I didn’t say much because I didn’t have much information. But here is what I have now.

My dad had really bad chest pains on Tuesday, finally allowing my mom to take him to the emergency room that evening.

They ran various tests and found blockages. Because of the previous damage done to his heart and lungs (heart attack last year, and blood clots in his lungs the year before), they had to be very careful and have put in three stints. He needs to return to the hospital in a month to put in another stint.

The doctors say that he should be able to come home by Sunday, and will need at least a week after that before he can go back to work.

Mom is doing well, and we are all taking turns visiting, as well as receiving so much wonderful support. Thank you.

By Garr Reynolds. This is to help with all those power points I am doing in the next month at school (4+).

He also likes Daniel Pink and quotes this:

1. Design, not only function

2. Story, not only argument

3. Symphony, not only focus

4. Empathy, not only logic

5. Play, not only seriousness

6. Meaning, not only accumulation

Seth Godin said this:

1. Make slides that reinforce your words, not repeat them. No more than six words on a slide. EVER.

2. No cheesy images. Use professional photo images.

3. No dissolves, spins, or other transitions: keep it simple.

4. Create a written document, a leave-behind. Then, when you start your presentation, tell the audience that you’re going to give them all the details after it is over. The presentation is an emotional sale, the document is the proof that helps the intellectuals accept the idea that you’ve sold them on emotionally. Don’t hand out printouts of your slides.

Questions to ask:

1. How much time do I have?

2. What’s the venue like?

3. Who is the audience? What’s their background?

4. What do they expect of me?

5. Why was I asked to speak?

6. What do I want them to do?

7. What is the fundamental purpose of my talk?

8. What is the story here?

9. What is my absolutely central point?

10. If they can only remember one point, what do I want it to be?

You have to answer for the person: What is your point? and Why does it matter?

SUCCESs:

Simplicity: what’s the core? why does it matter?

Unexpectedness: surprise people, get their interest. take them on a journey.

Concreteness: real examples

Credibility: statistics are good, references…

Emotions: touch them

Stories: always have the element of story

1-7-7 Rule:

1 main idea per slide

7 lines of text maximum

7 words per line maximum

Remember to look for the rule of thirds, turning the slide into nine squares, see where the lines fall with the words and pictures. The big four:

1. Contrast: if it is different, make it VERY different

2. Repetition: repeat selected elements throughout to give unity and organization

3. Alignment: connect elements visually

4. Proximity: related items are grouped together

People remember visuals better than bullet points and can make a connection. TED seems to be a big thing with these guys. check out www.ted.com/talks . for freeeeeee. Leave your audience satisfied yet yearning for a bit more of you.

So in Virginia, at the Barnes and Nobel next to the College of William and Mary (Where Thomas Jefferson went), they had some great books. I wrote down the names and got them out of the library. Quite a few were by this guy, Tom Peters. Apparently, he is a somebody in business. Well, he has nice books. I like their colorful, creative format. Here are some things gleaned from his books.

Tom Peters essentials “Trends”:

The point: the trend needed is to cater to women and older people. Specifically, he outlines the differences between men and women, which I quite more interesting than “trends” in general. Ha!

1. Women think “peer,” men think “Pyramid” (I thought he was going to say “beer.”heh.)

2. Women think “we,” men think “me.”

3. Women want trust, men want respect.

4. Women affiliate, men differentiate.

5. Women laugh with, men laugh at.

6. Women connect through commonality, men connect through competition.

7. Women seek understanding, men seek solutions.

8. Women get personal, men stay detached.

9. Women do it all at once, men do one thing at a time.

10. Women maximize, men prioritize.

11. Women want “the perfect answer,” men settle for “a good solution.”

12. Women think “warmer,” men think “winner.”

Why do I like the format of these books?

