Speed Networking

Last night I attended my first Speed Networking event. It was JCI Portsmouth’s first  event of the year and it was amazing!
We had around 30 people participating and had a great mix of businesses.
I met people from many diverse sectors; estate agents and florists, coaches and trainers, a plasterer, marketing and PR people, IT and computer support, finance and accountancy. I’m sure I’ve missed some from this list too.

After a brief introduction from Jasmine, JCI Portsmouth president for 2012, we got to work. Everyone had a one minute ‘pitch’ to the person opposite and a chance to exchange business cards before moving on to meet the next participant. At the end of the evening, everyone should have been able to speak with everyone else and get to know them better.

Time flew by in a flurry of activity, chatting and swapping contacts and sharing stories. The end of the evening seemed to come to soon. With such a great atmosphere, many people stayed to chat and grab a drink from the hotel bar. This is where you can really begin to bond with those people you’ve only met for the first time that evening. A great time was had by all – and the buffet and coffee really went down well.

As part of the team who arranged the event I must say a big ‘well done’ to Jasmine for her first event as President. I hope that everyone attending had as much fun as I did!

I’m looking forward to our upcoming events too.

President’s diary

Happy (belated) New Year! I can believe we are already just into February! As President of JCI Portsmouth in 2012, I wanted to use this blog as my own JCI Diary, so everyone can see what I have been up, the amazing experiences that being part of JCI has given me and a good way to keep up-to-date about what’s happening in your local chamber.

So, what have I been doing in my first month as President? PAPERWORK! PAPERWORK! PAPERWORK!

I have being using my time in January to plan and prepare for what will hopefully be a brilliant year in JCI Portsmouth. 2011 ended on such a high, with JCI Portsmouth winning the JCI UK Award for Most Outstanding Programme and Paul Thwaite our Immediate Past President being made a Senator, so I am keen to continue the success of 2011 right the way through 2012!

I certainly have some big shoes to fill, as Paul has done a fantastic job starting and growing the JCI Portsmouth group and I can only hope to do as well as he has done in his Presidency.

So for me, January has involved lots of planning. I have created a business plan, financial budget and goals for JCI Portsmouth in 2012, as well as planning the Programme of Events for 2012. I am also currently in the process of trying to negotiate a deal with a potential new venue, which should make all our events more professional and convenient for our members to attend. Please check out the 2012 calendar now and put the all the meeting dates in your diaries! This year’s Events Programme is not to be missed!!

http://www.jciportsmouth.org.uk/diary.php

Finally, I have been preparing for the JCI UK Inspiration Day in Birmingham on Saturday 28^th January. JCI UK events are an amazing experience for anyone who wants to see the enthusiasm and excitement that happens when local JCI Chambers come together to form a national community. If you want to be inspired to achieve your best in 2012, Inspiration Day is for you.

My next few weeks will now be taken up with  planning our first JCI Portsmouth event for 2012, which is going to be Speed Networking on Thursday 16th February. This event is for any young professionals looking to build business contacts in the local area. I can’t wait to get the final details out on the website soon, so you can all start booking on, so keep an eye on the Events Calendar!

Kindest Regards

Jasmine Blofield

President, JCI Portsmouth

http://www.jciportsmouth.org.uk/

I believe in…

What I believe in has always held a very prominent position and level of importance in my life, ever more so recently. In the past year or so I have had many new experiences, some good, some bad, but all were welcome and each has taught me something valuable that will forever be with me and stored away as a small piece of wisdom waiting to guide me again at some point in the future.

No matter the outcome of decisions, they all add to our store of wisdom if we are prepared to learn from them and move on to bigger and better things. Avoiding making a decision about that which we know we must only leads to regression, perhaps depression and poor mental health. It is immature and childlike.

On many occasions we know a decision is required but we put it off. A change in the status quo is needed or an adjustment to a habit. It will not just go away on its own if ignored. When we confront the issue and finally make the decision, the constructive decision, win/win, know that we have taken a step along the maturity continuum and grown our own spirit with our passion re-ignited.

For many years I could not put this process into words, it was happening on an unconscious level and there was no way I could explain it. I have come to believe on a conscious level that growth of the human spirit is the most rewarding and at the same time most challenging phenomenon in existence. The sun may shine brilliantly for a billion years, but in the split second where psychological growth occurs the beauty of a entirely new internal universe comes into existence, an amazing act of creation.

There are many arenas in life where this difficult but ultimately satisfying process occurs. I am glad to say that, in my case at least, JCI is one of them. And I thank you for that.

Someone Inspire Me..

If the inspired mind is not mine

then who inspires the inspired.

Does divine admiration cause the spark of innovation

motivating a mind to inspire.

 

Does the crazy fool, who follows fool one

know that he is crazy two

or is it fool number two, who will fool you

and cause you to be a fool too?

 

By leading myself, I can create wealth

in mine own as well as your mind,

and that in the end is what i contend

to be why I this message send!

?

Passion

In this social network we all now live in, a company can no longer rely on its website to attract new customers.  We have to be much more proactive in our thinking and change the way in which we communicate and work.

At JCI Inspiration day, we learned the importance of blogging and how it can be the catalyst to the success of a company’s outbound marketing strategy.  We also learned that blogging, along with the use of many other types of social media outlets, is the best way to be heard and seen.

JCI Portsmouth is blogging for two reasons.  We’ll be honest and say that we want to grow our presence on the web and for more people to know about us and join us.  But we also love the idea of talking about the stuff that we really enjoy and feel passionate about

Join.  Learn.  Develop.  Grow.  Enjoy.

Subscribe to this blog and learn what we’re doing and how you could get involved.

One last thing, we are active on Facebook so why note like the page and follow us?

We are also active on Twitter and LinkedIn.

JCI Presenter

I’ve been a member of JCI for a whole two weeks now and I’ve just attended my very first national event.  It was a busy weekend in Reading. Inspiration Day was on Saturday and I participated in the JCI presenter course the following day.

Or perhaps I should say ‘was subjected to’ the Presenter course, a lesson in stepping out of your comfort zone. Joking aside it was a fun event (albeit a little scary) and I learnt a lot!.
Under the care of our trainers Adam, Simon and Solveig, we studied the types of presentation that we may encounter and we learnt to understand audiences and their needs. We also examined presentation content and effective delivery of the final message.
By the end of the day our group of 20 JCI students prepared and delivered individual presentations with considerable style, confidence and quality.

On a personal note, it was amazing to see everyone develop throughout the day and to complete the course having gained valuable skills and confidence by taking part and doing something new. A brilliant way to learn, build confidence and get to know a few more JCI people. Well done everyone!

Hampshire Chamber of Commerce Promoting JCIPortsmouth

This is a quick one, the Hampshire Chamber of Commerce and JCI Portsmouth have arranged a membership deal for Hampshire Chamber member employees. Any HCC member employee wishing to join JCI Portsmouth can now receive a 10% discount on the subscription fee. http://www.hampshirechamber.co.uk/index.php?content=chamber_discounts_offers

Already a bargain the new cost is just £7.20 a month.

If your looking to build your network, learn and apply leadership skills and team working, make great friends and receive great training then JCI is for you.