Pinterest for Professional Organizers

Training for Professional Organizers

I have developed a webinar that is geared primarily for Professional Organizers but others in the home decorating, interior design, home staging or fashion can also benefit from this webinar.

Pinterest 101 for Professional Organziers -

Pinterest is the fastest growing social network and is providing more referrals back to website than Google+, LinkedIn, YouTube – combined.  Join me for this 1.25 hour webinar where you will learn what Pinterest is all about, how to set up boards, how to pin an image correctly and why professional organizers arein love with it.

When: Monday, May 14, 2012

Time: 1:30  pm EST / 11:30 am PST or 7 pm EST/4 pm PST

Where: in the comfort of your home or office

How: Webex – invitation sent out once you have registered

Cost: $40   $29

Learn the why you need to be on Pinterest.  The basics will cover:

• creating a board
• adding pins
• linking to your other social media platforms
• Pinterest etiquette and best practices
• collaborating for a greater impact

If you are interested in signing up please proceed to my registration page.  Make sure to indicate whether you are interested in the afternoon or evening session.

Space is limited so sign up today so you won’t be disappointed.

LinkedLearning Workshops and Speaking Engagements

This will be a very busy few weeks for me.  I will be presenting in Toronto and Orangeville. Here are the listings and registration pages:

Event: FreelanceCamp Toronto

Date: Sunday, May 27, 2012

Time: 11 am – 11:45 am

Location: Bahen Centre University of Toronto – 40 St. George’s Street

Session:

Understanding how to Network: going from virtual networking to meeting IRL (in real life)
- Margarita Ibbott (LinkedIn | Twitter)
(Intoductory/Beginner level)

This session incorporates virtual networking with in real life networking. How? First we will discuss how to find networking events using LinkedIn. This session covers: finding networking events to attend, signing up and the understanding how to search an attendee’s profile so that when you actually attend the networking event, you will know how to break the ice.

1. searching events
2. researching profiles of attendees
3. finding areas in common making connecting possible

With years of networking under her belt, Margarita Ibbott, social media trainer and self professed ‘connector’, will take you through the steps that she uses to connect with people at a networking event.

She will discuss how to take the information that you have found on LinkedIn about the attendees to open up a conversation and meet people at an event with the ultimate objective: meeting new clients.

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MS2 Conference

Event: MS2 Conference

Date: June 12 – 14, 2012

Time: TBD

Location: Hockley Valley Resort

Sessions:

Join me on Thursday, June 14th when I will be giving three different presentations at the MS2Conference in Orangeville:

• Understanding Twitter: Chirping, Tweeting, Trending
• Pinterest 101
• Advanced LinkedIn Features: Taking Virtual Networking to the Next Level

You can register here...but if you email me, I can give you a special discount code and you will receive $50 off an ‘all access’ registration package.  

Register TODAY!

Space is limited — June 12–14, 2012, Hockley Valley Resort, Orangeville.

@MS2 Conf…Making Social Media Simple Conference, is Ontario’s Social Media educational event designed for businesses, non-profits, and local government. Get practical with us as we share ideas, hear from expert practitioners, and learn best practices in the areas of Social Media, Email Marketing, Video Marketing, Pay Per Click, SEO, Blogging…and so much more!

Reasons to Attend

With a Community of Experts at your fingertips @MS2Conf is distinguished by sessions broken down by category and experience level where participants may choose which may benefit them the most. The conference will showcase the most popular as well as the newest and most innovative social media products and tools on the market. Attendees will have the opportunity to interact with their industry peers and share ideas, tips and techniques. We’re bringing some of the brightest stars in social media to Orangeville, offering organizations of any size to achieve the greatest return on their social media investment.

Join your digital marketing peers in Orangeville this June 12–14 at the Making Social Media Simple Conference for hands-on learning & workshops with industry leading experts, networking opportunities, thought-leadership presentations and peer-to-peer collaboration on the subjects of:

• Social Media
• Video
• Search Engine Optimization
• Pay Per Click Advertising
• Email Marketing
• And So Much More!

We encourage you to make the most of your @MS2Conf experience, so bring your laptop, smartphone, or tablet.
Get Social! – Get Connected! – Be Remembered!

