Archive for the ‘Editorial Thoughts’ Category

As the Year Draws to an End

Tuesday, June 7th, 2016

rsz_colorful-1220769_1280No, you don’t need to check your calendar or the weather. It isn’t December, and it certainly isn’t cold outside. In fact, the weather is perfect to sit on my porch or relax in my hammock. Regardless, from my perspective June evokes a sense of finality. It’s this interesting contradiction of blooming and ending. What I see outside my office window doesn’t necessarily align with events on the calendar.

When you’re a kid, the school year ends in June (at least in New Hampshire). You’ve completed a grade level and now have seemingly endless weeks of summer fun stretching in front of you. Post-college most people move into careers that don’t operate around a school year schedule, but my first career was as a teacher, so I still had a sense of year end in June. After a year of watching my students bloom, it was time to recharge and modify curriculum before the next group began. Leaving education to build PeKu, I had thought the feeling of year end might dissipate, but it really hasn’t.

PeKu is a perpetual publishing machine, which means no more summer break for me or my team. However, there are factors both business and personal, which keep this sensation of year end in June alive. PeKu (or Wasabi Media Group, as it was then called) launched in July 2008. So, for both sentimental and analytical reasons, June does mark the end of the year. Additionally, I’m a mom, so the rhythm of the day changes in June, as the kids go from catching the bus/driving to school early in the morning to rolling out of bed in time to hang out with friends/go to work.

This year, my younger child graduates from high school, giving this June has an even stronger sense of finality. She will head to college at the end of summer, and that will mark the end of school-aged children for me.

As another year of school and PeKu draw to a close, I look outside my office window and see our peonies in full bloom. I am reminded that it has been a good year and another one is about to begin.

Traveling, Grilling, and Mother’s Day

Monday, May 9th, 2016

EY_May-HighlightsI took a quick peek at this month’s editorial calendar before writing this post. Yes, I am the person who creates this calendar, but for a number of reasons I didn’t necessarily have all of the topics at the ready. First, I created this calendar in late March/early April. My mind currently is focusing on finishing June and starting July. Second, with the two hats I wear, there’s a lot more data to store. I just finishing reviewing student activity at the WV Academy, so I have a jumble of students and assignments on my mind. Third, I am a double check sort of person.

So, as I looked at topics for our publications, I was interested to see the similarity between PeKu’s calendar and my life. At Your Parenting Info, we will be focusing on flying with children of all ages this week. While I haven’t been flying with children, I have been doing more flying than usual lately. I’ve been to Phoenix for work and Denver to visit my son, among other trips. This fall, more than likely, I will be flying on a monthly basis.

At Think Tasty we have chosen grilling as the recipe theme for three of the weeks in May. This is not a typical way for me to cook, but with time alone on a beautiful weekend afternoon, I spent some time making my dinner on the barbecue. I still am not a huge fan of grilling, as the nature of charcoal grilling can be unpredictable, but I did enjoy being outside and sipping a cold drink while I made my dinner.

Finally, yesterday was Mother’s Day albeit a different Mother’s Day but probably a hint of what is to come. My son was away at school, like last year. My daughter had prom this weekend, so she wasn’t home until late morning. However, although it didn’t start with a typical breakfast in bed, it was a wonderful day. There was a delicious lunch made by my daughter, as well as nice gifts chosen by the two of them.

Although not planned, the mirroring of my life and the editorial calendar was reaffirming. My goal at PeKu is to inform, engage, and inspire. If my life is aligned with the themes of our content, I am certain the same must be true for others in our audience. Here’s to inspiring our readers throughout the month of May!

The Surprises of Weather and Work

Monday, April 4th, 2016

EY_April-HighlightsAs I sit at the desk in my home office on this fine April morning, I pause to glance outside my window and see. . .

SNOW

Yes, ignore the image above with spring colors and blades of green grass. As I look outside my lawn is slowly being coated in snow, and according to the meteorologist we could gather up to six inches. Ah, yes, spring in New Hampshire. It’s not that I didn’t expect the snow. They’ve been forecasting it for days. It’s just hard to accept when Friday was sunny with temperatures near 70. Of course, I’ve lived here long enough to know that the boots don’t get put away for several more weeks. So, for now the closet is filled with shoes of all seasons.

In my role as the Editor-in-Chief, there are similar surprises. I create the editorial calendar, so I know the general topics for each week’s assignments. For example, this week Holidays Helper will be filled with ideas for a tea party birthday celebration. However, what I don’t know, until the assignments are submitted, is exactly how the columnist will write about this celebration. (As editor, I got to read the articles last week. As the reader, they’ll be available to you starting tomorrow.)

