New Admissions Manager

Congratulations Mark!

http://www.newarkadvocate.com/article/20090129/NEWS01/901290347?GID=ScOS03PMSnUQAmrVXst1ezrQhEt7aEXVdIZ136qE1q8%3D


Please let me know when you or your company have good news to share.

53rd Annual Groundhog Breakfast

For a recap of today's event, go here, here and here.

It seems others enjoyed it as well. Check out these blogs:

http://andrew247.blogspot.com/2009/01/groundhog-breakfast-leaders-see-bright.html

http://culturaloffering.com/2009/01/30/anything-for-a-laugh.aspx

http://wpdgnewark.blogspot.com/2009/01/2009-ground-hog-day.html

Enjoy the day.

It's Time!

The stage has been set, the band is in place and the groundhog is ready to go! Tomorrow is the 53rd Annual Groundhog Breakfast sponsored by Licking/Knox Goodwill Industries, Inc. and will take place at the OSU-N Campus - Adena Hall. Breakfast begins at 6:00 a.m. and program will start promptly at 6:30a.m.

Hope to see you there!

The Message WILL Be Heard By Many

Author of Community Capitalism, Ron Kitchens, is in town. Yesterday he met with the Licking County Commissioners and some small groups before taking the stage at The Midland Theatre last night. Read the story here. Today he is taking a tour of our county and will speak to the Newark Rotary Club.

In one of the small group meetings he touched on the importance of having a strong education system. We discussed the upcoming levy of the Newark City Schools and he said: "you need to pass this levy not just for the kids, but for good jobs and the economy." He told a story about a company who said they will only locate in a community that has a strong K - 16 program. He also mentioned the fact that you have to stop all the negativity; it will drive away business opportunities.

If you think voting no on a school levy is only sending a message to the school board and administration, you are dead wrong. That message will be carried much further. It will be heard by existing employers and ones who were looking to possibly locate here. It will be heard by families who want to live here, but are unable to find work. It will be heard by the college students at COTC, OSU-N and Denison University, who we are now asking to stay in the community instead of moving out of town or even out of state. And yes, it will be heard by all the children in the school system when they no longer have the classes or courses offered by many other schools in Licking County and around the state. But ultimately, the message will be delivered back to you, by the declining value of your property.

Do I think that by voting yes on the levy that all of our problems will disappear? Absolutely not. There are other issues we need to deal with. But what I am confident of is this: if we continue to turn our backs on our schools and end up with the state taking over, economic development will be dead in this community. And we will have no one to blame but ourselves.

I would prefer to send a different message to everyone. One that says we value education; we are a thriving community; we support and encourage industry and are known as a great place to live, work and raise a family.

That should be our message.

Working With Your Friends

About a week or so ago I wrote about a new book I ordered by Jonathan Fields. I started reading it recently and it is well worth the money.

Fields reminds us that we thrive better when we are around like-minded people. He states,

"Actually, the best part of being an entrepreneur is not the control you gain over wealth, but the chance to handpick the people you surround yourself with and create an organizational culture that is completely in sync with who you are."

He also shared some interesting statistics on friendship in the workplace compiled by Tom Rath, head of Gallup Organization Workplace Research:

• People with a best friend at work are seven-times more likely to be engaged at work.
• Close friendships at work boost employee satisfaction by nearly 50 percent.
• People with at least three close friends at work were 46 percent more likely to be extremely satisfied with their job and 88 percent more likely to be satisfied with their lives.
• Being around a boss was generally considered the least pleasant part of the workday. But, employees who are good friends with their bosses are more than twice as likely to be happy with their work.

We tell our kids to go to school or camp and "make new friends." The same effort can be applied in the workplace; it could have significant results on how satisfied we are with life.

Addicted

Here is a great site for those of you who care about the top content of our online world. Once you go there, you will understand why it is called Addictomatic. I have added it to my favorites.

Cristina, Daniela and Gabriela

Today my husband and I went to see the Tiberi triplets. What beauties. They are doing very, very well. They will be 35 weeks old on Monday.

Walk The Floor

I can't remember where I read about a CEO who literally walked the entire plant floor every morning at his company. It took him close to two hours to complete this task each day. When asked why he would do this every day, he acted surprised at the question and said "why wouldn't I?" He valued his employees. He put them first.

When I am out touring different plants and businesses in our community, I ask them how frequently they "walk the floor" and have received some varied responses. One individual told me that he has three different offices throughout the plant, to enable his employees have better access to him. Impressive.

