After making a donation to Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry charity, I was entered in a drawing to win an iPad2 from Cinnabon, Inc. Surprisingly, I was the lucky winner. Now I have the opportunity to pay it forward with your help.
Post a comment below as to who you think deserves this iPad2 and why (less than 500 words please). Comments must be posted by 5:00pm (Eastern) on Monday, October 10th, 2011 to be considered.
Please note that this is not an official sweepstakes and not affliated with my employer. I'm personally selecting one person's recommendation on who should get this iPad2. The person who receives the 3G 32G White Verizon iPad2 will be responsible for all charges to get it set up with Verizon Wireless.
Thanks again to Cinnabon for this fun way to pay it forward.
Update on Tuesday, October 11, 2011 at 4:57PM by
Jenny DeVaughn
The winner of the iPad2 is Ruthie Powell of The Ruthie List. You may find out about her and all of the ways that she pays it forward here:
In Atlanta, Robyn Cobb is a friend to all who cross her path: online and in-person. Robyn is currently the VP of Digital Influence at Ogilvy PR and serves many non-profit efforts in her free time. I was honored when Robyn submitted me as a potential panelist for a core conversation at SXSW (South By Southwest) Interactive titled, "Shine Light on Others to Build Your Brand". It was an amazing feeling to be selected for this session.
During this core conversation, Robyn and I will reveal how paying it forward to others has helped us tremendously in our careers and personal interests. We share an upfront, yet positive style and promise to provide actionable advice.
For those with a SXSW Interactive, Gold or Platinum pass, our session is on Friday, March 11th at 5:00 PM in the Marriott Courtyard, Rio Grande B, 300 East 4th Street (between Trinity and San Jacinto) in Austin.
If you are unable to attend SXSW, please follow the tweets using the hashtag, #shine and join the movement!
At the end of the year, it is time to reflect on successes and failures, reassess personal and professional goals and refocus our resources.
This year was remarkable, because of my family, friends, colleagues, co-workers, acquaintances and mentors. It is impossible to list every phone call, blog post, text message, email, video, article, conference, introduction, book, webinar, networking event, random act of kindness and tweet that influenced me this year. Thank you for paying it forward.
Happy New Year from my family: Roger, Julia (4) and Will (2) to yours.
During this Thanksgiving holiday, I would like to join my HR Carnival for Charity colleagues and dedicate this blog post to my favorite cause, the American Cancer Society. By becoming a volunteer, I witnessed the vital support that it provides to cancer survivors and their families.
You may not be aware of the depth of the American Cancer Society’s social media influence to mobilize its fundraising and volunteer communities. Here are some of its social media highlights:
Virtual Fundraising in Second Life For the past five years, its signature fundraising activity, Relay For Life, has taken place virtually in Second Life. This year it attracted 200 teams with 2,000 avatar participants and the event raised over $274,000. Jenifer D. Waldrop of the American Cancer Society stated, “We have used Second Life for successful event fundraising, however, there is a lot more that we can explore.” This video gives a comprehensive look into Relay For Life in Second Life:
Cool and User-Friendly Tools The American Cancer Society has declared itself as “The Official Sponsor of Birthdays”, because they believe that every birthday represents another victory over cancer. For their More Birthdays campaign, the American Cancer Society has a website with simple ways to support this cause. One can send an e-card, create your own birthday page, promote this cause via Facebook, make a donation, add a badge to your website, create a customized “More Birthdays” Evite and download wallpaper for your Mac/PC.
Live Chat and Interactive Blog One glance at Dr. Leonard (Len) Lichtenfeld's impressive bio and you soon understand why he is the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for the national office of the American Cancer Society. Dr. Len also writes the posts and manages all comments on the American Cancer Society's first blog called Dr. Len's Cancer Blog. In addition, Dr. Len conducts pre-scheduled live chats on a variety of cancer-related issues. The blog and live chats provide a much needed forum for thoughtful conversation on cancer topics.
Thank you to Michael VanDevort for allowing me to be a contributor to the HR Carnival for Charity with this blog post. Here's to a world with less cancer and more birthdays.
It is refreshing to see a pay-it-forward movement in social media. I'm inspired by those who help others unconditionally.
Think of someone who recently exceeded your expectations. You should be more than willing to refer him or her to anyone within your professional network.
Here are 14 additional ways you can pay-it-forward professionally:
Become a fan of their Facebook page and post a positive comment to the wall
Write them a professional recommendation via LinkedIn or for their website
Mail them a nice handwritten note or Hallmark card
Write a positive letter to an industry related publication about him or her
Introduce him or her one of your other trusted contacts
Give a genuine comment on their blog
Invite him or her to an upcoming networking or industry related event
Create a nice blog post about him or her
Promote him or her via Twitter including a link to their blog
Call and tell this person why you appreciate them
Interview him or her for a podcast or YouTube video
With the support of my professional colleagues, family and friends, I have decided to follow my dreams and launch a social media consultation firm. It is an honor to have the opportunity teach individuals and companies how to pay-it-forward using digital tools to reach their goals. Thank you for your interest in my new venture as the Chief Enthusiast Officer (CEO) of Social Precision.
Friday, October 7, 2011 at 5:08PM 