Thus, every week I have the pleasant surprise of reading multiple articles from my team of columnists. And every week I am amazed and delighted by their attention to detail, insightfulness, and writing skills. Each writer puts great thought and effort into the articles, for which I am so pleased to publish.

As we start this first full week of April, I hope you take the time to read a few of our articles. I’m hoping that you will be inspired and engaged by my team’s advice, ideas, and more!

Wearing Another Hat

Monday, February 1st, 2016

We all wear multiple hats, as there are many facets to our lives. My titles over the past few years have included: CEO of PeKu, mom, wife, and president of my town’s Friends of the Library group, among others. However, as of last week, I have held another title, which today is being officially announced. I am Dean of Instruction for the Wasabi Ventures Academy.

Before I get into the exciting details of this new role, I want to start by explaining that this new title will not have any effect on PeKu. Over the last 7-1/2 years I have worked full-time at PeKu, through expansions and reductions. At this time, PeKu is running nicely as a three publication company. However, with its decrease in size, my role doesn’t require nearly as much time. Never mind that I have a team of writers that is so strong, they make the workload even lighter.

So, PeKu will continue to publish terrific new articles weekly on Holidays Helper, Your Parenting Info, and Think Tasty. We’ll be active in our social media channels. (You do follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn, right?) The only change will be in my schedule, which won’t affect our readers.

For those who are curious, my new role will involve oversight of most of the academy. The Wasabi Ventures Academy (WVA) has undergone a transformation in the past few months, from a series of courses offered at certain times of the year to an online, self-serve, self-paced curriculum.

In the coming weeks, I will be making tweaks to the curriculum, working with our marketing and operations team to get everything in place, and, finally, relaunching the academy. I also will be the voice of many academy events, so don’t be surprised to see me in a WVA hat.

Of course, my PeKu hat will be nearby. I’ve got what it takes to wear both.

Wrapping, Wrapping, Wrapping

Monday, December 21st, 2015

gift wrapI spent this past weekend hanging out at home. My husband has been hit hard with a cold/cough/sinus illness that has left him tired. So, we spent a good amount of time watching Christmas movies, reading, and generally lounging. My one goal was to wrap all of our Christmas presents. On Sunday afternoon we assembled wrapping supplies, put on some Christmas music, and started to wrap. However, after wrapping just a few, I decided to call it quits.

I’m not sure why, but I felt uninspired, that I simply was trying to rush through the job. I’m not one whose packages look like works of art, but yesterday I simply felt like it was an item to be checked off. So, we left most of the presents unwrapped. Thankfully for us we have extra time, as we won’t celebrate Christmas until December 29th. Maybe knowing that we had over a week had me feeling less than joyous.

This morning as I reviewed my to-do list, I realized that this would be my final Editorially Yours column for 2015. With PeKu on vacation next week I more than likely won’t post an editorial column. I definitely will have other PeKu tasks, but this column won’t be one of them. So, today’s column should be a wrap-up. However, just like my presents, I don’t feel much like wrapping up 2015.

It’s been a year of challenges and changes at PeKu. We have made a number of reductions throughout the year, but at the same time we have refined our voice. Yes, PeKu may be smaller, but we are using that to our advantage. Maybe the term for what we have done should be stream-lined.

Although I’m proud of the voice and direction we’ve found, I also feel the loss of team and publications. It’s a bittersweet sensation. However, I am an optimist, and so, I look forward to 2016, seeing what is next for PeKu.

I wish all of you a merry Christmas and a happy new year. See you in 2016!

Gratitude- A Way of Thinking

Monday, November 23rd, 2015

thank-you-textAs I prepared my thoughts for today’s column, I reviewed columns from Novembers past. There was one continual theme- gratitude. Obviously, Thanksgiving brings to mind the need to be grateful for what one has. More than that, gratitude is integral to me. I make every effort to show appreciation for my team, both in public messages and private notes. Without strong team members, PeKu wouldn’t be the business that it has become.

I try to extend this feeling of gratitude to all parts of my life. When I receive excellent service at a store, I make sure the manager is aware of the great team member. Too often these managers only hear complaints. At home I express my gratitude for things both little and big. Whether it is clearing the table or rearranging your schedule to match mine, I let my family know that I am thankful for their assistance.

When a day is stressful and overwhelming, it can be easy to see only the dark clouds and frustration. I know that feeling of “Ugh!” quite well. But when I’ve taken a moment to catch my breath and think for just a moment, it is pretty clear that things aren’t as bad as they seem. And then, in that moment of calm, it is important to be thankful for all that I have.

So, during this week of Thanksgiving, I give thanks to you, PeKu readers, and hope you are able to take time to give thanks also.

Inspire. Inform. Engage.