#ThePostcardProject

#ThPPjpeg.jpeg

On November 6th, I posted a blog titled Dear Us.

I wrote it as a way of passing the time as the election results were still coming in. I knew that regardless of the outcome, there is serious work to be done if we are to redeem our democracy. And yes, it is work to be done by our elected officials, but if there is any hope of success, it is work that must be done by all of us.

In that blog I imagined sending a handwritten postcard to every member of Congress, calling on them to stop blaming those across the proverbial aisle and start working together for the common good. Because that is what I want them to do. I believe the majority of Americans want them to do that too.

Walking down our road the next morning my husband said, “Mol, we should do it. We should handwrite postcards to all 535 members of Congress. I also think you should do something with this idea.”

And with those words, #ThePostcardProject was born.

The idea is to get as many people as possible, from all across the country and the political spectrum to send a clear message to Congress. Stop blaming each other and start working together to build a country that works for all of us. Period.

Today I am inviting you to not only join me in my efforts, but to invite as many others as you can to join in as well. Ask friends. Ask family. Ask neighbors and co-workers, teachers and students, athletic teams and faith communities. Ask any and everyone you can.

The time to come together as a country is now, and #ThePostcardProject is one way to start.

Will you join me?

Front-Loading

I’m not a professional project manager by any standard, unless planning and pulling off a few exceptional weddings and an epic 70th birthday party count. But one thing I know for sure is that any project goes better when it is front-loaded.

The concept is often associated with large-scale industrial projects. During the front-end phase important milestones are set, and changes can be incorporated early on, which while requiring an investment in time, money, and effort in the beginning, pale in comparison to the cost to make changes and fix mistakes later on.

What is true of large-scale industrial projects is true of small personal ones as well. Anything from planting a garden, preparing for a new baby, organizing a garage, finding a new job, starting a side-gig, training for a challenging backpacking trip, to planning a bucket-list vacation will benefit from front-loading. Not only does putting in the time early on to plan for what you hope for in the end help bring your vision to life, what it saves in emotional energy is almost impossible to quantify.

The free-floating anxiety that can overwhelm us when we haven’t taken the time to get it out of our heads and down “on paper” can drown our enthusiasm for even the most exciting project faster than you can say “Gantt Chart”. Front-loading will keep us afloat.

Photo: Startup Stock Photo on Pexels.com

Photo: Startup Stock Photo on Pexels.com