You may think this lesson only applies to the manufacturing industry. That is certainly not so. It is just as important in any type or size company. If you work at a company that has multiple buildings, when is the last time you visited all of them? Even if it is a small operation, take the time to stop by their desk; conversation and discussions doesn't always have to be on your own turf.

It is not too late to add another goal to your list for 2009 - make time to "walk the floor."

Tough Decisions Await Obama

The U.S. Chamber passed this article along to me that appeared in the Chicago Tribune on January 18. It appears that the Chamber's top lobbyist, R. Bruce Josten, feels comfortable with the support our new President will give to corporate America.

We will know soon enough, with legislation making it easier to form labor unions waiting at his doorstep, along with the "card-check" issue.

Time will tell.

Life Advice From 5th Graders

Due to the cutbacks in Newark City Schools, two of my three children do not have bus service to and from school. This is the second school year that we have had to deal with this. Luckily, a friend of mine came up with a plan for three families to carpool and made out a monthly schedule for all of us. I owe her BIG TIME - Thanks Kelly!

My responsibilities include taking five girls to school every other week, picking up girls every Tuesday and every third Friday. Two of the five bodies I haul around are my children. Yesterday on the way to school, the girls were complaining that they didn't want to go to school. I gently reminded them that they had already had five and a half days off and that it was time to go back to school to "get smart". The response from one of my daughters was that she already knew everything and had no need for more schooling. And then her friend said, "Cheri, we already know our multiplication tables, can count to ten and know our A B C's. That should get us through life just fine."

I chuckled, but felt confident that these girls are going to great things when they go out into the world. But I think I need to start praying for their future husbands now.

The Triplets Have Arrived

I would like to send out my congratulations to Congressman Pat Tiberi and his wife Denise on the birth of their triplet daughters on January 18. They weighed-in at 4 lbs. 8 oz; 4 lbs. 10 oz and 4 lbs. 14 oz. and are all breathing on their own. They should be able to come home in 10 to 21 days.

Now Congressman Tiberi is in the minority at home and at the Capitol.

My Favorite Love Letter

Doing some MAJOR cleaning today and came across some letters I have kept over the years. Back in October of 1988, my husband was running for the Ohio Senate. We decided that I would write a letter to the voters in his district so they would get to know him a little better. Just a year before, Nancy Chiles-Dix resigned creating an opening in the 31st Senate District. Jay was appointed to fill the seat, but had to run in the next November election to try to hold on to the position.

My letter started off this way:

"Dear Friend,

My name is Cheri Hottinger and my husband Jay is your State Senator. Jay is running for election, so I thought you might like to know a little more about him than what you may see on television or read in the newspaper. . ."

I received several letters back, mostly thanking me for my letter and the information. But my favorite response started like this:

"Mrs. Hottinger,

First of all, I am not your friend and secondly, your husband is not my state senator. I don't want to know any more about him than I already do. I do know that he replaced another inferior state senator that was there for her own benefit and when it was no longer to her benefit, she stepped down and the position was GIVEN to your husband. Also I am not naive enough to believe everything I see on television or read in the newspaper, I do however, have some confidence in the court system, and they have found that another candidate, Taft, has made false statements against his opponent."

It goes on from there, but you get the tone of it. Politics is such fun.

Social Media Vs. Network Media

In previous posts, I have talked about the need for social networking in the workplace. And you may be interested to know that I am close to offering a seminar on the benefits of such. Today I received an email from a friend on how social media has changed the way news is delivered.

On his blog, he talks about the recent crash of US Airways Flight 1549 and how an iPhone, Twitter and YouTube were the first to post pictures and video (you can view them on his blog), instead of CNN or Fox News.

Mark is slowly trying to educate me on all the different types of social networking groups and what they are used for. Maybe it's my age, but it seems I am a slow learner.

Thanks Mark for an interesting post.

Quote of the Day

" In the End, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

--Martin Luther King, Jr.

Music For A Cold Night

Keep Warm.

Be Careful What You Ask For

Deep down I know that receiving criticism, when deserved, is a good thing. It has the ability to make the project you are working on better. But I tend to get defensive and then quit listening to what the person or people have to say. And many times I am the one who asked for their opinion or input in the first place.

I found this post on Relationships: Eight Tips For Dealing With Criticism. She nailed me on #2.

What Type of Decision-Maker Are You?

