How are you imagineering social good?
As readers know, SocialButterfly is getting a refresh in January with a renewed mission to help bring out the SocialButterfly in you. Post a comment below sharing how you plan to mix passion + purpose for good in 2013. One lucky commenter will win Echoing Green’s book, Work on Purpose, for themselves and a $50 Razoo gift card to support a fellow SocialButterfly’s good work.
Whether you’re looking for a last minute Christmas gift or something to kick-off the New Year, these gifts can help inspire:
1. Knowledge to Help You Thrive
The Social Marketing Quarterly has been a staple social marketing resource as one of the only peer-reviewed published journals focused exclusively on the field of social marketing. With an individual subscription ($59), you receive a year’s worth of the printed journal and 24/7 online access.
3. Inspiration Role Modelled by Others*
Self described as a movement, Razoo helps individuals and nonprofits spur generosity. Already, Razoo has raised over $130 million for over 12,000 nonprofits through their Web, mobile and social fundraising tools combined with their community giving days and social good campaigns. Find projects to support and you’ll be inspired from the work others are doing and achieving, together. You can also gift the gift of giving.
One of the best books I’ve come across that combines social marketing concepts on changing behavior with innovative social media strategies is Stanford University’s Jennifer Aaker and Aaron Smith’s book, Dragonfly Effect. It is required reading for my American University students who find it an enjoyable read that energizes their thinking around how we can use our full toolbox to inspire change.
We all tell stories. Increasingly, we use a variety of media formats and communication channels to design, craft and share these stories. Admittedly, I haven’t yet read this book yet but it’s on the top of my list for 2013: Storytelling for User Experience. This books screams amo and gusto for the savvy SocialButterfly. According to the book’s website, “[the book] looks across the full spectrum of user experience design to discover when and how to use stories”. #yesplease
While championing social good, it’s important to have fun. Fun.’s album is Grammy-nominated and will help keep you light on your toes and quick on your feet. You might even start dancing.
The Happy Movie is an award-winning documentary that dives into positive psychology debunking happiness myths and giving insight into how our most valued emotion. I watched this with my husband, and it’s a great break from your normal routine and brings up questions you may not have visited in awhile. Questions that encourage you to explore what makes you truly happy, on deciphering needs from wants and how to help others be happy.
*To be transparent, I consulted to Razoo from 2011 to January 2012 as a contributing writer to their Inspiring Generosity blog. Razoo also donated this gift card in exchange for this link and gave me a $50 gift card as well. All other items are provided by yours truly.
When you read about events like that in Newtown, MA, it’s easy to loose faith and get discouraged. Don’t let the voice of doubt win. In those darkest of moments, know you matter. Know we are stronger when we pull together and work to understand our neighbors. Know you have a purpose and a light. Choose to let it shine.
We need you.
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Do you have 3 seconds? Please vote.
Truth is: This year, I debated whether or not to keep blogging. <gasp!> Blogging, to many, had become a business. Bloggers churned out posts to meet quotas and game search engines to increase rankings, chase money or achieve fame. That’s not me.
To me, blogging is about learning. It’s a way to learn about how to use all our tools to do good–with all the other kids in the sandbox. So I’ve decided to power on–but not without a few changes…
Given its been three years since SocialButterfly had a facelift, her time is due. Using the responsive Portfolio WordPress theme as a base, the amazing team at ArrowRoot Media (hat tip to founder Jaki Levy and designer Brielle Maxwell) has been working on a design refresh for SocialButterfly.
Inspired by the concept of a “portfolio career,” the theme seemed a perfect match given my new role at RTI International and as I enter my second year teaching at American University and continue to help grow the Rampy MS Research Foundation. Refresh goals include making the site faster and compatible across mobile devices while also giving it a more customized design.
Option A:
2012 has been quite a year of discovery for me–especially in examining the role of leadership in my life and what it means to truly be, act and serve as a leader. I’ll spare you the diatribe and instead offer you encouragement:
No matter the dark forces working to bring you down, hold you back or separate you from your true self, hold on to your values, dreams, integrity, curiosity and love for learning, people and this world. We need you and the people you’ll help inspire.
Thank you readers and friends who have stood by SocialButterfly, even when I haven’t been actively writing or responsive. May we continue to live, learn, and fly–together.
]]>My family and I (pictured above) have launched a nonprofit foundation to help advance multiple sclerosis research called the Rampy MS Research Foundation. Our vision? Find a cure for MS within our lifetime. You may recall how my family and I have been free-agent fundraisers for the multiple sclerosis community over the past six years. From all of our efforts combined, we’ve been a part of raising half a million dollars for MS.
Wanting to place a focus on MS research specifically, we’ve made our work official by achieving 501(c)3 status. Spearheaded by my dad, we have already created a partnership with the University of Arkansas’s Medical Sciences (UAMS) Department of Neurology and Multiple Sclerosis. Together, we are hosting an MS Research Symposium on January 24 where we will be kicking off 2012’s TRIFEST for MS happening this upcoming Labor Day in Bentonville, AR. Expect more updates on this as our Foundation continues to grow.
Read Our Family’s Story – Follow Our Chief Encouragement Officer on Twitter
One of my aspirations is to always be learning. To grow, you challenge yourself by embarking on new adventures–such as teaching the first-ever “Health Promotion & Social Media” course at American University.
If you want to follow along, I’m having the students read the latest edition of Kotler and Lee’s book, Social Marketing: Influencing Behaviors for Good and The Dragonfly Effect by Stanford Professor Jennifer Aaker. Students will also be partaking in a number of labs and projects to not only grow their knowledge but also learn by doing. Over the semester, I will work to share insights gained from this experience and questions raised on the role of social media in health promotion and behavior change. In other words, this blogger is back!
