Climbing the Ladder of Success

Yesterday, I told you about the Girl Scout Camp CEO weekend from the business game point of view. Today, I'll relate our experiences at the climbing wall and the giant's ladder.

Having spent the morning inside, it was fun to get out in the sun. The strong wind kept the the temperature a little colder than jacketless weather. We received instructions from Christy Gustin, the Girl Scout Program Director. She explained that probably at some point high up on the wall, that we'd feel like we couldn't go any further and that they would encourage us to push just a little more.

It was exactly as she said. There seemed to be a point about 3/4's of the way to the top, where the wind was really blowing, and the hand and toe holds were a little more tenuous. That's where so many said, "I'm ready to come down." Christy would encourage a little more effort and the rest of us would shout our support. In every instance the climber was able to go higher and many were able to push to the top.

The giant's ladder, was just that. It felt like I was in the world of Gulliver! This was a rope and wood ladder. The rungs of the ladder were 4 x 4's and the distance between the rungs was no less than 4' and the top most one stretched more than five feet. Two people would climb at the same time, helping each other. Some pairs were better than others. Mentor, Paige Scarlett and student, Ju Leigh Serpa were so graceful in their climb that it seemed as if it were choreographed.

On both the wall and the ladder, each of us were asked to set goals for what we wanted to achieve. This meant that each person could decide her own performance levels.

As I watched people get "stuck" and then push on, I realized that I was watching a visualization of the world of business. Some business people decide that they are too scared or tired to push on. Others, especially those with outside support, may get stopped, but figure a way to keep going.

Hopefully, next year at this time, I'll be telling you about new aha's from the 3rd annual Camp CEO. But in the meantime, where have you been stopped in your business life, and what helped you to push on?

The Jewelry Business

Whew! I've had a busy time, here!

This past weekend I spent from midday Friday till midday Sunday at Camp Libby in Defiance, OH for our second annual Girl Scout Camp CEO. The idea is that successful business women are each paired with a young woman, in grades 10, 11 or 12. The purpose is for each of us to learn from each other.

The weekend was a mix of business training and team training, with the team training being outdoors at the climbing wall and "giant" ladder. My friend, Lori Cannon, who was named Distinguished Woman of the Year, is the leader of the pack when it comes to this weekend.

We decided that we wanted to have some fun with the business learnining experience for the girls and the women. Between the two of us we created a game that would help the girls to understand that starting a business is not just about coming up with a good idea. You can imagine our nervousness with the thoughts of how this was all going to play out. In theory the game sounded like a great idea, but in reality would it be fun and educational?

Well, the jury is in. It was fun and we all learned. There were some bumps in the road, which will help us to perfect this game for the future. I think for me, the best comment was from Emily, one of the students. At the end of the weekend yesterday, she shared that the first couple rounds of the game, she had no idea what the game questions were talking about, but as the game went on, she began to get the idea.

The object of the game was to accumulate points that would turn into money that they could use for initial investment in their companies. We told all three teams that they were in the jewelry business, but that one was retail, one was wholesale and one was manufacturing. Each team then had to prepare a short presentation as if they would be presenting to someone who would invest in their new company. They needed to gain the difference between the money they had accumulated and the total amount they needed.

The three girl teams did a stupendous job of presenting and grasping the ideas of having to find a source of money to start their businesses. I thought back to when I was seventeen or eighteen. There was no way that I even understood the concept of starting a business, let alone, asking for money to do so.

I'll write about the outside "work" we did tomorrow!

Yea for Lori

My good friend Lori Cannon, was selected as the Distinguished Community Woman of the Year by our Girl Scout Council and this award was announced Thursday morning at their annual volunteer recognition breakfast. I can't think of anyone who deserves the award more.

Lori and I met the day I first visited a BNI group in December 1995. She gave me a referral that very day, wanting to use my sales coaching services. And we have been fast friends ever since then.

When I think of all the stuff Lori has donated her time to, it is really amazing. She trained for and ran her first marathon with Team in Training for the Leukemia Society in my father-in-law's honor. She raised $5,000 to be part of this team.

Lori has gotten me into oh, so much, too. Whether it was a sponsorship for the Exchange Club Center for the Prevention of Child Abuse, or being part of the rowing team for Toledo's Dragon Boat races or being on the committee for the Girl Scout Camp CEO, each time she pulled me in, I knew that we were going to have a lot of fun. She is the one who recruited me for our Master Mind group.

People go to Lori, when they need someone to help them think through a problem. She has this wonderful knack to help people figure out the best way to solve issues without telling them what to do.

Lori sold memorials (tombstones) when I first met her (and she sold a lot of them, because she took the time to allow people to tell her about their loved ones.) In fact, when my father-in-law died, she helped us to create his monument. In 2000 she became a financial planner for Edward Jones and as with everything else, she has attacked this new endeavor with gusto.

I was thrilled to be sitting in the audience on Thursday morning when Lori was recognized for all she does. In accepting the award she shared that her parents set the tone for her future involvement with the community. And she asked all of us to continue to set an example for the scouts as they continue to come along.

Thanks Lori for setting the example for all of us to follow!