Take this test to find out. My results were "not bad" but it also said that I have a few "misconceptions" to work on.

Not Just Another Book of Fluff

Had a few minutes today to check out some blogs I follow and got excited when I read Chris Brogan's book review of Career Renegade: How To Make A Great Living Doing What You Love. If you are an entrepreneur, this book is for you. Think I will order it now.

Just what I need - another book to add to the stack.

27 Dresses

My oldest daughter loves the movie 27 Dresses. I do too. My husband, not so much. I guess you can call it a chick flick. If you are familiar with the movie, the lead character, Jane, is an Executive Secretary/Assistant to the CEO. After watching the movie, my daughter informs me that she wants to have a job just like Jane's. (This is the same girl who has her heart set on Harvard) Every time she tells me this I frown and tell her she should want to be the CEO and not the Assistant. But she throws it back at me and says that she doesn't want to have to go to all the meetings (like I do); she just wants to schedule them.

Well scheduling meetings isn't as stress-free as she thinks. As an example, today I went to a meeting that I have had to re-schedule three times. And things will happen that you cannot control. Like the way someone is dressed, or the fact that they don't show up on time. When you are the person coordinating the meeting, the stress level can become quite high. Trust me. Take this as me venting or as some simple advice:

1. Dress professionally. It is always better to over-dress and look professional than to dress casual and look sloppy.


2. Don't be late. Be a little early. Leave in plenty of time. Make sure you know where you are going.


3. If you know you are going to be late, call the person who invited you to let them know PRIOR TO THE MEETING that you are running behind. It doesn't do anyone much good if you are already 15 minutes late and you call to say you are on your way.

Feeling better already. Thanks for listening.

Ohio Is "Back In The Game"

Today my husband and I were requested to attend a meeting together in the "capital city" (Columbus). It was with senior management of one of our local employers. I was a bit hesitant going into the meeting, but it turned out to be very positive and very promising.

The company we met with has facilities in many parts of the United States and abroad and we discussed how competitive Ohio is in terms of business regulation, taxes, incentives, etc. I am pleased to report that, at least to this large employer, Ohio is now "back in the game" and is no longer off the radar screen. When we asked why, the response was because Ohio came through and did things to save jobs that they haven't encountered anywhere else. We truly made a difference. But there are still issues that Ohio needs to deal with to make the buckeye state more business friendly, especially to existing employers. But the good news is that we have a seat back at the table.

Education - Grassroots Meeting #1

Tonight I attended the first grassroots meeting on Education (see my previous post below). Turnout was high - about 70 people. This is not intended to be minutes of the meeting; those will come later, but there were some very interesting comments made that I thought are worth sharing tonight.

A CALL TO COLLEGE

Sarah Wallace gave the crowd a report on the program operated in the Newark City School system called A Call To College. It was started in 1991 and was based on a program in Columbus City Schools called I Know I Can. This program not only provides last dollar grants based on need to seniors at NHS, but it also walks students and parents through the financial aid process and paperwork and motivates students to stay in school and pursue secondary education. We are so fortunate to have this program in our community. With their help, last year an additional 2 million in aid, beyond what funds they contributed, was provided to local students for college. Kudos to Diane DeLawder for her leadership with this program.

FACTS ABOUT C-TEC PROVIDED BY RON CASSIDY

• In 2001, C-TEC enrollment was around 500; Today they are serving approximately 1600 students
• 50.4% of students that graduate from C-TEC enroll in secondary education
• Students can earn college credits to be used at COTC
• When a student enrolls at C-TEC, the school district they came from loses $5,400.00

NEWARK CITY SCHOOLS AND THE HEALING PROCESS

Keith Richards did an outstanding job taking us back in time to when Newark Schools was one of the premier school districts in the state, filled with rich tradition. He then jumped to 1997 when there was conflict in the community and the district asked for money with an income tax levy, which was successfully passed. A group of disgruntled citizens then fought hard to repeal two property taxes and won, taking away more funding than the 1997 income tax levy brought in. So basically, Newark City Schools is now operating with the same amount of money they had in 1998. Due to the repeal of the property taxes, Newark City Schools were forced to make substantial budget cuts. Those cuts ultimately ended up hurting the enrollment numbers, with over 750 students leaving the district in 1998.