1. Lots of pictures

2. Bullet point summaries. Frequently.

3. Contrasting font size, use of bold and italics.

4. Pages with just a quote…little text.

5. Easy way to remember info like with acronyms or numbers.

6. Specific goal and outcome.

7. Lots of headings.

8. Small cutout boxes with reviews/summaries of other books.

So this is what I need when I write a book…

Tom Peters essentials “Talent”:

The point: make yourself needed by creating a marketable you. It isn’t good enough to just have a job, you have to be able to be your free agent. He says Daniel Pink is a good guy. Don’t worry, I already wrote about his book “Drive” and I have another one of his books in my pile.

According to Dennis Littky’s “The Big Picture: Education is Everyone’s business” you should:

1. Be a lifelong learner

2. Be passionate

3. Be ready to take risks

4. Be able to think critically

5. Be able to look at things differently

6. Be creative

7. Be able to persevere

8. Have integrity and self-respect

9. Have moral courage

10. Be able to use the world around you

11. Be able to give back to your community

12. Be able to work independently and with others

13. Speak well, write well, read well, and work well with numbers

14. Truly enjoy your life and work

“Wow: the art of business: Make All Your Work a Work of Art” says to “See yourself as an artist. See your work as a piece of art. See your customers as an audience, and see your competition as teachers.” Make every project a WOW project:

Something that matters, that makes a difference, that you can brag about–forever, that transform the enterprize, that take your breathe away, that make you/me/us/”them” smile, that is why you are here on earth, that are absolute necessity. THIS is the kind of project you should have.

“Reward excellent failures. Punish mediocre successes.”

Rule #1: Never accept an assignment as given (turn it into a WOW project)

Rule #2: You are never so powerful as when you’re “powerless” (under the radar, given freedom to do it new ways)

Rule #3: Every “small” project contains the DNA of the entire enterprize.

Politics, defined as “The way people work with one another to get things done,” is something you have to LOVE. “Success=Sales success. Everywhere. We’re all in sales. All the time.” huh…I KNEW it! I knew it seemed like being a missionary was being a salesperson! 

Great selling doesn’t come by selling the product, but by selling the solution (for example–you don’t see a Rolex, you sell the Rolex lifestyle.) You find their goal, and the product that will help them get there. You have to be the first one “Living the brand” of whatever you want to be selling. You also need to make every problem YOUR problem–take responsibility–don’t pass the buck, or nothing will get done. Live/act/believe that if you don’t do it, no one will. Most often, you are right. Don’t hoard information.

Hoard=lose

Share=win

 A “talented” person is someone who: displays passion, inspires others, loves pressure, craves action, knows how to finish the job, thrives on wow, exhibits curiosity, exudes a sense of fun, and thinks at a high level.

What am I

Without a book in my hand

a podium to stand on

a speech to deliver?

What am I

Without money in my pocket

stilettos on my feet

a witty comeback on my lips?

What am I

without a project to build

a due date to meet

a service to render?

What am I

without a job

without family

without friends?

What am I

Alone

naked

scared

*

What am I

without worries to tangle me

pressure to weigh me down

stress to consume me?

What am I

without pride to trap me

arrogance to make me ignorant

prejudice to blind me?

What am I

without a status quo to maintain

the Jones to keep up with

expectations to meet?

What am I

without cares

without structure

without identity?

What am I?

Free

satisfied

adventurous?

“We call ourselves travel missionaries at this magazine. The mission is to get our readers out to experience that world, with all its eye-opening, mind-expanding, and life-enhancing possibilities.” I like to jog. In the rain/cold, this moves indoors. The elliptical machine is fun, but boring. So I read travel magazines. I think this lady, writing about traveling missionaries, has the right definition–just replace “world” with “God” and maybe you’ve got it right.

Happy Monday, with rain and gray.

Sometimes being a missionary is a 24 hour guilt trip. You see all these needs. You know you are needed–and sometimes you just do not have it in you. Sometimes you have to say “I know there are a million things more urgent to do or to give money to or time to, but I won’t right now.” And dang, the guilt.

I wish I were a god, that could go,go,go without stopping. That never needed a break or time to herself or using resources on herself. But I am not. Somedays I just need to stop. To be able to relax–no, the needs, the cries, the pleas have not stopped or even become softer–but I need earplugs for me. I need to be lead by still waters. I need to come to grips with the fact that as long as I am here on this earth, those needs, cries, and pleas will always be there; will always be a part of me.

