On the WWPR blog in March, in her excellent re-cap of Kiki McLean’s WWPR annual meeting keynote, Tracy Mason asked whether work-life balance is an oxymoron and advised setting boundaries to create a more productive work environment. In a still-recovering economy, our clients, colleagues, and managers all are under pressure to accomplish more with less. How do we make the most of our most precious resource – the only one we truly own – our time?

For me, a solid project management tool is the answer. But to identify the right tool, you have to know your challenges and come to terms with your own time management shortcomings.

Know the Pain Points

Do you work as part of a team? If so, are your challenges related to a lack of central file-sharing application or a breakdown in the collaboration process? Are you a solo practitioner? Do you need a better way to organize multiple projects or a daily reminder to keep you honest?

Take a look at your calendar (and your email traffic) for the past month. How much of your time did you dedicate to strategic work? How much of it was reactionary rather than proactive? Often, urgent (or worse, non-urgent) email requests crowd out the time we could spend on more meaningful tasks. Consider building email into your daily task list at manageable intervals, rather than letting it dictate your workflow.

For me, a good project management tool should provide a long-term view, so I can identify places later in the schedule where I can make up for lost time. User interface is also important to me. Others may be fine with a simple task list with due dates. Or maybe a task list will only work for you if you can access it from your iPhone, iPad and laptop. The point is that you should know what you need before you go shopping.

A Not-Nearly Exhaustive List of Resources

Over the past few years, I worked with a team that stretched from Riyadh to Portland. As a small firm, we needed an easy way to track time, share files and pass the baton to colleagues in four different time zones. After a couple of trials, we settled on an online project management tool that met all of our requirements.

I recently moved to a large firm where I am responsible for the PR outreach for several offices. Once again, I need more than a basic Excel spreadsheet. The tool from my former firm is still a solid choice for me, but tools advance quickly, so I decided to research the new options. Below is a small sampling of the most popular tools I found – culled through research on Mashable, Harvard Business Review and others. Most offer free trials, so you can test drive before you buy.

Basecamp: A former client introduced me to Basecamp. She started using it to plan her wedding and found it so helpful that she eventually added work projects to the mix. This web-based collaboration tool allows users to track milestones, share files and make assignments. http://www.basecamphq.com

Teamwork PM: This web-based tool does everything Basecamp does, plus addsthe ability to set task dependencies, makes time tracking available in the lowest cost plan, and (personal preference here) has a more intuitive interface. http://www.teamworkpm.net

Tracky: This tricked-out task list tool comes with a sense of humor and the ability to integrate your favorite social media tools. The developers describe Tracky as “a lot like a mullet: all business in the front, all social party in the back.” Track your projects, and then share your progress socially. Tracky should hit the right note for people who like crowd-sourcing or open source. https://tracky.com/

Podio: Citrix recently acquired this social business collaboration platform. According to the company, Podio enables ”messaging, tasks, reporting, workflow and contact management.” Podio lets users purchase app bundles for specific purposes, including a customer relationship management tool. https://podio.com/

If these tools are more than you need and you really just want a better way to organize your day and track your tasks, Freelance Switch offers an extensive list of to-do-list apps.

Have a favorite time management tool? Share them with other WWPR members. Are you looking for a technology to solve a work challenge? Please drop us a line and we’ll explore solutions in this column overthe coming months.

How to you connect with your audience? How to you get people to remember your message? Is stage presence something you’re born with or something you can learn?

These questions and others were the focus of WWPR’s recent EntrPReneur professional development brown bag, “How to Speak with Presence.” What a terrific group! One of my favorite moments was when one of the attendees skipped around the room while her “speaking competitor” tried to distract her by pretending to take her purse! I guess you had to be there. We definitely had a good time!

Check out the program intro.

In case you missed it, here are a few takeaways:

- What’s the number one way to improve your speaking? Clarify your core message. It’s not easy, but it’s worth it!

- Move purposefully. And if you want to raise your status – move less.

- Here’s a secret: There’s actually no such thing as public speaking! What you want to do is have a personal conversation with each person in the audience – one person at a time. This helps reduce anxiety – and helps you connect personally with your audience.

Watch the participants take part in the “Talk to Each Other Game”.

