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Giving Back Outside of Photography

3/17/2013

2 Comments

 
by Skip Cohen

I always have something I want to post each morning. Sometimes it's something in the pipeline, other times it's related to something I've read on another blog. This morning the cupboard is bare, but I just did a tweet that might seem strange to some of you and it deserves an explanation.

@alzassociation @caregiverforum @alzheimerssoc Sun morn-a gr8 time 2 listen 2 the new podcast 4 caregivers. ow.ly/j5ne4

It's got absolutely nothing to do with photography. My mother has Alzheimer's and every Thursday for over a year my Dad and I have gone to a caregiver's support group here in Sarasota at the Friendship Centers. Paula Falk is the moderator and has been doing this for fifteen years. Well, I had an idea to talk them into doing a short weekly podcast, similar to what I've been doing here on the SCU site. They had no budget and had never done anything like this.

I wanted to launch "Ten Minutes with Paula", short advice segments for caregivers of Alzheimer's patients. The idea would be a new tip every ten days, just to help caregivers stay focused on their own health and well-being. You won't be any good taking care of a loved one if you're not taking care of yourself.
Picture
So, this became my way of giving back and thanking them for everything they've done to help my family deal with the challenges of my mother's illness. What's been a kick is how it's taken off, with each podcast getting more and more listeners. I've also loved being involved in something outside my core business.

And here's how this all connects to your business:

So many of you are looking for ways to give back and tie into your community, but it doesn't always have to involve your skill set as a photographer. You just need to find something that contributes to the community and at the same time makes you feel good about doing it.

"Many persons have a wrong idea of what constitutes true happiness. It is not attained through self-gratification but through fidelity to a worthy purpose." Helen Keller

Well, I can't top Helen Keller's quote. Doing the podcasts and working with the staff at the Sarasota Friendship Centers simply makes me happy. It keeps my battery charged and in turn gets me out of the cycle of being a "one trick pony" and only focused on the photography industry. Plus, it's testing things I've learned in my career about marketing, branding, reach and social media.

There's no such thing as any project in your community being too small or not worthy of your time if it involves some level of giving back and puts a smile o.
2 Comments
Rima
3/20/2013 02:24:36 am

Beautiful. Thank you for sharing this perspective and this resource. A close relative of mine with early stage of Alzheimers lives in Sarasota. Kismet I saw this today.

Reply
Paul Edwards link
3/20/2013 02:33:28 am

I think this is a great service Skip. While I'm not a care giver of someone with Alzheimer's, yet, I've seen it first hand. Alzheimer's runs on my mothers side of the family going back to my great grandfather, and i'm sure further back.

While in my late teens my grandmother had to move in with use because her symptoms were getting progressively worse. She lived with us for a few years until my parents had no choice but to put her in a nursing home.

Alzheimer's is an absolutely horrible disease and to see how it can take an otherwise completely healthy and independed person who was able to live on her own until her 80's is just sad.

Seeing how relatives on my mothers side of the family had it, it just seems like a matter of time until my mother and her brother and sisters get it.

For me it's like a training coming down the tunnel, just a matter of time. I joke with my mother and tell her that maybe in 40 years I'll be able to download my brain every night to a computer and then in the morning upload it again, that is unless I forget to.

Thanks again for doing your part.

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    Skip Cohen is President of SCU, founder of Marketing Essentials International and past president of Rangefinder Publishing and WPPI. He's been an active participant in the photographic industry since joining Hasselblad USA in 1987 as president.  He has co-authored six books on photography and actively supports dozens of projects each year involving photographic education.

    Scott Bourne

    Scott Bourne was the first Dean of Marketing at SCU. He helped to establish this blog as a resource for aspiring and working professional photographers. He's an educator, artist, author and from time to time you'll see his name on guest posts that are always relevant to photography and marketing!

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