Let's be honest. If anyone thinks that defeating school levies is about sending a message to the Administration and School Board members, and that it doesn't hurt the community, they are not living in reality. Families have to look out for the best interests of their children. If Newark Schools are not able to provide a quality education, we will lose them. And with them goes our current workforce and our future workforce, leaving behind a community that has declining property values and one that business and industry will overlook. Think about that. As a business owner, why would I want to locate in a community where I can't find the skilled workforce that is needed? Competition is already at an all time high with regards to attracting industry. If the State of Ohio ends up taking over our school system because our community refuses to financially support it, any interest in locating in Newark will dry up immediately. I have three children in the Newark school system and my hope is that they can continue to thrive there.

MENTORS ARE SORELY NEEDED

Some great comments were made on the need for mentors/tutors in the school system. Jennifer Utrevis and Steve Linham spoke on programs that are currently in place and how successful they have been. But as one woman stated: "Can we find mentors for parents?" That was a wow statement. And she is right. There are so many parents that need help and guidance from others and the community. She said even just a kind word of encouragement can go a long way, not only for students, but for adults as well.

Overall, I was very happy with the outcome of the first meeting. Many people signed up for the different working groups that have been established. The excitement and interest is still going. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Community Capitalism Update

Grassroots Meetings

After the three Town Hall meetings, 23 areas of interest/goals emerged. We categorized them into Education, Talent, Infrastructure/Capital and Place. Tonight is the first grassroots meeting focusing on Education. Tomorrow's meeting (Jan. 14) will focus on Talent; Jan. 15 is Infrastructure/Capital and Jan. 20 will be on Place. All these meetings are at 4:00 p.m. at C-TEC.

Our hope is that discussion will occur on what is currently being done in those individual categories and then talk about the areas of interest that have been defined. We are hoping that sub-groups will be formed around those areas of interest.

Town Hall Public Forum

On January 26, 2009 the author of Community Capitalism, Ron Kitchens, will be in town. Mr. Kitchens will be the guest speaker at the Town Hall Public Forum being held at The Midland Theatre beginning at 7:00 p.m. This event is open to the pubic and is free. We are asking everyone to bring a non-perishable food item or cash donation for the Licking County Food Pantry. Described by The Economist as "an energetic economic development leader," Mr. Kitchens is the Chief Executive Officer of Southwest Michigan First, as well as the General Partner of the Southwest Michigan First Life Science Fund. He will be speaking on how Kalamazoo, Michigan was revitalized. This event is co-sponsored by the Licking County Planning Commission and the Licking County Area Transportation System.

Stay tuned. . .

Quote of the Day

"Every dollar the Federal Government does not take from us, every decision it does not make for us, will make our economy stronger, our lives more abundant, our future more free"

- Ronald Reagan

Good Day or Bad Day?

A good friend once told me that happiness is a choice. I try to remind myself of this when I am having a bad day or when things don't go the way I wanted them to.

Here's a very good post on Positive Attitude and the fact that YOU determine if it will be a good or bad day.

Thanks PDG.

Groundhog For Breakfast?

It is hard to believe, but we are just weeks away from our 53rd Annual Groundhog Breakfast - January 30, 2009. For those of you who are loyal attenders, have I got a surprise for you. We are mixing it up a bit this year with our own take of the David Letterman Show.

Even in bad times, economically speaking, we still need humor in our lives. I guarantee that you will walk away happy and ready to tackle the day!

Come and see animals from the Columbus Zoo, hear the Top 10 List and watch Stupid Human Tricks. Doesn't that sound fun? And our own Letterman, Kurt Harden, will leave you smiling. He's full of culture and humor.

And we really don't serve groundhog for breakfast, in case you are wondering.

Need the details? Go here. Hope to see you there!

Goals for the New Year

I have a big confession to make. I haven't written out my goals for 2009 yet. They are only in my head (which can be a very scary place). I have promised myself that by the end of the weekend, I will have them written down.

After that, the most important step is keeping them. A friend of mine has some good advice on how to do that here.

Thanks Mark.

The Switchboard

Some days working at the Chamber is a lot like the picture above. I think that is because many people do not understand what the Chamber is or does. Because we are a private membership organization, our primary function is to support our member businesses, and attract industry to our area; but everyone who works in our office takes time to try to answer every question and help each person who walks through our doors - members and non-members alike. In November of 2008, we answered over 800 calls and helped the 90+ people who stopped by needing some type of information.

