Passing Along Some Kindness: One Free Day of Me

The other day I came home from work and Mac, the man who cuts my grass, was working in my yard. I smiled and waved and asked how he was and he said “You know, I’ve been really blessed with work this year.  I’ve been really fortunate. So, all the work I’ve done for you this summer and fall is free.” I paused for a minute, surprised, and then said. “Thanks. I’ll take that and pass it on.” And then I forgot about it.

The next day I was killing time in a small shop near my son’s school waiting for pick-up time and was looking at some necklaces and admiring them out loud to the shopkeeper. She said: “Yes, those necklaces are fun. My daughter does a silent auction for a youth group and I always donate one of those. They are very popular.” I said: “My son’s youth group is doing a silent auction…” with no intention of trying to get her to give me anything, it was the farthest thing from my mind. I was just making conversation. But, before I could get the story out, she gave me a necklace for the silent auction. And then I forgot about it.

Until I woke up in the middle of the night last night and remembered. I do my fair share of volunteer community work: sit on boards, food pantries, etc. But here was an example of two people who had given me some thing that they ordinarily sell. Two days in a row. And I had promised to pass it on. So, I’m using our blog to offer some organization a free day of onsite consulting services and some follow-up time on the phone.

I’ve spent the last 13 years of my life being fortunate enough to work with an emerging technology and have been privileged to see the inner workings of some really phenomenal Web sites. I’ve learned a lot about what works and what doesn’t work. I have concluded that the way people work and collaborate around a Web site impacts the quality and effectiveness of the site itself.  So, I work with Web Teams to try and help them make right the way they work so the Web is better. I’ve built a decent reputation, a small business, and I am able to feed, educate, house, entertain, and clothe both myself and my son.

So here’s the deal:

You:

Send me your story. This is not a contest. I just need to know a little about you and your organization and understand what your problems are.  A page is enough. Remember, I don’t design Web sites or implement technology. I work with the people who work on Web sites to help them improve the way they manage the Web so that the site and their overall Web presence can be better, more effective. Look at what we do and make sure I’m the right fit for you and that you don’t need a really good information architect or technologist. I know a lot about those things but it's not my core expertise.

Me.

At my own expense, I’ll take a plane, train, or automobile to wherever you are and spend a day with you and your Web team trying to help you sort out your problems and offer some advice. We can talk on the phone some before and some after. I won’t promise a miracle but I will give you the benefit of my knowledge and experience in Web management.

And, I won’t put your name (or anyone else who sends me info) on a marketing list, sell your name to anyone, or subscribe you to our newsletter, and I won’t try to up-sell you any of our services. I’m just trying to honor my promise to Mac.

Right now, I’ve got my head down writing an outrageously long blog post (that's probably really a paper) about Web Team structure and then I’ll be on the road doing a couple of speaking events in early November. So, if you are interested, please send me some info by November 30^th and I will take a look and see who seems like a good fit.

Send your story to me via our contact form.

Thanks.