At the end of the presentation, I handed out my “Ten Tips for Giving Masterful Presentations.” Here they are:

1. People remember what they hear first and last. Spend the most time on the beginning and end of your presentation.

2. Be fully present. Get into your optimum state. Jump up and laugh!

3. There is no substitute for practice. Time yourself beforehand. It is perfectly OK to speak for less time than you were allotted. Practice as much as you can without reading from your text.

4. Know your audience. Make them absolutely essential. Know exactly what you want them to understand, to feel and to do. This is the core of your presentation. If you are clear on your core, your delivery will improve dramatically.

5. Remember the rule of three.

6. End vocal monotony. Vary your emotional tones. Divide your speech into several mini-speeches, each with a different, contrasting tone. Each tone should have an emotional intent – how you want the audience to feel when they listen to you.

7. Vary your voice. When you practice, try isolating and experimenting with the different parts of your voice: volume, pitch, and tempo.

8. Physical motion makes the greatest impact on an audience. Move to enhance and emphasize your content. Stand to YOUR right side of the room.

9. Stand if possible. Step away from the podium. Maintain a heroic neutral stance most of the time. If you must sit, lean forward and keep your hands above the table.

10. The best presentations are the ones where each listener feels personally addressed. Use your eyes as a way to connect to individual people. Don’t scan. If you focus on one person at a time, all eyes will focus on you.

1. Friend interaction with brand pages
Facebook has always shown you which of your friends “like” a brand or organization’s page, but now they’ve gone one step further in customizing the page content. Now featured prominently on your timeline is your friends’ discussion of the brand, so you can see involvement from your connections.
On the right hand side of a page timeline users now see likes as well as interactions. Facebook knows that out of The Office’s 10 million likes and 64,000 people talking about the show, users care most about their friends and what they think. And that information should come first to my line of sight. So any viral buzz you generate can live longer than in previous formats.

2. Location-focus
Facebook is an online community meant to enhance existing communities. Facebook had already embraced the check-in feature so that users can share with their friends where they’ve been. Timeline combines the foundation ideas of Foursquare and Yelp, so now users can check in to several places but now also recommend a place and/or page to friends.

People who wish to share their thoughts more than just pressing the like button can register their comments in a page’s recommendation box. The National Restaurant Association receives recommendations on their page, showing user-generated information as well alongside the associations’ provided content.

So instead of people’s comments peppering your feed, they exist in a one-stop shop on your timeline for people that are most interested in seeing feedback on your brand or organization.

3. Cover photo
With the profile picture taking a backseat, this is a way for brands or organizations to really make a statement with a visual. The cover photo is an image splash, a visual the eye can’t avoid when visiting a timeline. It reminds me of CD cover art, the iconic image that was then associated with that particular album of music. For organizations, it is safe to assume that your logo or brand image should remain the profile picture, and then your cover photo is an additional visual to highlight what you do.

The cover photo shouldn’t be an advertisement (Facebook’s guidelines spell that out in detail), but rather a convincing, enticing tease to draw users to scroll down for more. For the page of an environmental advocacy group, it’s where they could provide a recent image of an important restoration initiative. For the page of a community service group like Habitat for Humanity, you could showcase the latest service project. The dynamic and changing nature of this cover photo is up to the organization, but to continue to get page visits, it should change frequently. The best ones I’ve seen so far are ones from interesting angles and views, as if viewing their page is like going behind-the-scenes of an organization or brand. That distinguishes the page from visiting a typical corporate web site.
4. Make milestones

Milestones can be showcased with existing photos and a storyline to further explain the event’s importance.

The company I work for launched August 2, 2011. To make that mark on our page timeline, Facebook has created milestones. For people’s individual pages, milestones are the typical variety: the day you were born, the day you joined Facebook, the day you graduated college, your wedding day, etc. For brand or organization pages, these milestones are similar lifetime developments. When the company expands to a different city, it should be documented on the timeline. When a new product line is launched, its photo should be featured as a monumental event. When a company goes public, that is definitely a date worth special attention on the timeline. Companies have growth and movements in their life cycle also, and fans should get to be a part of that history and information.

5. Extending the permanence of a post
Ever obsess over the exact right moment to post something so that more people see it present in their newsfeed before it enters the loading black hole? You can now pin or highlight a post you make to Facebook, in order to ensure that more of your fans see it. By clicking “pin to top” in the drop down menu to the right-hand side of the post, you can pin that post to the top for seven days. Another option is to highlight a post, making it larger and more encompassing in its position on your timeline. But beware, you can’t overdo it by pinning AND highlighting, so choose your promotion choice wisely.

