Best Year Yet

Here’s wishing us all the Best Year Yet in 2014.  Who could possibly object to this sentiment?  Yet to be the best year yet, there are some things you and Entrusted Legacy needs to do to be successful.  So taking the guidance of Jinny Ditzler who wrote the book, Best Year Yet, here is what we plan to do.  Check it out and see if there is anything you can apply to yourself.

Step one is to set goals:  Of course we all know that setting goals, actually writing them down, and referring to them regularly, helps to make those goals real and something you are focused on.  Setting goals allows us to “live our lives in a way that will show what really matter to us and that we are serious about accomplishing our goals.”  For 2014, Entrusted Legacy has goals to serve 30 new afterschool clients and connect them with online training 24/7/365 and 90 hours of face-to-face training spread across these 30 programs.  To accomplish this goal we have fund development and fundraising plans to ensure our success.

Once the goals are set, Ditzler says that to be successful you need to “prepare the space for the goals to flourish.”  This makes sense, so Entrusted Legacy is beginning that process by reminding ourselves of our cause, the work we do and why that work is so important for the future of youth and ultimately our country.  We believe that youth need positive role models and mentors. We believe that educating adults who work with youth will make a difference, and we believe that we can magnify that difference through the work we do to bring them training and staff development.  We believe everyone can be or support a positive role model and mentor who works with youth.  To that end, Entrusted Legacy has committed to work closely with sixteen new funders and investors who are willing to support the Entrusted Legacy Mission and Vision.

Ditzler also reminds us, ““Don’t let the weeds grow around your dreams.  Find the courage to act and face the big challenges and make your dreams come true.  Rely on your inner strength, step back from the busyness of life and pay attention to what really matters.”  She goes on to say we should all take responsibility for accomplishing our goals and simply step up and like Nike, “Just do it!”  So are taking that advice and stepping up our game.

At Entrusted Legacy we’re eager to make a difference.  Please join us and help us change the lives of youth for the better.  We can all remember that key person in our life that believed in us and helped us to be our best selves.  We are looking to support those adults.  Entrust your legacy with us and invest with us.  Contact us at www.entrustedlegacy.org or if you need more information, send your contact information to support@entrustedlegacy.org.  

Are You A Leader?

Why in the world would anyone want to be a leader?  Don’t we have enough leaders?  Don’t we have enough people “throwing their weight around?”  Don’t we have enough people who have assumed roles of responsibility and power?  I guess the answer to those questions depends upon your definition of a leader.

What is a leader?  There are a wide variety of definitions, but I like the one provided by F. John Rey who says, “A leader is a person who has a vision, a drive and a commitment to achieve that vision, and the skills to make it happen.”  "What Is A Leader"   For me, this hits the nail right on the head.  I believe it’s not enough to have a vision.  You must have the drive and commitment as well as the skills to make it happen.  In other words, the proof is in the pudding, so to speak.  Without results, your vision is just a dream.  Whether your vision is for personal success or one that is focused on the success of others, the best way to ensure that success is to see to it that everyone has an opportunity to recognize their unique potential.  John Dunne was right when he said, “No man is an island entire of itself, every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the whole.”  We are all in this together.

Here at Entrusted Legacy our vision is that every youth, no matter who he or she is, no matter what the circumstance of his or her birth, will have the positive role model and mentor needed to act as a guide and support system.  We believe that with the right role model and mentor, every youth can reach his or her full possibilities and will assume a rightful place of leadership for the next generation. 

We are committed to making this vision a reality, but to do so we need your help.  We believe that your leadership today will pave the way for the leaders of tomorrow, and with a nation full of leaders—people with a vision, the drive, commitment, and skills to make it happen, we are on a trajectory for sustained success as citizens of this country and the world.  Find out how you can help.  Visit our website at www.entrustedlegacy.org