Conference Pricing

All Access Pass - *$550 | Regular Rate $635
One Day Pass; Wednesday, June 13th - *$290 | Regular $335
One Day Pass; Thursday, June 14th - *$290 | Regular $335
*Early Bird Pricing is in effect until May 15, 2012

Upcoming @MS2Conf Dates

Grand Bend: Oakwood Inn Resort September 25 – 27, 2012 | Register

Chatham-Kent: John D. Bradley Convention Centre October 23-25, 2012 | Register

Have you discovered Pinterest?

Have you discovered Pinterest yet?  The website describes it very simply: it’s an online pinboard that lets you organize the things you love.  I discovered it through, Cynthia Gagen, blogging friend of mine that blogs about crafts (actually, she blogs about a whole lot more) .  She uses Pinterest to capture images of crafts she’s made, crafts she likes and to display craft projects by others.  You can find her awesome boards here and her even better blog here.

The same goes for my organizing buddies.  There is not a day that goes by that a professional organizers doesn’t pin something on the group board.  In Pinterest you have your own boards and you have boards that you can collaborate on. 

Pinterest is a means of capturing pictures from every possible source: websites, blogs, uploaded photographs…etc. so that you can then group them together and create a board.  This is a fun and easy way of capturing your favourite images without having to bookmark each individual webpage. 

The most important thing to remember when sharing content is to be sure to give credit where credit is due. Thank the source (even if they were not the original person that pinned the picture).   If you can, try and go back to the original source (especially if it is a photograph from a blog post and was taken by the blogger). Then the ‘pin’ will have a direct link to the picture. If you just keep re-pinning, sometimes the source is lost – not good content-credit Karma…

Other then that, have fun, get inspired and pin away.  Let me know how you use your Pinterest boards and lastly, stay tuned for an introductory Pinterest Class for those of you just starting.

Here is my board so follow me if you must…

http://pinterest.com/downshiftingpos/

My Blog Logos and Pinterest

As I am currently experimenting with all things Pinterest, I thought it would be interesting to create a Pin Board that would encourage other bloggers to post pins to my newest board: Your Blog.  It is a yet another way to engage on social media using a visual pin board.  Please feel free to:

1. Follow me on Pinterest
2. Follow Your Blogs board
3. Encourage you to collaborate.  I will add you as a collaborator to this board or my other fun collaboration board – What Were They Thinkin’?

I will be writing a series of Pinterest posts coming up … so stay tuned…

What one word will Define/Inspire/Motivate/Challenge you this year? Mine will be….

As we get the New Year started, it is a good time to reflect on our goals, resolutions or definition of how we see ourselves or our company.

Last Tuesday evening, I participated in a Twitter chat/party at 9 pm {hashtag} #GetRealChat [if you don't know what that all means, you need to contact me and I will walk you through a Twitter chat...].

The chat topic was: What one word will define/inspire/motivate/challenge you for 2012?

You can have different words both your professional and personal life. The words thrown out were:

TEAM

EMPOWERMENT

COLLABORATION

RELENTLESS

PERSEVERANCE

ENERGY

PATIENCE

BALANCE

FAITH

My business word this year will be: EXECUTION

I thought this quote from world renowned cellist, Yo-Yo Ma summarized it well.

“The role of the musician is to go from concept to full execution. Put another way, it’s to go from understanding the content of something to really learning how to communicate it and make sure it’s well-received and lives in somebody else.” ~ Yo-Yo Ma

What is YOUR word for 2012?

QuoVadis Canada – Minister Prestige – Product Review

Yeah, it is December and I finally get to start using my *brand new* Quo Vadis Minister Prestige Planner. I have been waiting since I received mine at the 2011 Professional Organizers in Canada Conference in early November.

My B-E-A-U-T-F-U-L Minister Prestige 2012

I have had a love for Quo Vadis planners since I worked at TELUS over 20 years ago.  My boss always had me order the same planner: the pocket size Quo Vadis IB Traveler. I could never understand how he could carry such a small agenda but I now realize everyone has their favourites and that was his.

