Monday Motivation: 27 Dec, 2010

Hope isn't obvious or easy. It takes a stubborn resolve & an indomitable will. With hope, no matter how dark the day, there is always light.

Thinking Peace in the Wednesday before Christmas

My sister asked me what I want for Christmas this year?

You know what I really would like?  The realisation that in the the 21st Century there have got to be better methods to solve issues than blowing people up, shooting at them or murdering them

I have lived in 3 war zones. I can tell you that war is not a strength for a society or an economy. In two of those zones, the war has not solved anything and the conflict remains.

I have seen too many kids injured, women hurt, men destroyed to find war to be a good answer.

How can we act as peacemakers in 2011? I want to make a step.

Person of the Year?

Not sure how I feel about Time Magazine naming  Mark Zuckerberg, founder of The Facebook (now known as Facebook) as their 2010 person of the Year...

Other Possible Contenders:-

• Jessica Watson who sailed around the world solo, youngest person ever to do so
• Liu Xiaobo, hinese literary critic, writer, professor, and human rights activist who called for political reforms and the end of communist one-party rule in China
• the volunteers who helped clean up after the Chilean, Indonesian, New Zealand and Turkish earthquakes, the  Italian, Colombian and Pakistan floods, and those affected by Super Typhoon Meg in the Philippines
• Ben Stiller for his charity work
• Aung San Suu Kyi from Burma
• Lady GaGa, singer
• Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil who is overseeing the transformation of that nation
• Julian Assange - threat or liberator of information, awarded for exposing extrajudicial assassinations in Kenya amongst other things
• Oprah with her ultimate surprise- a trip to Australia for her audience, many of whom had never flown before
• Julia Gillard, first Female Prime Minister of Australia, inducted by the country's first female governor general under the distant watchful ceremonial gaze of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth 
• The Qantas pilots who kept the 400 passengers safe when a A380 engine exploded crippling the massive jet
• the New Zealand Miners who lost their lives and the Chilean ones who kept theirs as well as the many Chinese miners who lost their lives to keep the world moving 

Who would you vote for?

Personally, my nieces and nephews who make life inspiring and worth living. Thanks guys

Monday Motivation: 20 Dec, 2010

An eye for an eye is a terrible way to blind the world. 

Mahatma Karamchand Gandhi (Hindi: मोहनदास करमचंद गांधी)

1869 to 1948

Completely Unqualified Trainer? You're Hired.

I recently got an invitation to a Social Media webinar.  Being a resourceful Gen Xer I immediately googled the presenter:-

• They had a web page but was dull and out of date
• They were not on Linked in
• They did not have a Facebook page
• They didn't have a Myspace or Hi5
• Flickr? No. Yelp? No.
• Blog? No
• Had they advised agencies on how to use Social Media? No

Their entire Social Media presence was four weeks on Twitter; 19 tweets and 11 followers.

My Question is: what makes Social Media so easy that anyone thinks they can teach on it? I feel cheeky sometimes teaching on it. I am still learning a lot about what makes it tick and work. I certainly know what  doesn't work!

This is my beef with a lot of things in the community sector. Because we are tight with dollars (we don't have any), we get people who are not qualified to train and teach our staff.

When I fly a plane, I want someone as a pilot who has been taught by pilots.
When I have surgery, has the doctor been taught by someone who knew medicine?
Yet in the community sector it seems the attitude is: "if you are a cheap or free trainer, we will hire you, regardless of skill, knowledge or commitment to the sector".

Two years ago, we lost a contract to another company. No big deal. That's business. I was disappointed but not devastated. The other company put a bid in that was much cheaper than ours. What made my blood boil, is that at the very first training session, the trainers stood up and said "this is the first time we have ever trained". Period. Neither had ever trained before. Wait for it -theres more. They then said "be patient we have never worked in this field".  Some of the attendees were furious but others shrugged their shoulders and said "its cheap!"

A woman said to me "I wish we could get you for training but you are outside our budget. I said "whats your current training like?" She said (and I quote): "Its complete and utter Cr*p. That's why I would like your company but we will never change".

Now, before I am accused of sour grapes, let me tell you I am very happy with the amount of work I get. I would like more, of course! That's not my motivation for this post. I also hasten to say that 93% of clients tell me we are excellent value for money and we have done a number of deals to deliver free training to people.  I am genuinely distressed at the wastage and loss of potential. When the overwhelming feedback we get at our company is "this is the best training I have ever been to", that says more about the state of training than it does about our work (no offence to my brilliant trainers).

