president's message... :-)

Thank you to Judy Holmes, Leanna Lomanski, Brenda Eaglesham and JoAnn Jurgens for pulling together the EWI display for the Chamber of Commerce Mix & Mingle last night. From all reports, it seems we were well received and generated a few new prospective members. Great job as EWI ambassadors!

And a HUGE thank you to Leanna Lomanski for the fabulous photo shoot which produced this cute picture that makes me feel like I really can take on the world!

Colette