How are you spreading your wings in 2012?
By Scott Rampy: The word “social change” for me is intimidating. It implies that there has to be an attempt to resolve a social injustice, shortcoming or reversal of public opinion. For me, social change can be as simple as the inspiration that sits across from you at the dinner table. In my case that is Jo Rampy, my wife of 26 years. From a pure grass roots perspective, social change can be motivated by inspiration to inform others in an effort to spark a movement in a small way to solve a larger problem.
This is the case with the National MS Society. Multiple Sclerosis (aka many scars) affects nearly 400,000 people in the country and selfishly I’m focused on the one person, Jo, who deals with it everyday. She has been diagnosed with this disease for the past 7 years. MS attacks the myelin that surrounds our nerve endings in the brain that control our central nervous system. The damaged myelin forms areas of “sclerosis scars” that over time, affects ones ability to talk, see, feel, walk and concentrate.
Jo has been an athlete since the first day I met her, as she was running stadium stairs when I first noticed her. Since the diagnosis, she has maintained an active lifestyle just trading her running shoes to walking shoes. Jo walks 30-35 miles a week and regularly engages in health education to learn how to manage and live with MS. As a result of her commitment, I’ve taken the challenge to SWIM, BIKE and RUN so that someday people with MS can again.
For the past several months, I have been training for my first half iron-man in Branson, MO Sept. 19. This race is not only a tribute to the endurance and strength I observe in Jo everyday but a tribute to people that deal with MS on a daily basis… so I SWIM, I BIKE and I RUN so that they can again.
There is no cure for MS, but my goal is raise money so the research can continue to find a cure in our lifetime. My call to action is to have you join our cause and if motivated, donate $70–a dollar for each of the 70.2 miles traveled in my race. A half iron-man consists of a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike ride and a 13.1-mile run. At the writing of this post, we have raised $2,100 and have 106 members supporting the cause.
Please join, invite or donate and support a cause that will make a difference for someone dealing with MS.
Hope is not what we expect. It is a dream much bigger.
Along our journey, we met a number of people who know the greatness of hope. Meet:
How many of us have expectations? We make plans and stress if they don’t turn out right or question them when there’s a bump in the road. Those expectations fog the path. If we let go of what we expect, then we can prepare for something much bigger and greater…in our work, at home and in our lives.
What would have happened if Tita, Janet, Hugo and others held onto their own personal expectations? What wouldn’t have happened? This is what I learned in Guatemala—> Let go of your expectations. Something bigger is waiting…you just need hope by your side.
PS: More pictures coming soon!
]]>Thank YOU: For your support, encouragement, tweets, Facebook postings, emails, comments, donations and the overall LOVE you shared. This has been an amazing experience and is only going to get better. Soon, we will be headed to Guatemala where we will literally raise the roof–all 14 of them! I can’t wait to return and share with you the stories and pictures of what will be a demonstration of amazing love.
]]>The fundraising drive ends today at 12pm EST. Please consider donating. Spread the word.
Let’s work it out. This morning, If we reach the following milestones, will you join me in the following? If you do, let me know in the comments or tweet your status and add the hashtag #loveroofs.
$1600: Do 14 push-ups.
$1650: Do 14 sit-ups.
$1700: Do 14 lunges–on each leg!
$1800: Do 3 sets of 14 jumping jacks.
$1925: Do 3 sets of 14 squats.
$2000: Do another set of 14 push-ups and 14 sit-ups.
$2200: Take a 14 minute walk or run!
What do you say? Can we raise $610 dollars AND get a workout in the process? Let’s do it. You in? You might want to do a warm up–it’s going to be a big day!
flickr credit: ~ggvic~
]]>I don’t know about you–but music is uplifting, soothing and moving. On our travels and while working, we’re going to be singing and celebrating the work being done. What do you think should be our theme song? [Videos Below]
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawowi’ole
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHzTKplPw30
World by Five for Fighting
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JDY1KvoQYk
What a Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1Y2zdyRin8
Where is the Love? by Black Eyed Peas and Justin Timberlake
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WpYeekQkAdc&feature=fvst
]]>Friday morning, I checked-in with our fundraising efforts and just about fell out of my chair. An anonymous donor gave two big items–a large monetary donation ($1100) and a challenge. The challenge? “7 is a good number but is it possible to shoot for all 14?” Well, what do you say?
The cost for all 14 roofs in sum is $2200. To date, we’ve raised $1590 and achieved our initial goal of $1100, but could we blow this one out of the park? To reach $2200, we only have $610 left to go. Will you accept the challenge?
To donate, visit: http://www.crowdrise.com/loveroofs.
*And to the anonymous donor–thank you from the bottom of my heart for not just the donation, but also for the encouragement to push farther and do better.
]]>In my last post, I shared news about an upcoming trip to Guatemala my mom, my grandma and I are making alongside fellow changemakers. Part of this trip is working to raise funds to provide seven roofs for seven families in seven days, a total of $1100 ($157 per roof).
Over the next seven days, I also plan to answer seven questions based on things I learn during this process, insights you help me to discover, why I chose CrowdRise over other fudraising platforms, how fundraising relates to social marketing, the role of the free agent and any other items you may be curious about. I hope this seven-day adventure not only raises funds for those who need it–but also helps us grow as professionals.
So Sound Off: What questions do you have when it comes to fundraising change?
flickr credit: Travelin’ Librarian
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