Poor training costs money! Two examples:

• we applied to write some training materials but didn't get the contract as we were undercut 33% on price. The difference was the other group had never worked in the community sector and didn't know the field. The materials they produced were so bad that the client hired us to review and re write them having paid the first contractor as well
• we were asked to come in an "untrain" and then "re-train"  a community group after another trainer had given a staff group a terrible presentation. Firstly, it very was dull. The presentation came alive when the facilitator gave such wrong information that a "riot" occurred. Some staff walked out and some stayed and argued. The management shut the training down

 I would like to encourage agencies to build in a sensible budget for training. When applying for project funding, include the staff development costs in it. and I would like to encourage  request demand agencies not engage bad trainers!

Off to tweet about this blog!

Friday Facts: People First E-News

I am doing a shameless plug for the Facts contained in the December People First E-News. There are some real gems in this month's People First E-News. We aim to design a newsletter that will stimulate, challenge and inform in a few paragraphs.

1. Following a study of 100 successful, world-famous people, Peter Stephenson of uSucceed identified four key areas linked to success. We have summarised those four factors for a quick review. 
2. In Canadian research launched last week, volunteers expressed major concerns with the way that they were treated when they volunteered. We set out some key things an agency need to consider in protecting volunteers
3. We focus on how to really value your volunteers. See if our thoughts resonate with your agency.

Love your feedback and input.- How do we do?

Vale Syd Tutton

I intend my Wednesday Posts to be inspiring to get you through hump day. This week's blog for me has been impacted by the passing of Syd Tutton, the National President of one of Australia's largest charities: St Vincent de Paul Society.

In a previous St Vincent de Paul role, Syd was my very first consultancy client. I worked on a couple of significant projects with Syd and enjoyed working with him a great deal. 

 I learnt a lot from Syd and am sad at his passing.

Mr Tutton left school at 14 and spent 51 years in the electricity supply industry. After marriage, he educated himself through night school, acquiring business and accounting degrees. He rose to a leadership role in the power industry before taking on leadership roles at "Vinnies".

Syd exposed me to the urgency of change in "traditional" organisations while remaining true to original mission.

I hope in some way to inspire you to do the same.

Who has influenced your life and work?

Monday Motivation: 13 Dec, 2010

Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around.

Felice Leonardo "Leo" Buscaglia Ph.D. (31 March 1924 – 12 June 1998), also known as "Dr Love," -author and motivational speaker, at University of Southern California.

Cartoon by Ellis Nadler 

What you can Expect

Welcome to The Cowling Report. As someone who works extensively to support the community sector I want this blog to be of maximum assistance to yourself not just an entertaining diversion or therapy for me!

There are seven things that will appear in The Cowling Report:

1. Commentary on Key issues impacting the Community sector and the Board members, volunteers and employees who work in the sector
2. Guest Bloggers from around the globe
3. Conference Reports:-I will take you to key Conferences and see whats going on
4. Tuesday Resource Report-frank reviews and comments on Community Sector resources from around the world
5. Wednesday- An Inspirational post to get you over "Hump Day"
6. Ideas for helping with the work of those working  in the community/not for profit sectors
7. Friday Facts- useful and timely facts and info released that week

What do you think? Comments below please! Thank you

So hop in, strap up and lets take the Blogging journey together! Thanks for being a part of this!

International Volunteers Day

To the army of millions that make life tolerable for some, safer for others, more peaceful, more free, more peaceful, thank you.
We also, say sorry for the times we take you for granted, overlook you and fail to resource you.
To a better planet!

Welcome to The Cowling Report

I speak to about 10 000 people a year in Workshops and Seminars globally and write for our monthly People First E-News which goes to 6000 readers monthly. Got the Facebook but I have resisted having my own blog for ages. I am now entering the Blog World thanks to encouragement from three other bloggers:-

 Jayne Cravens (author of the Coyote Communications Blog)





DJ Cronin (author of the Blog: A musing on Volunteer Management)






Sue Hine (author of:  Management4Volunteers Blog)


I also want to acknowledge the urging of  three of the world's leading experts in Volunteer Management to get writing

Betty Stallings of Building Better Skills. Yes, Betty, the book is coming!

Susan J Ellis,  Energize Inc, Everyone Ready and E-Volunteerism

 

and Andy Fryar of OzVPM, 

My hope is that this will be a  no holds barred full and frank discussion about working in the community sector for or with Volunteers, and/or Boards and/or Management. Please do communicate your feedback as we move ahead!