That is what being a missionary is: you see and hear the problem, know you have the Answer, and work to connect them. This is no 9 to 5 job, it is the rest of your life. And in that, you have to learn how to care for your heart. How to let go of the guilt trip.

Living Stones is a ministry of the local church, working with the PETI program to reach out to the street and working children in Northeast Brazil.

PETI, the welfare project for the street children of Brazil, is paid for through the federal government, in Brasilia. The money is given to the individual towns, but unfortunately, goes through the local government before coming to the PETI program located in Paudalho. Brasilia sends money to upkeep eight stations around Paudalho, reaching over 1000 children (in a town of 30,000), that are in the highest risk/poorest income bracket.

The money is to pay for 23 workers, food, and upkeep of the stations. Of the eight stations, problems with the people hired, locations, or with food being supplied means that in actuality only about 300 children of the 1000 needy children in that community are being served. 150 of those children are at the station at the church in Paudalho (Living Stones).

The local government has been through (at least) three rounds of firing the whole program, and then rehiring them later, since the new mayor was elected in 2009.

The first time this happened, I went crazy, thinking it was the end of the world. Patricia and Cacau, the two women who run the program at the church in Paudalho, took it with quiet sadness. A week later, they were rehired and life went on. Third world country politics take some getting used to. Last week, the whole program was fired again. 9 people were rehired to run 8 stations. Patricia and Cacau are 2 of the nine rehired. They are currently running the station located at the Paudalho church (Living Stones), as well as assisting in two other stations. The rest of the money “saved” from firing the other 14 workers? No comment.

This month, the janitor/cook is on vacation, so they are also juggling cooking and cleaning for 150 kids as well. During the period that everyone was fired, the whole program continued working, hoping to be rehired. One good thing is that food, while being scantily provided for the first five months of the year, has been coming in regularly. That is a blessing.

The month of October is always focused around Children’s day. With the money raised from the jewelry the children made, they were able to receive enough money to have a party for the children, and are planning on having it on October 27. Please pray for this.

September was a great month for Living Stones as the children studied citizenship and respecting others. At the end of the month, they went to the center of town and had a special celebration. All of the stations were invited, with about 250 children (over 100 from Living Stones), and around 40 families that came to see their children present. Singing, poems, soccer, and art presentations were given and declared a success.

Tele and Heather Moraes, the missionaries of World Renewal Brazil (who began the whole church planting program that now includes Living Stones), will be coming to the United States October 31. They will be staying until the end of November, and a great opportunity to meet and talk with them is Nov. 13 at an open house at Brookville Road Community Church. If you would like to know more about that or another opportunity to meet them, let me know. They are my second family, and I am very excited to see them soon.

Last note: my ticket is purchased: December 30 I fly away. Please also pray for visa issues.

It’s easy to make a buck.  It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.  ~Tom Brokaw
Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better.  It’s not.  ~Dr. Seuss

October 23, 2010 marks the 20th anniversary of Make A Difference Day, the largest national day of community service. Held annually the fourth Saturday of October, Make A Difference Day is sponsored by USA WEEKEND and HandsOn Network, a business unit of Points of Light Institute.

http://www.handsonnetwork.org/nationalprograms/signatureevents/MakeADifferenceDay

How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world.  ~Anne Frank

It looks a little cloudy outside, but the weather isn’t bad. Get out there and Make a difference. Some ideas:

