Six Ways to Take Charge of 2012

The following article came to me through an eMail message. I have copied it and provided a link to the Authors site, as I felt this is relevant information for us all. Please enjoy and make use of this list.

New year, new outlook. Stephen Covey, one of the most prolific leadership authors of our time, says there are six things you can do right now to make 2012 your best year ever:

1. Be proactive.
   It’s more than just taking initiative. It means being responsible for your own life. Empower yourself to lead and spread your influence no matter what position you hold.
2. Sharpen the saw.
   Decide what’s truly important. Sharpen your saw early in the day by learning to say no to the unimportant and yes to the highly important
3. Seek to understand before seeking to be understood.
   It’s human nature to want to be understood, but when both parties are trying to be understood, neither party is listening. By making the investment to understand the other party, you can magically transform the course of your conversations.
4. Begin with the end in mind.
   Start today with an image of the end of your life as the frame of reference by which everything else is examined. With a clear idea of where you are going, examine everything in the context of what matters to you most.
5. Develop a vision mission statement.
   Get a deep sense of your life’s mission, purpose and value system, then establish your goals and a system of accountability that keeps you on track.
6. Think win-win.
   There is enough success for everyone, so don’t view another person’s success as success achieved at your expense or exclusion.

More about Stephen Covey on SUCCESS.com.

The following custom built sites have been designed and or built by me, or I have provided technical assistance for them.

All Publications – I have performed maintenance on this site. I also edited and installed the videos.

Award Specialties - Site development.

Beaverton LeTip – Site development.

Dayne Keating – Site development.

Garment Graphics – Site development.

Hyde Industrial Blades – Site design, development, and maintenance.

Imagina Creative – Site development.

IRS Environmental – Site development.

M & M Insurance – Site development.

National Sports Safety Organization – Site development.

Pocket Puzzles – Site development.

Psalm 1 Landscape – Site development.

Revive ‘n Seal – Site design and development.

Simonds International – Site design, development and maintenance.

The Transcription Clinic – Site design and development.

Yami Yogurt – Site development.

Zoi Greek Yogurt – Site development.

These are some WordPress Sites that I’ve designed, or built, or have helped others put together:

Affordable Web Technology, Inc. – This site was designed and built using the Artisteer Theme generator. 

Accounting Ala Cart – This site utilizes the PureVision Theme. I provided technical assistance during the build.

Aloha Business Association – This site is built with the iThemes Builder Theme. We use the Connections plugin for the member directory. One of our members built the interactive map functionality.

Bobs Reedville Plumbing – This site design was replicated in WordPress to look like the existing site. We needed to be able to change content on the site and build custom landing pages to support a Pay Per Click Campaign.

Bunch’s RV – This site was designed and built. It is built on the iThemes, iCompany Theme.

Cornell Estates – This is a custom WordPress theme. Collaborating with Ian Henderson, on design work,, the theme was built using Catalyst.

GNA Homes, Inc. – This site is built using a mysitemyway theme. It features three image galleries. 

Japan Karate Federation Of Tigard - This site was designed and built using the Artisteer Theme generator.

Japan Karate Federation NW - This site was designed and built using the iThemes Builder Theme. It utilizes a user security system to enable members to login and gain access to protected data. I have also created two custom post types to support the Tournament Masters and Sponsors data.

Jo’s Tartan Patterns – This site was built with the Artisteer Theme generator. It was then customized to match the designers requirements. We implemented the WP eStore plugin so the site could be used for eCommerce.

Natural Expressions Photography – This site utilizes the WP commerce plugin to provide on-line ordering capability for 400 images. These 400 images are available either framed or matted, and in 5 different sizes. In other words, there are some 4,000 SKU’s in the database.

Ottoline Publishing – This site was designed and created using the Artisteer Theme generator. 

Parent To Parent Oregon – I provide hosting for this site. The designer/ developer whom I work with, utilized the built in TwentyTen Theme for this site.

Portland Storytellers – This site features a “Choose Your Storyteller” page that randomly shuffles the Storytellers order on the page. Built using iThemes Builder as the base. The design work was a collaborative effort working with Liz, one of their Board members. The Storytellers page utilizes Loop Buddy.

Qualified Industrial Craftsmen – This site was built using the iThemes iCompany theme.

Rose City Label – This site was designed and built with the Artisteer Theme generator. It has been customized afterwards. I use the Gravity Forms plugin to manage the input forms.

US Karate Foundation – This site was migrated from an existing Joomla site. The existing look and feel was replicated, and content was moved.

Safety Badges - This eCommerce site has been built in WordPress and converted from a Magento eCommerce setup to WP-eCommerce setup..

Shine At The Salon - I provided the design and build for this site.

Spire Payment Solutions - I maintain this site. We converted it to a MySiteMyWay theme this year.

Springer and Son – This site replicates their existing design. The site was migrated over from a hand coded site. The them was built utilizing Catalyst.

Templeton Elders – This site was designed and built using the built in Twenty Ten Theme.

Wedding Hair By Shana – This site was build using a mysitemyway theme. Collaborating with Kathryn Delany on design, a clean presentation highlights Shana’s work.

Whimsy Pops – This site was built and designed by an associate of mine using the Genesis Theme. It also utilizes the WP eStore plugin for eCommerce.

Whitmans Auto – This site’s design was replicated from an existing Yahoo site. I used the iThemes Builder Theme for this.

Wilkinson Inc. – This site was created using iThemes Builder. It’s design mirrors the pre-existing site. The emphasis was on simply being able to maintain existing content rapidly.