Looking ahead, it will be exciting to see what pages do with these new features, and how the overall transition goes. For awhile, lots of brands and organizations will need to set aside time to assemble their timeline, like an online scrapbook, but then moving forward they will be prepared to maximize content and document it to the best format for timeline. So far, it seems like the brands and organizations have found some cool ways to adjust to the design changes, and I’m excited to see more innovation as the full transition gets underway.

She is asking locals to arm themselves with $20 to make a large combined economic impact on one lucky local business owner.  I will be curious to see what PR the “chosen” location does before the event and what customer service tactics they conduct post-event to turn the short-term stunt into long-term impact.  Hopefully they will also raise some revenue during that hour as well!  I think campaigns like this are key to the future of the America economy- it’s all about “Main Street”.

What is a Cash Mob?

According to Price, “Think flash mob but more social and less artsy. First started by Buffalo, New York, blogger Chris Smith last August, cash mobs are a nationwide community-based phenomenon, primarily organized through social media, in which groups of people gather on an appointed date and time to “mob,” or support, a local business. Participants must agree to spend at least $20 at the chosen location, and in turn the business must be locally-owned and supportive of the community.”

The organization is positioning this campaign as the anti-Groupon which from a messaging standpoint don’t agree with, and think small business owners can maximize Groupon if they had a plan in place before setting the coupon level and thresholds.
“Not only are we offering the business some additional daily revenue by creating a mob we are giving businesses that may or may not have a marketing budget the easiest promotion and media opportunity that they can find,” says Price. “And unlike other efforts to attract consumers to local business, this one does not have a discount attached.”
Does your small business or clients have a Groupon strategic plan – here are five tips.

How do you participate?

1. RSVP on Facebook to get the location.
The location is not announced until 9:30 a.m. the morning of the MOB.

2. Arrive with $20 in hand to spend fully on one or more items.
3. Spread the word to your friends, colleagues and family – use your own social media to be a brand ambassador if you believe in the campaign

Learn more about Think Local First DC and how they will select the Cash Mob business on their blog here.

Shashi Bellamkonda, Director of Social Media, AKA “Social Media Swami,” at Network Solutions

Communications manifest themselves in different forms. No smoke signals or the telegraph anymore but email is still a prevalent part of our lives. In addition over the past few years content has found other ways to seep into our lives. As PR and communication professionals we are on the forefront of the communication revolution. Internally our colleagues look to us to be the “fortune tellers” for which new communication tools are trending and if and how to participate.

How did you discover the new tools? I wanted to share my experience about how I discovered tools many that I use.

Linkedin: I heard about Linkedin from a colleague and this was the first social network that I joined on Dec 18^th 2003.

Twitter: In 2007(March 15th actually) , I was a Product Manager for Network Solutions Web Site Builder and during my research I came across a podcast from SXSW (first time I heard of the South by South West conference too) where they were talking about Twitter. At that time all I saw was people checking in from airports and I was not doing much travelling then. After leaving it aside for 6 months I became active on Twitter again.

Facebook: The mainstream media covered Facebook extensively but I could not sign up as I was not a student. Later one of my cousins sent me a invite and by that time Facebook had opened to all and now has over 850 Million.

Fast forward to today and I really cannot accurately recollect how I hear about new social networks , my guess is these sources.

• Mainstream media: I read a lot of newspapers
• Someone  starts adding me to their network and I get an email – examples are amplify, schemer
• Word of Mouth from friends and colleagues. Groupon and Pinterest
• Content curators/aggregators : I look for emails from sites like Summify, curate.me., paper.li , Xydo that give a digest of news every day in my inbox and if a large number of my networks share a article or link it grabs my attention.
• My Twitter or Facebook stream : Google Plus and Empire Avenue
• Search Engine  Results : Yelp, Spoke etc when searching for a business

If you are a professional trying to help a client with their campaign or promotion this could be a useful list for you. What other “ear to the ground” methods can you add to this list?

I will be speaking at the WWPR event on March 20^th. Please register here  http://events.constantcontact.com/register/event?llr=zynwdtdab&oeidk=a07e5oeu8u3fbb5174e.