Please weigh in on Lori and her accomplishments.

The Eagle Has Landed

Last night when I read the paper, there was a story about a patrol of 11 Boy Scouts who all received the Eagle Scout award at the same time. This is very unusual and obviously merited reporting. (The link is not to my paper as they don't have the story online.)

But it got me to thinking.

Maybe not in the national news, but certainly in the local news, we've all read stories about local boys reaching this highest award in Scouting.

Hm-m-m-m.

It occurred to me that I have never seen a photo of a Girl Scout receiving the highest award. Then it dawned on me even more, that I had no idea what the highest award was for the Girl Scouts, even though I was a GS through my senior year in high school and am now a volunteer with that organization.

So a boy receives an Eagles award.

I did my research. A girl receives the Gold Award. Last year according to the GS website, about 5,500 girls received this recognition.

Do we need to do a better PR job for our girls? Are there no girls in my community receiving this award? What's the deal?

The Eagle Award is very prestigious. Admission officers say that it boosts a young man's chances of being accepted into the college of their choice.

I think the spotlight needs to continue to shine on the wonderful pursuits of these young men

AND

we need to find the switch for the spotlight to use for the girls.

What's your take on this?

Camp CEO, Part III

Last weekend at Camp CEO, (by the way, CEO stands for Career Exploration Opportunity) the 16 women who knew they would be mentoring 16 young women got a big SURPRISE when they arrived on Saturday morning. (Read Part I and Part II)

You see the girls had arrived at Camp Libby on Friday night. They learned the new cup stacking game that is sweeping the nation called Speed Stacks. There was even a recent world championship held.

The SURPRISE the women found out about Saturday morning, was that they were going to be mentored first, by the girls teaching us to play the game. There were some of us who knocked more cups on the floor than others, but we had a good time. The young woman I was paired with for the weekend, Tara Patel, was encouraging and kept telling me how good I was doing, even when I wasn't. THANKS TARA!

Once we learned the game, then we had to relearn as a team, with each of us only using one hand. That takes coordination. I think because of being left handed that Tara and I did have a little advantage. The picture at the left shows CPA, Darlene Robinson with her teammate, Alyssa Baz.

At the timed team competition Sunday morning, we managed to come in 4th. Not bad, but we had hoped for first.

Networking has some similarities to all this. Sometimes it can be a little awkward learning all the proper ins and outs of the "game," but if we have someone helping us, the learning curve is not so steep. Also, if we partner with a friend at an event, introducing people to each other, we may win more in our team effort than if we'd just gone it alone.

Have you tried Speed Stacks yet?

Camp CEO, Part II

It important to know all the rules!

My friend, Lori Cannon and I learned the Girl Scout rule about backing our car into the parking space at Camp Libby in the winter when we provided a presentation skills training for a group of girls. Our friend, Angela Tennaro, Program Director for the Maumee Valley Girl Scout Council kidded us because we had not noticed that we were the only car "headed' in. They park backwards because if there is an emergency, it is easier just to jump in the car and drive.

Makes sense.

So we knew that rule!

When we arrived at camp for the Camp CEO (read part I) weekend, a car was there before us, parked frontwards. It was Theresa's red SUV. She soon came up from the cabin to greet us and of course with all our knowledge about the proper way to park we were giving her grief her about her parking skills. She laughed and said, "Well, I've already been busted for my shoes!" Open toe shoes are a no-no at camp.
Knowing the rules is so important not only at camp but especially when you visit a networking group. Unintentionally breaking a rule, making that awful faux pas, will make you memorable.

Unfortunately, it might not be the type of memory you want!

Ask your friend who has invited you to the event, what you need to know before you go. It will help you to look like you belong!

What rules did you find out after the fact?

Camping for Big Girls

Camp CEO! Sounds like a high level boot camp, right?

Actually, part of that desciption is right, the high level part.

Boot camp, NO!

Last weekend, I spent a two glorious, blue sky days at Camp Libby, a Girl Scout camp in Defiance, Ohio. Talk about beautiful. The camp buildings are all painted a very earthy dark brown, and the style of architecture fits in with all the mature trees.

But what is Camp CEO?

This is a new Girl Scout project. We have brought it to Ohio. We means, my friend, Lori Cannon, who gets me into this kind of stuff. She introduced me to Angela Tennaro, the program director for the Girl Scouts of Maumee Valley Council in this area. We also brought on Meredith Delman, Nicole Minadeo and Theresa Emrick to put this project together.

16 women were paired with 16 young women in grades 10-12. The whole weekend was devoted to mentoring with a focus on business. Sometimes the girls mentored us, and sometimes we gave in return.

My mentee (or protege as they are sometimes called) was Tara Patel, a junior at Sylvania Northview High School. I feel very lucky to have made this acquaintance. She is smart, energetic, a take charge kind of gal, petite, and beautiful. She writes for her school newspaper and shared that she had written an editorial asking why the school encourages being environmentally conscious, including having classes in the topic, when in fact, the school did not recycle. She said that as a result of the editorial the school is starting to recycle paper.

More about Camp CEO tomorrow. But in the meantime, what are your mentoring experiences?