Many times we act like operators, looking up phone numbers and referring consumers to our members. If we don't have an answer to their question, we try to direct them to someone who does. But there are questions that we cannot answer. Let me give you a couple of examples. Today we received a call from someone who wanted to move to Canada and thought we could tell her how to do that. Last year around Christmas, a caller asked if we knew of any organization that would put up Christmas lights on the outside of her house because she wasn't able to do it herself. Not a silly question. But she had one stipulation - they needed to bring the lights with them because she had none. And one of my favorites was a call we received from a student who missed the bus and wanted to know if we could pick him up and take him to school.

The Chamber is an interesting place to work. We learn something new every day by taking time to find the answers to the many questions we are asked. We are committed to helping others succeed. That is one of the reasons I love my job. As they say, find a job you love and you'll never have to work a day in your life.

A Love Poem

As my family and I were waiting in line at a restaurant on vacation, I picked up the New York Times and read an article written by Dwight Garner called Books worth buying a coffee table for. It gave a summary of eight books that he considered to be the "best gift books of 2008." The one that caught my attention was Old Rare New: The Independent Record Shop (Blackdog Publishing), edited by Emma Pettit. Gardner described it as an "elegiac love poem to the vanishing independent record shops in the United States and Britain."

The summary included a store owner's perspective - David Lashmar - on today's ipod generation. It truly is a love poem:

"They will never know the joy of flicking through a rack of records, being captivated by cover artwork and reading the sleeve notes. Of getting the record home, sliding it reverentially out of its cover and then out of its inner sleeve, marveling at the luster of the grooves. The sacrificial offering onto the altar of the turntable, the gentle penetration of the spindle, the lowering of the arm and the total bliss of being part of an actual performance that you have helped to complete. This baptismal immersion into sonic joy will never leave you. The day you bought the record, where you were, what you were wearing and who was in your heart, will be etched into your soul, as well defined as the grooves that are pressed into your record."

Lashmar is dead on in his description of how music, or records in this case, become part of who we are. About five or six years ago, a song was on the radio that included the lyrics "hey mister d.j. put a record on . . ." and my daughter (she was seven then) asked me "Mom, what's a record?" I was stunned at first and then the inner feeling of "man I am old" hit me like a brick wall (I didn't dare tell her that my first stereo had an 8-track player). Makes me wonder what kind of technology my grandchildren will grow up with. They may be asking their mothers someday "Mom, what's an ipod?"

Dream Big

I am still reading The Winners Manual by Coach Jim Tressel and thought the following excerpt is fitting for the start of a new year:

DREAM BIG

If there were ever a time to dare,

to make a difference,

to embark on something worth doing,

it is now.

Not for any grand cause, necessarily-

but for something that tugs at your heart,

something that's your aspiration,

something that's your dream.

You owe it to yourself to make your days here count.

Have fun.

Dig deep.

Stretch.

Dream Big.

Know, though, that things worth doing seldom come easy.

There will be good days.

And there will be bad days.

There will be times when you want to turn around,

pack it up, and call it quits.

Those times tell you that you are pushing yourself,

That you are not afraid to learn by trying.

Persist.

Because with an idea,

determination, and the right tools,

you can do great things.

Let your instincts,

your intellect,

and your heart guide you.

Trust.

Believe in the incredible power of the human mind.

Of doing something that makes a difference.

Of working hard.

Of laughing and hoping.

Of lazy afternoons.

Of lasting friends.

Of all the things that will cross your path this year.

The start of something new brings the hope of something great.

Anything is possible.

There is only one you.

And you will pass this way only once.

Do it right.

Author Unknown

Plugged Back In

In reading my last post, I sounded a bit desperate. That's because I haven't blogged for ten days! And I only checked my email once while I was gone. That is pretty impressive for me. But my bigger frustration was the 2.5 hour delay at the airport today. Airports and I have a love-hate relationship. I love the fact that flying adds more hours to my vacation. But flying also adds more frustration as well. Going through security drives me crazy. Today, I had a bottle of hairspray and my toothpaste taken away. Give me a break. I guess I can understand the hairspray, but toothpaste?? I even had it in the plastic bag that they require. The tube was too large. Funny, since I used it all week, it was actually smaller than when I arrived, but grumpy woman didn't care.

Anyway, I have returned. It is late, and I am tired, but I thought instead of giving you loads of details about my trip here, I am going to direct you to my personal blog where you can read about it if you want to. We had a wonderful time. I hope you had some time to relax and slow down too.

Airports - I am stuck at airport and can't blog with my iTouch.