• Keep up with people (send postcards when you travel – what a fun way to reach out!)
• Take care of people (clients included!)
• Stay organized to stay connected

Many of you are doing this and much more, and may not have realized you were already networking. Likewise, I initially didn’t even think about how what I was doing translated into networking opportunities. However, I became more deliberate about my networking as family, friends, and colleagues began to comment about what a great networker I am.

Several years ago, I worked at a large PR agency for just over two years. When I left that agency to get married and move across the country with my Air Force husband, I reached out. I had met a woman who owned her own firm and was interested in partnering with my former agency. I called her before I left to ensure she had the appropriate contacts in my absence. My phone call directly led to her offering me freelance work. I called to take care of her, and in the process, she ended up taking care of me.

As Juli Monroe said in The Enthusiastic Networker, “In life, it’s not the one who dies with the most contacts who wins. It’s the one who has the most people speaking, with love and respect, at his or her funeral.” Many people think of networking as schmoozing at cocktail parties or sealing business deals on the golf course, and certainly that can be part of your networking repertoire, but honestly it’s about helping others. Successful networkers are people who others like, trust and ultimately refer.

Although networking is about selflessly taking care of people, be mindful not to become a referral service. A good Army friend of mine secured an internship at his company for my nephew who had just lost his co-op due to the economy. Thankfully, it paid off for all of us as my nephew is now a valued asset to my friend’s company. I knew my nephew’s work ethic and that of his parents so felt assured he would make me proud. However, I want to stress again to only refer people on whom you would stake your reputation, not just because they are family or a good friend.

Of course, it’s much easier to become a good networker if you’re organized. Get organized! Update your calendar with birthdays and anniversaries, pay attention to status changes in employment or family. Send articles or job opportunities you see to those who will benefit. But whether you send greeting cards to friends and colleagues on important holidays or for particular events, or you’d rather reach out via social media networks such as LinkedIn and Facebook, stay connected!

Working women everywhere are asking…“Can I have it all?” A successful career AND a rewarding, full personal and family life. – Kiki’s response was, “Yes, you can. But, not at the same time!” A bit tongue and cheek but it’s true. Psychology Today agrees.

A Huffington Post blog put it this way — “Think about it…how wonderful would it be if women at all stages of their careers and in all their roles could define clearly what they want in their lives, find and follow their passions, design a structure around them that allows for both a rich career and family life — strike out on their own, with a little help from their networks. And leave time for an occasional morning chat with a friend over coffee.”

Which Mountains Can You Climb – WHEN AND HOW?

You will need to make choices…perhaps daily, short term and even long term. Should I work late and miss date night? When in my career path might I best be able to start a family? I’ll be the lead career now but in five years, it will be my partner’s turn. Figure out what is important to you. Communicate it clearly to other key stakeholders and stick to it.

“Wouldn’t it be strange to hear a man say, ‘I want to be a doctor, unless I get married and have children?” — Margaret Mead in an excerpt from a James Baldwin interview.

Kiki shared how her family set boundaries. Whenever possible, breakfast time was sacred. And her family might have to decline social or business opportunities because they conflicted with precious family time on Sundays. What works for each person is different. What mountains are you looking to climb professionally? Personally? Remember, it’s important to carve out time for each area of your life that’s important to you. Attending WWPR events and activities gives me the chance to professionally refuel. What’s your outlet?

Delegate and Ditch the Guilt

Both at home and at work. Outsource whatever you can that doesn’t enhance your life so you have time for the things that matter most to you. Whether it be having someone else clean your home, cut your lawn, or cook your meals. Does your child really need homemade cupcakes for the bake sale or will store bought do just fine? I started using a cleaning firm when I was a full-time grad school student a decade ago, and it’s been worth the investment ever since. What works for you?

Here’s a tip…my friends have been raving about grocery delivery services like Giant’s PEAPOD. I broke down and tried their 60-day free delivery offer just before the holidays to get more weekend time to be with my family. Why I’ve waited so long to take advantage of this time saver is beyond me.

Work-Life Balance – An Oxymoron?