1. Family. Make a difference by spending time and loving those who are closest to you, but you often overlook.

2. Friends. You know someone who has been having a hard time of it lately. Make a difference in their life.

3. Prayer. What are the things that you are passionate about? Take them to the One who can Make a difference.

4. Community. Rake someone’s leaves. We all have them. http://www.usaweekend.com/section/MDDAY has a bunch of ideas. Find out about places that are serving others and Make a difference. Volunteer. Here are some that I personally know are Making a difference, but there are many more:

   a. Good News Ministries: http://www.goodnewsministries.com/ (you know I like them best:))

   b. Wheeler Mission: http://www.wmm.org/

   c. Boys and Girl’s club: http://www.bgcindy.org/ 

   d. Big Brother/Big Sisters: http://bebigforkids.org/ 

   e. Life centers: http://www.lifecenters.com/ 

5. Church. Isn’t that what church is for? Making a difference? Be a part of one.

6. All over the world. Think big and Make a difference. Maybe right now it is just by supporting through money–but make sure to go yourself sometime. Here are a couple amazing ministries that I know of:

   a. Gospel for Asia: http://www.gfa.org/

   b. Voice of the Martyrs: http://www.persecution.com/

   c. Word Made Flesh: http://www.wordmadeflesh.org/

and TADA!!!!! Living Stones. This Wednesday they are having a special Children’s day party of the kids. If you would like to give to that, or any of the other wonderful projects…well, you know I will get very excited about it.

     d. Living Stones: http://www.wribrazil.com/livingstones.html 

The greatest good you can do for another is not just to share your riches but to reveal to him his own.  ~Benjamin Disraeli

So I know enough to know what I need/want now. That is great progress. Putting together the Living Stones curriculum…hopefully to implement/translate starting January…has been a dreamfest. And now you have it–a wish list. Pretty specific. To fill specific needs. People are always asking me what I need. Well, now I have a list. If you would like to fill any of these wishes, please let me know. I would hate to have double-ups.

WISH LIST FOR LIVING STONES

1.      Physical/Environmental Health

a.       Pyramid poster for $2.50

b.      My Food Pyramid (DK books)

c.       Wash hands poster-$2.50

d.      “Brushing Well” by Helen Frost

e.       Boy’s body book by Kelli Dunham

f.       Girl’s body book by Kelli Dunham

g.      Changing you! By Dr.Gail Saltz

h.      John Hopkins Children’s center First aid for Children fast book

i.        Fight the flu poster- $2.50 

2.      Social Health

a.       Mind your manners language cards- $12

b.      Manners free spirit book “Be polite and kind”

c.       Transportation flashcards $3

d.      Be my neighbor by Maya Ajmera

e.       Curriculum from the children’s institute on the masterwork of God: $20

f.       Talking things through: “Words are not meant for hurting” book

g.      Working with others by Robin Nelson

3.      Mental (Intellectual) Health:

a.       Money to buy Portuguese/ Reading/Literature books in Brazil

b.      Puppets/stuff for puppets

c.       Good quality roll playing toys: kitchen, doctor, school, mother/baby

d.      Hand art (Klutz) 10$

e.       Money to buy sports equipment—various balls and ropes—in Brazil

f.       Awards, metals, trophies (for winning sports)

g.      Mathematical/logical (Games)

h.      Play station 2 and controllers and pieces…educational games (that are not based on English)

4.      Spiritual/ Emotional health

a.       Character edu. Poster (8 pieces) $10

b.      build your character poster: $2.50

c.       Loyalty 21^st century book

d.      Character edu. “sharing is caring” $3.50

e.       Generosity free spirit book “Reach out and give”

f.       Honesty by Kimberly Pryor

g.      The Giving Tree- $12

h.      Character edu. “Show you understand” $3.50

i.        The Five Love Languages—IN PORTUGUESE

j.        “All you ever need” by Max Lucado

k.      Jesus has risen poster $2.50

l.        Holy Week poster (11 pieces) $11

m.    Easter eggs—telling the resurrection story with plastic eggs

n.      The cube evangelism tool

o.      All about Jesus poster- $2.50

p.      “That’s where God is” Dan and Ali Morrow $13

q.      “A Picture of God 3 in 1–$10

r.        The tale of three trees (hardback) $9

s.       Children’s institute curriculum on Names of God: $20

t.        Armor of God poster, $2.50, Prayer poster: $2.50

u.      Curriculum from the children’s institute on the armor of God $20

v.      Feelings poster- $2.50

w.    Birth of Jesus poster $2.50

5.      General things I want/need:

a.       Foam shapes (the ones with a sticky side already on it)

b.      Money for an extra suitcase: $100

c.       Lined wipe off poster–$3 (need multiple)

d.      Birthday chart poster : $2.50 (need multiple)

e.       Reuseable calendar: $5 (need multiple)

