NFPW

Travel Tips to Make the Journey Smoother

Are your bags packed yet for Chicago?

NFPW's conference will be held Aug. 26-28 in Chicago.

If you’re headed there for the 2010 NFPW conference or anywhere else, for that matter, here are some travel tips to make the journey smoother.

Meg Hunt, who travels overseas for Teleios Ministry and is a member of Media Women of South Carolina, says that because of the increasing frequency of delayed and cancelled flights she now always –

  • Carries snack items (granola bars, crackers, trail mix, raisins, fruit snacks, etc.)
  • Carries an extra pair of underwear in a carry-on bag
  • Carries paper and pen as a backup “for those really great ideas you don’t want to forget.” Meg says that electronic devices are great, but says many airports don’t have enough outlets for recharging laptops, BlackBerries and phones.

Teri Ehresman of Media Network Idaho travels frequently for her job with Idaho National Laboratories. “I try to always get early morning flights to my destination,” she says. “This is really important if you have several stops to the destination. If there are travel delays they impact late afternoon travel more than morning travel. If the airlines need to reschedule you because of a cancelled flight this also gives the airlines more options to work with.”

She also recommends that if you need something within 24 hours of arrival, to carry it onboard with you. She shared how delayed luggage left one woman in tears at an airport in Vienna. “Her wedding dress did not make it and they could not guarantee it would arrive in time for her scheduled wedding.”

Although you can’t take fluids through the security checkpoint, you can take an empty plastic water bottle. Then when you get to the other side, you can fill it from a water fountain.

Teri also suggests that if there is a chance of rain placing a plastic garbage bag on the bottom and top of your suitcase to cover your clothing. If your bag is left outside in the rain, the plastic bags will help protect your clothing.

She also treats herself to a Delta Sky Club membership. “I travel a great deal and can buy a year’s membership for 40,000 miles.” The membership gets her access to the Sky Club where lines are significantly shorter if there are flight problems. Other perks include complimentary snacks/beverages, clean restrooms and free wireless.

Ann Lockhart of Colorado Press Women enjoys traveling because it “offers good thinking time.” She likes to make To Do lists so she carries paper and pens. She also always has reading material. “I couldn’t live with that,” she says. “I’m not as wired as some of you.”

If you need more tips, check out Inc., which created a list of 50 top picks for the best of business travel in 2010.

Friendships Are a Key Perk of NFPW

NFPW friends visit the Newseum in Washington, D.C.

When people ask me about the benefits of NFPW, I always cite the friendships I’ve made.

The first few times I attended a conference I hung out with those I knew, but I made an effort to say hello to others. Electronic communications may be great, but “Face 2 Face” conversations build relationships.

In a few short years, I found myself eagerly anticipating the next conference because I would be seeing friends that gather once a year. Thankfully, Facebook and other social media platforms make it easier to stay in touch throughout the year.

What I love about these friends is that they are always willing to help. I’ve called on many NFPW friends for advice, suggestions and plain ol’ help. They’ve always responded.

NFPW is a group of women and men focused on all forms of communications. We aren’t competitive with each other; we’d much rather help each other.

And when it comes down to it, having friends helps make life easier and more enjoyable. It’s a benefit that is hard to measure, but is immeasurable.

Yet some people don’t understand the value of friends. I thought I would share this YouTube video that is the opposite of everything NFPW represents. None of these conversations would occur at our conferences. It’s a reminder of how fortunate we are to be proud members of NFPW.

Vacation Is a Welcome Break

Memorial Day traditionally marks the start of vacation season. And why not? Summertime is upon us.

But the United States ranks among the worst countries for paid time off. Australia, Greece, Germany, Japan and Finland all have plenty of holidays and paid holidays. A few countries rank lower than the United States, including Vietnam and Thailand.

What’s a gal to do? I’ve learned that for my mental health, I need a vacation every quarter. I tally up my days off and divide them equally among the four quarters. Even when I only had two weeks vacation, I would schedule one week off and use the other week to sprinkle “treat days” throughout the year. Those days came in handy in months when there were no paid holidays.