Once you’ve established what’s important to you. Make it happen. On the work-side…especially if you’re calling the shots, make it clear that important team meetings can’t start before 9am or must end by 5:30pm. This allows your work environment to carve out those special mealtime moments Kiki referenced. This way, your team members can be as productive and focused as possible on work, when it’s ‘work time.’ Be a role model for good work life balance. And please share your tips and tricks with other WWPR members – how do you keep your world “balanced?”

‘BE TRUTH TELLERS’ – Kiki suggested we help the women we know be the best they can be. Share motivating feedback with peers after a big presentation. Show friends how others see them in professional situations to boost confidence, provide opportunities, create alliances and support networks to enable success. Very powerful ideas.

“Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous?’ Actually, who are you not to be?” — Nelson Mandela

And just imagine what would happen if we all became such truth-tellers. It might make room for another women’s chair at the board of directors table because you endorsed her idea. Or perhaps help a fellow WWPR member get on an interview short list because you took time to write an unsolicited recommendation letter at just the right time.

Make Time to Be Truth Tellers

It all makes perfect sense, yet do we take the time to do it? I’ve been truth telling for the past few weeks and it’s been fun to see how sharing a compliment, lending an ear to a friend from across the country, or getting a progress update on someone’s job search can lift my spirits and put a spring in my step. I can only imagine how those on the receiving end of the truth-telling feel. I get a rush realizing I have the power to inspire. Perhaps I am my own Super Hero.

Super Hero Resources to Share

Last fall, I heard Margie Warrell speak during an ExxonMobil Women’s Interest Network session. Talk about motivating and truth talking with an audience. After absorbing her charge to live courageously, I was so inspired, I sent Margie’s book and blog posts to many of my female friends across the country.

Margie believes that…“we are all — and yes, that includes you — powerful beyond measure. That within you lies the resources to create and accomplish extra-ordinary things and to affect change in the world in extraordinary ways. Truly. The thing that keeps most people from doing that is not all the barriers the world has erected to keep them stuck. It is simply their lack of belief in themselves; in their own personal power.”

Excerpts from Margie Warrell http://margiewarrell.com/blog/how-powerful-are-you/

Time to Test Your Super Hero Powers

In case you haven’t already picked it up, Margie is pretty passionate about empowering people to reconnect with their personal power; to be their own super hero. Check out Margie’s blog. Check out the WWPR blog. Take time to share a good word or boost up a female colleague. As Kiki suggested, be a truth teller, and pay it forward.

2011 Highlights – WWPR Visibility Elevated To New Levels
Out-going president Kendra Kojcsich was honored for her many years of service to WWPR.  Kojcsich highlighted 2011 goals achieved, thanking the outgoing board and key sponsors for most notably increasing WWPR visibility and awareness; membership more than doubled since last year.  The WWPR website revamp, WWPR blog launch and WWPR signature programs like Emerging Leaders and Executive Communicators’ Roundtable series continued to add value.

2012 – Incoming President, Tina McCormack Beaty Encouraged Members To Continue Momentum
The 2012 incoming president, Tina McCormack Beaty, who previously served as the vice president of the organization and co-chair for WWPR’s 2010 pro bono client, Children’s Law Center, encouraged attendees to get involved to keep the momentum going into 2012.  How can you get involved?  Join a WWPR committee today.

“I am thrilled to be guiding WWPR into a new year with a strong group of industry leaders by my side,” said Beaty.  ”2012 is going to be an exciting year for the PR trade and our new board looks forward to ensuring WWPR is a resource for communicators in D.C., helping them to navigate the changing waters with high-quality programs, as well as volunteer and networking opportunities.”

Keynote Catherine “Kiki” McLean Shares Key Elements Of Successful Women Communicators
In addition to voting on its board, WWPR event attendees enjoyed a keynote by former Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton advisor and current global head of public affairs and managing director of Porter Novelli, Kiki McLean.  McLean spoke of the importance of women supporting women and shared her suggested key elements for successful women communicators: 1) Patience, 2) Integrity, and 3) Passion for Language.  McLean encouraged attendees to be “the person others can turn to and count on.”

Learn More about Washington Women In Public Relations
Washington Women in Public Relations (WWPR) is the first and only D.C.-based professional organization advancing women in the communications industry. WWPR is committed to delivering outstanding professional development, networking, marketplace positioning, and leadership opportunities to area communicators. Visit us at wwpr.org, “Like” us on Facebook.com/WashingtonWomeninPR, and follow us on Twitter @WWPR.