My favourite has always been the ivory colour, silky-smooth paper of the Minister Prestige.  The Minister Prestige differs from its ‘cousin’ the Minister Weekly planner in the colour of the paper (ivory vs. bright white) and the layout of the week.  [Side Note: Have you ever fallen in love with paper? Yes, I said paper... the thing is Quo Vadis has this way of producing this ivory colour paper that is smooth as silk and a joy to write on.  I love touching it...o.k. this is starting to sound silly  obsessive zany. However, if you don't know what I am talking about, you need to read the write up on the Quo Vadis Website on what makes it so special.  I think it is because it comes from France and the French are so particular about the paper and pens that they use. I mean Mont Blanc fountain pens are from France for goodness sake ~ that is a whole other blog post.]

Now what makes these planners so special to me:

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1. The days begin Monday thru Friday with the weekends on the end.  My ‘Margarita suggestion’ is that I wish Saturday and Sunday had equal space but then you would have to give up other details.
2. There is a tear away in the corner making it easy to bookmark where you are in your agenda.
3. I like ability to write notes, email addresses, or memos throughout the week.
4. The paper is oh so silky smooth…uh…yeah…uh… I think I have already said that ♥
5. Mini-calendars for the previous, current and future months for quick reference.  My second ‘Margarita suggestion’ is the addition of a full month-in-review-2 page-layout at the beginning of every month with a tab starting every month.
6. There is a full year-in-review at the beginning of the planner but I find it cumbersome going back and forth between the current week & the beginning of the planner.
7. I like to write down & track receipts/payments and Quo Vadis provides this record keeping tool in every planner.
8. I LOVE the world maps.  I have to say, I like to look at them and see where different cities & capitals are in the US, Europe and Asia (because I am Canadian).
9. I like all the international phone numbers at the front.  That is not to say that I will call many people in Burma or Papau New Guinea but I could call one of my readers in Russia, Italy, France or New Zealand…yes, I have readers that live in those far away places.

I love my planner…I mean…Look how pretty it is….I love the turquoise leather-grain-like cover. It is stylish and the best part is next year, all I need to do is get the refill… Humm…Then again, maybe I will get a Trinote instead…in Cactus Green…oh…its soooooooo pretty.

Black Friday – Shopping at the Oak Brook, IL (Chicago) Microsoft Store

So on most Tuesday afternoons at 3 pm EST I find myself glued to my computer. Why you ask? Because that’s the time I hop on Twitter and chat with other Windows enthusiasts and the different Windows Teams at Microsoft at the #win7tech twitter parties!

Microsoft Store - Oak Brook, IL

The hostess of #win7tech is Kristina Libby (you can follow her on twitter). She helps us navigate the world of Windows. On any given Tuesday afternoon she will introduce us to various products (hardware, software, gaming systems, and accessories), services or platforms supported by Microsoft. We’ve discuss Internet Explorer, Windows Live Writer, Windows Live Messenger and recently the new Microsoft Store.

Join @Windows Twitter parties with #win7tech hashtags – Tuesdays at 3 pm EST.

At one of the #win7tech session, we talked all about the expansion of the Microsoft mortar and brick stores across the US. As part of this fun interactive twitter chat, we were asked to find and name the location of a few of the stores. So, I go to the link they provided, I look at the website and tweet back some of the locations: San Diego, CA, Oak Brook, IL, Bellevue, WA, and Houston, TX. They all seemed so very far from me but I never imagined that I would find myself in the Oak Brook, IL store a few weeks later!

When doing some research for this post I found out that Microsoft has been opening new locations at a break-neck speed, opening 11 stores in the last 18 months[i]. There are 13 stores now opened and I am SURE more are in the works.

Superstar Joseph Adams, Allison & Melissa

On a road trip to Chicago, I found myself with Melissa Lierman and Allison Graham cruising the Microsoft Store. Melissa & Allison were in a bit of a bind and needed some computing power fast. When Allison’s computer crashed and Melissa needed a faster machine to keep up with her lightning-speed-fingers, we found ourselves getting a personalized tour of the Oak Brook store just outside of Chicago.Much to our relief, Store Manager, Joseph Adams, helped us navigate the very overwhelming choices that we could find at the store. As Melissa & Allison tested out all sort of models, I had the chance to look throughout the store.

