Wednesday September 8th ~ 12:15 until 1:15
Getting the Money ~ with Pauline Shesnicky of Thunder Bay Ventures
~ How to get Funding?
~ What steps are involved in the process?
~ How can this work for you?
~ Join us at PARO for Coffee and Goodies and make a donation to support the Alzheimer Society of Thunder Bay with their annual Coffee Break ~ Everyone Welcome!~

Wednesday September 15th ~ 10am until Noon
Business Uses for MS Excel * with Christine Sikerbol
~ This is a hands-on computer workshop.  If you would like to bring your own laptop, please do, as space in the resource centre is limited.
* NOT AVAILABLE BY E-LEARNING PLATFORM

Wednesday September 15th ~ 12:15 until 1:15
The Good, The Bad and The What were you thinking? with Brenda McDougall and Suzanne Tighe
~ Have you ever read an add and wondered, "What were they thinking?"
~ Lean how to make the most of your marketing $$$
~ Avoid costly bloopers and blunders
~ Do it right the first time!

Wednesday September 22nd ~ 10:30am  until Noon
Record Keeping with Chrstine Sikerbol
~ What to do with paper that flows in and out of a business!
~ Filing mechanics and systems, record retention guidlines, bank statements
~ Cancelled cheques, accounta payable/receivable, chart of accounts, posting invoices/payments

Wednesday September 22nd ~ 12:15 until 1:15
Debt Freedom with Shirly DeWilde, Wayne Cerven and Maureen Nygard
~ Debt Freedom Financial helping to make choices in
~ Debt Management
~ Revenue Protection
~ Expense Control
~ Asset Management

Wednesday September 29th ~ 10:30am until Noon
Bookkeeping I with Christine Sikerbol
~ 3 categories of essential business tasks
~ Daily recording of transactions
~ Cash Receipts (A/R)
~ Cash Dispursements (A/P)
~ Bank Reconciliations

Wednesday September 29th ~ 12:15 until 1:15
Labour Market Information with Adrienne Serreao of Service Canada
~ Job Seekers, careers in tranistions, or potential employers, this workshop will provide you with 
~ Valuable resources
~ What's hot and what's not in the local labour market
~ What can you do to prepare

To register for any of the workshops, register by emailing placement@paro.ca. Indicate which Contact North location you wish to attend. No fee to participate!

Congratulations! You’ve been honoured with the CEO of the Year award. Your household and family are running like a well-oiled machine.

But we know it’s lonely at the top (wearing all those different hats) and sometimes overwhelming. After all, you were in the running for the ‘Women Who Do Too Much’ Award too!

Every good CEO knows there are a few keys to success, and so in honour of your achievements, we got some tips to start the new year off right from Allison Talacko, founder of Mainstay Coaches (and mom to Amie) and Lindsay Sukornyk, founder of North Star Coaches (and mom to Raine and another on the way). 

#1: Don’t Lessen Your Goals, Increase Your Support by Building an A-Team
Define all the areas in your life that require your time (and be realistic). Include housework, scheduling kids’ programs, social time and career obligations (just to name a few). Think about the jobs that you want to do and the ones you would rather delegate. If you know who is on your team—family members, in-laws, friends and babysitters—decide which tasks are appropriate for them. Your children will take pride in unloading the dishwasher, setting the table or feeding the dog. Trust that your team players are capable and remember that raising self-sufficient adults is one of your key priorities. Critical CEO tip: Remember to be patient if the job is not done your way!

#2: Ask for 100% of What You Want
Address your A-team with requests, not complaints. Ask for what you want and be specific to each member. We often assume that our team members are purposely not helping out, or don’t want to when in reality, we may not have clearly asked for what we need. Language is the key—try “I would so appreciate it if you could carry up the clean laundry for me” vs. “You never do anything around the house.”

#3: Measure the Results
Any good CEO measures results and holds people accountable. Periodically check in with yourself and your team to see how you’re doing. Give yourself a score between 1 and 10 on how you’re doing in all the aspects of your life (career, relationships, finances, health and fitness, fun, contribution). This way you can catch any areas that are slipping before they become a crisis. Adjust your strategy and keep tweaking, as you strive for success. 

#4: Savour the Moment
One of the best ways to make more time is to take it. Stop. Take a moment to savour what’s going on around you. Notice how proud your children are when they are engaged in purposeful activities. Take a second to appreciate what’s working. 

#5: Be a Role Model
Consider the example you are setting for your children. You have to model the behaviours you want to see passed on. When you feel more supported and less strung out, naturally you will be at ease and more fun to be with. Your children will mirror your positive attitude and will learn to ask for support when they are “doing to much” and learn to distribute their load—just like mom! If this means taking a little time off for mom to recharge, then learn that it is OK to remove yourself from the equation once in a while.

#6: Celebrate your Successes
When you notice things are working well, acknowledge the success of your team with a celebratory dinner out or game night. The best way to motivate a team is to reward the positive behaviours you want to see repeated. Most importantly, don’t forget to recognize your own success and regularly give yourself a big pat on the back. You’re doing a great job—keep it up!

On behalf of your A-team (who did you think nominated you?), congratulations on being the best mom you can be. Now start thinking about increasing their list of responsibilities. (Remember that mess the dog made in the backyard yesterday?)

Savvy moms advice—your collective wisdom, one could say—from the savvy readers of savvymom.ca

More On Mittens
Buy two or three of the same pair of mittens. That way you are never searching for the matching one to make a pair.
Lorraine Lower, Calgary, AB

On Control (or Lack Thereof)
The sooner you get used to the idea that being in control is an illusion once you are a mother, the happier everyone will be.
Jennifer Scott, Toronto, ON

On Backpack Storage Solutions
Use two empty chip tubes in kid’s backpacks—one to store artwork and notes from school and the other in which to keep extra socks and gloves so there is always a dry pair ready. Decorate the tubes as a craft activity. Great way to recycle those plastic chip tubes.
Cathy Cramer, Morden, MB

On the Joy of Motherhood/On Your Influential Role
Little things have big meanings so smile often.
Jody Monteiro, Vancouver, BC

On Snack Duty
Stash snacks wherever you can (car, purse, stroller). Inevitably as soon as you leave the house, your kids are hungry.
Patrice Bellerose, Gatineau, QC

On Choices
The choices you allow your children to make are not about things like what time they go to bed but rather what colour pajamas they wear (you are the adult after all).
Karen Lang, Toronto, ON

On Cozying Baby
When feeding an infant, place a receiving blanket on your chair before you sit down. Then you have a warm blanket to place under/on baby when you put him back in the crib.
Carol McNutt, Owen Sound, ON

On Remembering Everything You Need to Take with You
Set up a “take to the car basket”. Leave it by the door and place EVERYTHING that needs to be taken out the door (e.g. lunches, mail, gifts, and snacks) in it. When it’s time to go, just take the basket and run!
Ann Raymond, Toronto, ON

On Gifts
Up to about age seven, kids are too young to remember every gift they got for their birthday or Christmas so stash half of them away for a rainy day. Voila—new toy!
Corinne Langford, Calgary, AB

On Friendships
Never fall out with other moms over our kids’ battles. Our kids will be back to being the best of friends the next day and we might not be able to forget our battles as well.
Andrea Sadgrove, Milton, ON

Wiser words were never spoken. Thank you for sharing with us.

source savvymom.ca