I’ve learned that for me having a day on the calendar already scheduled helps keep me sane and provides a welcome break just when I’m desperate for it.

My next trip? I’m off to Chicago for the NFPW conference. The conference I can count as work, which is nice, but I’m also going to take the pre-tour architectural river cruise and I’m taking three days of vacation for the “Diners, Drive-ins and Dives” post-tour.

If you’re ready for a break, check out the NFPW conference and tours. I guarantee it will be a vacation worth planning.

Arriving at a Fixed Destination

Hank Stuever is all about fixed destinations.

His words from last evening’s New Mexico Press Women’s 60th anniversary Conference and Communications Awards Banquet have reached their fixed destination on this blog. I hope it’s a fitting destination.

Hank, an award-winning pop culture writer for the Washington Post’s Style section and a former newspaper reporter from Albuquerque noted that books, newspapers and movies at the theater are all fixed destinations and that these are “the things we are on the precipice of losing.”

He regaled the audience with stories from his early career in Albuquerque, fondly recalling chain link fences and cinder blocks. “I don’t know why I ever left,” he said drawing laughter from the audience.

But for him, “The more faded it gets the more beautiful it gets.”

He shared his love for storytelling and his need to share the stories of life, many of which are captured in his books, Off Ramp and Tinsel. “That’s the most important thing we do as media professionals – we tell one another’s stories,” he said.

And that’s the problem with new media, Hank says. “Now we’re too busy telling ‘my’ story.”

He recalled a time at a campground where he and a photographer stayed for three days. Some Europeans asked him in a broken accent, “Who it is you are all the time with cameras writing down things.”

It was an apt question for a man who has a need to observe and get it down on paper.

And while Hank might bemoan the loss of record stores, newspapers or going to the movies, he’s not writing off new media. “We’re undergoing a Renaissance,” he said. “And we need to stop taking the Renaissance so personally.”

His advice for the new media? Leave a fresco – “some really lovely painting, some really good work.”

What will your fresco be?

Building NFPW’s Future

NFPW board members today were video stars, fashionistas and architects. They’re probably a bit tired, too, but that’s not going to stop any of them.

We took time to create a short video to welcome everyone to the 2010 NFPW Communications Conference in Chicago. Details, including speakers, pre-tours, post-tours and other highlights will be posted to the NFPW Web site.

A few members modeled NFPW logo wear – a great way to say, “I’m a proud NFPW member.” I’m writing my blog wearing my purple NFPW polo shirt.

And we drew the blueprints for the future of NFPW. What does that future look like? Here are some highlights:

1)       Retention: We have many members who have not renewed. We don’t know if it’s the economy or if they are like many of us – they are so busy they forgot to do so. So each board member will be calling a group in the next week. If you haven’t renewed, please do so. We don’t want to lose you. And if there is something we can do to improve membership, let us know.

2)      Web site: We’ve got a great start to the site, but there is so much more we can do. We’re going to improve the navigability of it. We’re going to only use photos of our members and professionals who have spoken to us – no more stock photography. We’ll make it easy to connect by including links to our Facebook and Linkedin pages.  We’re adding an online calendar. We’ll include links to all affiliate Web sites. Our goal is to unveil a new and improved Web site in September.

3)      Social media: We’re going to create a Facebook Fan page so it will be easier for all of us to share and keep the messages under the NFPW umbrella. We’ve changed Linkedin so that only members can join our group – no more postings from individuals trying to sell you something.

4)      Members Directory: We’re exploring how to enhance the directory. For a nominal fee, members will be able to post URLs to their Web sites, blogs, Linkedin profiles. They’ll be able to include a PDF of their resume or a photo of themselves of their book cover. It’s all about personal branding. This is under development and we expect to be able to unveil it by conference.

5)      Contest Review: We’ve taken a look at the categories. In some areas, we streamlined. We also added categories to reflect the changing communications landscape.

I can’t begin to cover everything we achieved these past two days so I touched on the highlights. I’ll continue to share snippets in upcoming blogs and through the monthly e-letter.

I’d like to take this moment and thank each board member for their active participation and for building NFPW’s future.