July 2011
The Getaway: The Must Have Business Accessory
Submitted by Valerie Donati on Wed, 07/06/2011 - 10:18
It's a holiday weekend in the US and that means it's time for a getaway. And that means get outta town, or else! Or else what? Or else you may lose your mind.
Ok, I'm being dramatic, but I am in public relations. Basically, getting away (which can also mean just doing a "staycation") is mandatory for the business person, or just any person that works. Without a "time out" you can't see clearly, ideas dry up, resentment sets in and the reason you do what you do loses its meaning. Too bad America thrives on a work ethic that usually doesn't include real vacations and/or long weekend breaks. But if you don't work here you don't get paid. Though our taxes are high and our country is in debt, we don't have the kind of social system that picks you up when you're down (but that's a political blog).
So, my getaway included a long weekend with my friend and her young son. My husband is across the pond, so not available for fun. We went to a friend's cabin and within the first 30 minutes we got locked out (I knocked out the screen and climbed in through the window), I almost pushed my friend's son into a pond under the guise of saving him and we both discovered we had hours of work to do, after all. But hey, it's a getaway! Try it. You'll like it.
Travel Savvy: Simple Tips To Save Your Sanity
Submitted by Valerie Donati on Wed, 07/13/2011 - 15:47
As I've been traveling a ton lately, I thought I'd share my husband's take on traveling - he's also a world traveler. This piece was first published on my website 24/Savvy.com:
The first axiom of savvy travel is Don’t - but if you must the journey could be made a little less irritating if you do these simple things, and the more so if the flight lasts longer than 8 hours.
Arrive early at the airport so that stress is kept to a minimum. Travel has its own stresses - why exacerbate them.
Abuse not least you be abused.
Once on board, go ahead, knock yourself out with sleeping tablets, unless your blood is coagulation prone or your medic says you might die. Also watch for DVT, in fact any acronyms ending in D.
Avoid wine (with the exception of Penfolds Grange), actually don’t drink any alcohol, and don’t eat bread or anything that digests two days later. No coffee, although the quality on airlines is deterrent enough, and no tea. Drink lots of water and in this way you will avoid dehydration and DVT, as you’ll be up and down relieving yourself with enforced but healthy regularity.
And remember an airplane is not a runway – for sartorial touchdowns. Better to wear something comfortable and slightly unappealing (not pyjamas please) than crush your ‘labels.’ Black is a good color, as it is just a good color. But it also makes you look severe enough to assist in avoidance of mindless conversations with other passengers who have failed to heed any of my sage advice.
Buckle up, happy travels and arrive better looking, feeling better than those who thought long flights were a perfect excuse for the ingestion of questionable food, cheap wine and sleepless nights. Travel savvy, savvy ones.
Travel Savvy: Lighten Up
Submitted by Valerie Donati on Wed, 07/13/2011 - 15:52 
So, one of the biggest deals about travel is what not to take with you - not what to take, what not to take. You have to remember that whatever you take with you has this strange and unnerving capacity of increasing in weight the longer the trip. You start off with a spring in your step and end up with dragging your heels (especially when they are in the suitcase girls).
Here are a couple ‘no no's’ for your consideration. Big books that end up weighing the weight of the tree they have been made from. Trouble is I like books. There are solutions, but more of that later. More than one suit for a guy will weigh you down, especially if it is anything less than summer weight cool wool. And how many shoes can you wear? (This is rhetorical by the way.) But the real shoulder breaker is the personal computer. It alone gives you more aches and pains than almost anything else. Something heavyish always becomes hellish to carry, whether slung, shouldered, or pulled.
Enter Kindle and then even better iPad, although the merits are argued –fiercely. Whoever wins the ‘I am best contest’ matters little, as having an iPad or Kindle to travel with will cut down on your physiotherapist’s bill. Strains, aches and shoulder surgery will become a thing of the past.
Lighten up and Bon Voyage.
TECHNOLOGY: It Takes Time
Submitted by Valerie Donati on Fri, 07/22/2011 - 09:10
So, I have followed my husband to London and am now working remote. A pleasure, I can tell you. Well, it is and it isn't.
Technology makes it possible in way never dreamed of even 10 short years ago. And that's a good thing. But while technology can help it can also hurt. Hurt your poor little mind (or at least mine) and hurt your poor little ego. Because no matter how adept you are, or think you are, there is so much more to know and really, there aren't enough hours in the day to get it all done.
For instance, while writing this very blog I accidentally hit the "send" button. Bye bye email, hello embarrassing truncated message. Oh well... As I navigate new technology there is one overriding message that is coming through loud and clear – GO SLOW. Yep, that's right. The technology that is there to make it easy needs a little love and care. It needs time, and it will make you make time, even if you don't want to.
The moral of this new era story: No matter how much we try to speed our world up it keeps slowing us down. And that may not be a bad thing!
The Client Is Always Right: Really?
Submitted by Valerie Donati on Thu, 07/28/2011 - 09:45 
Last week we had a beauty event for a new client. The client is someone we personally respect and we believe her products are a category changer. Truly.
She came to us a little late in the game to pull off an editor event – to meet her deadline for stories, but we are the "can do" team and so we agreed to make it happen. But is that a good idea? We almost always make good on these types of commitments. Feels miraculous at times, but miracles do happen. Then again, is it a good idea to promise the impossible? I'm beginning to think that it’s not. It sets the agency up for a scramble, it puts the client on a wild ride and sometimes it just doesn't come together. Recipe for potential disaster. But what is it about the challenge that sets us to "go for it anyway?" I think it's the same crazy thing that got us in this business in the first place: the thrill of the chase. So looks like we'll say yes, again. Of course we will!!