Get A Room!

Well, I don’t mean like that. It’s a contest! For 5 lucky folks in the Metro Atlanta area, I’m giving away five 2-hour gift cards to ROAM.

If you feel you deserve one of these cards, post your comment here letting me know why you need to “get a room”. I will choose 5 lucky winners. The gift cards are valid for 2 free hours (and they’ll even throw in coffee service!). You must present the card to redeem. Not transferable or redeemable for cash. This contest will ONLY last until Monday, April 12 at noon (or until I have the five winners, whichever comes first).

In case you haven’t heard of them, Roam is the coolest place in Atlanta to go when you’re tired of conducting business in the local coffee shop. They offer small, medium and large meeting rooms to fit any need. They even have a cafe, a common area and free Wi-Fi. It’s the ultimate shared work space community where people “work, connect and grow”. So if you need to escape the home office or are tired of coming home smelling like coffee, try Roam. They are located in Alpharetta off Windward Parkway and North Point Parkway. Locations coming soon to Buckhead and Midtown!

If you have Comcast, be on the look out for their new commercial (I’m in it!).

Don’t forget to tell them Adrienne sent you. For more information about Roam, visit their website at http://www.roamatlanta.com.

 

What in THE Hell?

My sisters, my sisters.

OK, I watched the news this evening and they showed the young lady in this video in court today.  Can I say I was beyond pissed and saddened by this.

Apparently this happened a little while back.  I’m in Atlanta but never heard of this before today.  According to the news, this young lady harrassed an elderly woman on the train. I’ll get into that in a minute.  What really infuriated me is the fact that a) someone taped this nonsense, and b) NOBODY said or did anything.  I try so hard to be positive about our younger generation but they sometimes make it so damn hard.  The mother of this young woman said she is bi-polar.  SO WHAT!  Bi-polar.  So is that what we’re using as excuses these days?

It’s bad enough that sisters, Black Women are portrayed in such negative and disgusting light.  But it makes it worse when we put ourselves smack dead in the middle of the spotlight.  When are we going to start talking to our sisters and guide them and make them realize they need to respect themselves and others?  When are we going to shake some sense into these young women and help them understand that they alone can control how people perceive them, so they need to step their game up?  When are we going to start publicly denounce such behavior?

Whenever I see a young lady acting out, I try to talk to them. Sometimes they listen, sometimes they don’t.  But I would be remiss in my duties as an Empowered Black Woman if I didn’t step up.  We set the tone for our younger generation.  If we keep turning a blind eye to this nonsense and keep quiet while crap like I Love New York and Flavor of Love and the like continue to air, we are headed down a path of destruction.  My Black Women, we are better than this.  I hope to not see this crap again.

Til next time.

Adrienne Graham

 

Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers Workshop- Atlanta, GA- 11/15/08

Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers- The Modern Girl’s Guide to Fearless Networking

Let’s face it, this economy is on shaky ground.  As witnessed by the collapse of some of Wall Street’s powerhouse companies like Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns, we never know when our cushy job is in jeopardy.  If your company collapsed tomorrow, what would you do? Do you have a contingency plan like starting a business? Do you have a solid network of key decision makers who could help you in landing your next opportunity?  Chances are if you haven’t taken the time to build a strong network, you don’t have many allies who can help you in a pinch.

Go Ahead Talk, to Strangers, based on the book written by Adrienne Graham, gives you the foundations of becoming a fearless networker.  In this session, some of what you will learn includes:

• Branding yourself
• Build, communicate with and tap into your network
• Networking with top executives and key decision makers
• Making a memorable impression on the people you meet
• Positioning yourself as a subject matter expert and an asset
• Being a fearless networker
• Navigating and tapping into traditional and social networking
• Using networking to advance your career or build your business

Don’t miss this dynamic session that prepares you to become a powerful and empowered networker. Your real networking experience begins at this seminar. Adrienne Graham gives attendees a look into her own networking journey, shares her experiences and best advice on building your own network from a position of confidence and strength, and gets the audience involved in interactive networking exercises.