Here is some of what I saw:

Ever changing Digital Wall @Microsoft Store

There is an ever changing digital wall with great graphics that span the length of the store and was seasonally decorated. [I took this picture just for my kids (obviously, we were there just before Halloween)]. The store’s layout had different sections for different products: a full interactive drive-before-you-buy Kinect XBOX 360 play area for gamers, families and kids.You have to love that they not only encourage you to look but to play as well so that you will be happy with your purchase. If you are shopping Black Friday – or any day really – make sure and check out their fantastic FaceBook page for some great deals :0)

As I continued my tour, I noticed that there was a quieter area where you can sit and just take in the ‘movie’ or ‘gaming’ experience. It is laid out like a living room with comfy club chairs, a coffee table and a big screen TV. I love the title: Experience the Possibilities. That is what this visit to the Microsoft Store was: an EXPEREIENCE.

Awesome Accessories for Dell Computers

Another section was dedicated to a variety of tablets and accessories for your computers. Honestly, if you don’t see this as a kid in a candy store for adults you must be delusional!

Book a Training Session or Personal Shopping Appt.

Joseph, our ‘lifesaver’ and Assistant Manager, was so very helpful but that is the standard at the Microsoft Store. All the technical sales professionals were fantastic at asking all the right questions to determine what would be a good fit. Joseph took the time to show us the options but steered us away from systems that would were either inadequate in one instance or over-kill in another. I found out that one very cool customer service is that you can schedule a personal shopping appointment so you too can have one-on-one attention from a sales associate. If you have a problem, you can also make an appointment either on-line or when you walk in the store and a trained technician will help you figure it out – how cool is that?

Huge Screens to help you navigate everything

Moral of this story: Visit a Microsoft Store close to you; make an appointment or just walk in and TRY EVERYTHING what have you got to lose?

[i] Tyson Corners, VA (Washington,DC area), Santa Clara, CA, Seattle, WA, Century City (LA), CA, Houston, TX, Atlanta, GA, , Costa Mesa, CA, Bellevue, WA, Bloomfield, MN, Oak Brooks (Chicago), IL, San Diego, CA, Lone Tree (Denver), CO + Mission Viejo, CA & Scottsdale, AZ

Note: All pictures are owned & copy-write protected and cannot be used without the expressed-written approval of Margarita Ibbott. No part of this blog post can be copied without approval.

Professional Organizers in Canada Tweet-up

The fun begins at #POC11

I am in Toronto attending the Professional Organizers in Canada Annual Conference. It is a great opportunity to meet-up with veteran organizers and organizers that are new to the industry.

In the tradition of meeting people IRL (in real life) I managed to organize an impromptu #tweet-up for the conference with the generous help of The Delta Chelsea (thanks to DC GM, Ron Pellegrine!).  We had a good turn out and fun was had by all!

Here are a few pictures from the conference so far:

 

 

 

 

 

 

LiveBlogging for Oprah’s LifeClass

Very excited to be returning to Harpo Studios this week to LiveBlog for Oprah’s LifeClasses.

Being able to participate in the classes and then follow them on-line throughout the week has been a great experience.

Follow my tweets DownshiftingPOS,   hashtag: #OprhasLifeClass at 8 pm on Mondays – Fridays for the next three weeks to learn more about those #wisewords from Oprah and her guests.

You might just learn a thing or two.

Details:

Oprah’s LifeClass can be see on the OWN – The Oprah Winfrey Network and OWNCanada at 8pm EST.

Follow her on Facebook at Oprah’s Life Class and participate LIVE on Facebook and Twitter.

Social Media for Good: McGill researchers dance for donations – Montreal -

One of the most discussed topics is how we can use social media platforms for good and not just for profit.  The thing is social media can always be used for good whether it is making a video and hoping it will go viral, tweeting out the video or posting the video to your Facebook page.  By ‘sharing’ a video you, too can play your part in raising both awareness and money.

Here is a great example of how researchers at my alma mater McGill’s Goodman Cancer Research Centre exchange lab coats for dance moves.  Why not, it makes science look fun!

Kudos have to go out to the world-renowned scientists, grad and undergrad students, lab technicians, staff and volunteers dancing and lipsynching to the song Dynamite by Taio Cruz.

You have to acknowledge that Medicom, a medical supply company, works social media into their marketing/social media strategy by sponsoring the video and is making a donation to the centre for each hit the video receives. Once again, it is a win-win for both McGill & the company.

So take the time today to do some social good of your own and “like” the video so “The McGill Dance Crew” raise a lot of money for Cancer Research!