Anyways, long story short…for me, nine years at give colleges in two continents equaling two associates degrees and one bachelor’s degree cost $200. Some ideas I have come up with along the way…

Australia has this great tradition that after high school, most of the kids travel for two years. Everywhere. Then school. Not many 18 year olds I know really know what they want to do. Most of them go into a college because it is the normal progression of American life…and end up wasting the first couple years. Wasting time is bad enough, especially at 30 thousand a year. Not only that, but there are a lot of scholarships that are for older students. As well, for me it worked that government assistance didn’t come until I was 23. Taking time to travel, work, or try out random things you might like can help you get the most out of the college experience when you truly ready for it, and know what you want. Don’t do things just because “that’s how everyone does it.” Think for yourself.

I always worked while I went to college. This did two things for me: helped me realize what I wanted to do, and so what classes I wanted to take, and gave me application time while learning. Instead of cramming in four years of learning with no experience, I would learn something Monday morning in class and then apply it Monday evening at work. I think paying for your own education not only makes you take responsibility, but it makes you appreciate it more. I didn’t get to class on time because I always loved it–I got there because I paid for it, and was NOT going to waste my money. Same reason for good grades.

So if you are thinking about college:

1. The January/February before (if you start in the fall, the January of that year. If you start the spring semester, the January the year before), do your taxes and fill out FASFA as soon as possible. This has to be done to receive any grants, scholarships, or school loans.

2. Your first semester–try a community college. Why?

    a. You can get all your paperwork in order. They are really nice about working with you. If you don’t have your high school diploma, you can take an equivalency test for free.

    b. You can get a feeling for classes, and what you want…you can take random classes if you think you might like something…without losing much time if you don’t end up liking it. You can see what the class load will normally be like, and what it takes to do “college.” If you take 2-3 classes, the worst think that can happen is paying like $800. (Community colleges are normally about $90 a credit, State colleges are normally about $300 a credit, and private collages are normally about $1000 a credit) Personally…if you are taking a random class at Ivy Tech, I would suggest Philosophy or Ethics with Barton Updike. Great teacher, interesting class–and you need a philosophy class for most majors.

   c. CLEP as much as possible. Find the list of tests available, see what you can do. For $75 and an hour an a half, you can get up to 6 credits (thats $6000 at a private college!) Make a goal…like one test a month.

   d. Buy your books used, and online at www.half.com whenever possible. I know many people who spend $1000 a semester on books–I never paid more than $200. Many places buy books back, but it NEVER pays to do it that way. Some teachers say you MUST get the right edition, but most don’t care. If you can’t find the right edition for a good price, then wait until class and ask the teacher if it HAS to be the same edition (if it is cheap, buy the older edition, and then if the teacher says you need to get the new edition, you didn’t waste too much money).

3. Your second semester–

    a. If you really like community college, then keep going–see about their associates degrees, and what transfers if you want your bachelors.

    b. Transfer. Now that you have some classes, your paperwork is good, and hopefully you CLEPed some classes, State colleges have more options on classes. I would really only suggest a private college if you want to specialize in something only they can give you. Transfer students have extra scholarship opportunities, as well as getting to bypass all the freshman hangups.

4. Later semesters–

    a. Make sure to keep up on all the scholarships. Apply to anything that will let you. It never hurts to try. 300 word essays are not that hard to write.

    b. Check out study abroad/exchange programs. Exchange programs cost the same. I know IUPUI has places all over the USA, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. It costs the same to study there, and all the classes are transferable.

    c. Get to know your teachers–they make the difference of your college experience. They have a lot of information–they can help you if you ask. I interviewed a girl who received the “Top 10″ award–out of 26,000 students. She said it was because she was close with her teachers, and they nominated her for all these awards and special opportunities. Teachers know more tips than I do–so go ask them:).