Date: November 15, 2008
Time: 11 AM- 2 PM
Location: TBA
Cost: $69
Register today:

Seating is limited and advanced registration is required.  Refreshments served. Drawings will be conducted for a $25 American Express Gift Check, a copy of the book Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers, and 1 free networking coaching session with Adrienne Graham.

Stay tuned- Since I can’t be in all cities at all times, this workshop will be coming to a webinar near you! Details to follow.

 

Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers Workshop- Atlanta, GA

Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers- The Modern Girl’s Guide to Fearless Networking

Let’s face it, this economy is on shaky ground.  As witnessed by the collapse of some of Wall Street’s powerhouse companies like Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns, we never know when our cushy job is in jeopardy.  If your company collapsed tomorrow, what would you do? Do you have a contingency plan like starting a business? Do you have a solid network of key decision makers who could help you in landing your next opportunity?  Chances are if you haven’t taken the time to build a strong network, you don’t have many allies who can help you in a pinch.

Go Ahead Talk, to Strangers, based on the book written by Adrienne Graham, gives you the foundations of becoming a fearless networker.  In this session, some of what you will learn includes:

• Branding yourself
• Build, communicate with and tap into your network
• Networking with top executives and key decision makers
• Making a memorable impression on the people you meet
• Positioning yourself as a subject matter expert and an asset
• Being a fearless networker
• Navigating and tapping into traditional and social networking
• Using networking to advance your career or build your business

Don’t miss this dynamic session that prepares you to become a powerful and empowered networker. Your real networking experience begins at this seminar. Adrienne Graham gives attendees a look into her own networking journey, shares her experiences and best advice on building your own network from a position of confidence and strength, and gets the audience involved in interactive networking exercises.

Date: November 15, 2008
Time: 11 AM- 2 PM
Location: TBA
Cost: $69
Register today: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=174975

Seating is limited and advanced registration is required.  Refreshments served. Drawings will be conducted for a $25 American Express Gift Check, a copy of the book Go Ahead, Talk to Strangers, and 1 free networking coaching session with Adrienne Graham.

 

Bank of America Gets It! Hallelujah!!

As I browsed the newspapers at my local Barnes & Noble, I had to do a double check and make sure I was reading what I thought I was reading. Right there, in the Atlanta Business Chronicle, on the front page, in big letters read: Bank of America Launches Telecommuting Program. I let out a hardly stifled “It’s about time!!!”.

If you’ve been reading my blog, you would know I am an advocate of remote work/telecommuting. Especially in a time when gas and cost of living prices are on the rise, I have been shouting to the roof top about the virtues of virtual work. Bank of America has heard the masses. The program is called “My Work” and it calls for employees to voluntarily stay at home to work. Yeah, like that’s going to be tough sell! It’s not for just any employee. The employee has to be qualified (as well they should) and not necessary to have face to face contact with clients (ie; Tellers, Back Office Operators, etc). (I have my opinions on that but I’ll share later). B of A employees participating in the program will be asked to forfeit their cubicle and office space. The program was initiated in 2004 but hadn’t received much emphasis until now. To date, 5,500 of their 157,000 employees are enrolled in the program and a majority of them were in the Charlotte market (where the company is headquartered). Well they’ve introduced it to the Atlanta market and as many as 1,000 employees were invited to participate in My Work but only 172 have elected to participate. Shame on the rest of them!

I hope, no I pray, that other employers will follow suit with B of A’s lead. Let’s not only look at the cost of living, but taking advantage of technology gives companies a clear advantage in this global economy. I have to give B of A a “Hues Seal of Approval”. Yes, they are still embroiled in the financial crisis threatening to cripple our economy. But implementing telework can work to their advantage to save them in the end. B of A’s stock may be garbage right now, but they are alright with me!

You can read the story here for more details.

Til Next Time,

Adrienne Graham