Today’s Dear Abby column featured a great post. No matter what the jewelry stores, chocolate confectioners and florist shops would have us believe, Valentine’s Day is not just for our one and only, but for acknowledging and celebrating all the relationships that bring love and joy to our lives. Here are three ways you can share the love this Valentine’s Day:
1. Share Your Gratitude
On Thursday last week, my husband and I received a vintage Valentine’s card from our financial planner, thanking us for being her clients. I’m sure it didn’t cost a lot, and it let us know that she was thinking about us. That small gesture of connection goes a long way. While it’s too late to send a paper card for this holiday, eCards, eMail or even voice mail are ways you can connect with friends, colleagues, clients, and partners and let them know they’re a valued part of your network. At a marketing lunch the other day, someone mentioned the 3/1 rule. For every one time you promote yourself or your business to clients, you should connect with them three times with value-added information – or just to let them know you’re thinking of them, value their business and are available if there is anything they need.
2. Share Your Stories
Stories are a great way to share the love. In a Facebook post today, my brother shared the story of his cancer journey. 2009 marks five years since his diagnosis of bladder cancer and today he is cancer-free. My friend, Lisa Connors, is inviting visitors to share their stories of “who put the honey in your heart“ today and tomorrow at her Stolen Moments Cafe blog. Lisa will be selecting one entry late tomorrow and giving away a copy of Christina Baldwin’s book, Storycatcher: Making Sense of Our Lives through the Power and Practice of Story, as well as one of her own incredible Storycatcher Journals.
3. Share Your Resources
I’ve just finished reading The Snowball: Warren Buffet and the Business of Life, a fascinating biography of the world’s richest man. While Buffet is famous for his wealth, it’s the story of his life that’s the most interesting. From a boy who sold chewing gum and was inspired by a book he saw at age ten titled One Thousand Ways to Make $1,000, to the billionaire who is giving the vast majority of his fortune away through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, his story is an incredible read.
While we may not have the billions Buffet has to share, even a small amount can go a long way towards making a difference to someone in need. Friend and fellow MASCL alum, Angie Chaplin, is hosting an online fundraiser for her organization, Lutheran Services in Iowa, to benefit Iowa’s Bremwood Campus in Waverly, Iowa. Angie’s message reads:
Ways that $5 can buy happiness:
1. Drink a latte, and make a happy morning.
2. Eat a footlong sub, and make a happy lunch.
3. Donate to kids in need, and make a happy life.
Whether you donate to Angie’s fundraiser or another cause of your choice, sharing our resources – time, money, knowledge and expertise – can make us feel very rich indeed.
If you’re looking for an alternative – or supplement – to the traditional jewelry, chocolate and flowers, consider these three opportunities to share the love this Valentine’s Day. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to call my brother, send eCards to my best friend and my favorite client, write a short story to post in Lisa Connor’s blog and visit Angie Chaplin’s web site to make a small donation. If love doesn’t make the world go ’round, it certainly makes it a nicer place to live.
[tags] Valentine’s Day, Lisa Connors, Stolen Moments Cafe, Angie Chaplin, Lutheran Services of Iowa, Warren Buffet, The Snowball: Warren Buffet and the Business of Life, Storycatcher: Making Sense of Our Lives through the Power and Practice of Story, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation [/tags]
