I’m not a Walmart 11Mom anymore.
I stepped down from the campaign around the holidays and left quietly because I saw it as a personal decision and figured I would tell people one on one if asked.
However, I’ve realized recently that since I didn’t blog about it some people think I’m still a Walmart 11Mom or if they know that I’m not, there’s speculation as to why I stepped down.
So I’m taking the time to write this post to set the record straight.
Last summer, eleven moms were asked to participate in Walmart’s Eleven Moms campaign, I was one of them and while I grew up in a family that wasn’t exactly Walmart-friendly I was still excited to learn more about the company and the changes they’re making for the better.
I am extremely impressed with Walmart’s sustainability initiatives and needless to say, working with the other 11Moms was a privilege in and of itself.
The initial campaign involved vlogging money saving tips and culminated in the fall with a contest where the winners would receive a year’s worth of free groceries. When the campaign was over it was not clear what the next phase would include. When I signed on, I was under the impression that the campaign would be ending in December since that was what had been discussed. So, to sum it up, it was a combination of not being sure what the expectations would be with the next phase and my commitment to other projects coming up that became the catalyst for my decision. Additionally, there were personal reasons that held some weight too…but ultimately it came down to the initial campaign winding down and being confident that the time was right for me to move on.
With that said, I am super excited to see the opportunities that have opened up for my former Walmart 11Moms comrades. Radio shows, their photo in the Walmart circular, SxSW (squee!), and a growing community. I applaud them and John Andrews, Walmart’s Emerging Media guru, for their hard work.
There’s a lot to be said for one of the (if not THE) largest corporations in the world embracing social media. And we’re seeing more brands follow suit every day.
I’m proud to have been part of the Eleven Moms campaign.
Were there some things I wish would have liked to have seen done differently?
Sure.
But social media is uncharted territory and we’re all working together to shape this industry. What a scary and exciting thought!
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OK, my dear readers…Just in time for the holiday season, I’ve got an amazing contest to share. Nickelodeon and Walmart have teamed up to offer a contest, hosted by the Walmart Eleven Moms, that I think you’ll like.
No, I take that back. This is a contest I think you’ll love!
So here are the deets:
- Share your best 3366ff;">HOLIDAY 0000ff;">DECORATING money saving tip. If your tip doesn’t have to do with the holidays AND decorating, it won’t count.
- Enter by submitting your tip in the comments of this post. One tip per comment please.
- Each contestant can enter up to THREE times.
- Contest will close on December 12 at 11:59pm.
- After the contest ends, the top 10 tips submitted as determined by the judges will then be put into a random drawing. The one winner of the random drawing will receive the $500 Walmart gift card.
The gift card will be mailed out on December 17 so it is imperative that the winner get me their mailing address as soon as possible after said winner is announced.
So what are you waiting for? Submit your ff0000;">HOLIDAY 00ff00;">DECORATING tips now!
Thank you Nickelodeon and Walmart for an ff9900;">AWESOME CONTEST! 000000;">We’re big fans of Nickelodeon in our house. My son loves Noggin and Nick Jr. and growing up Nickelodeon was my favorite channel because of shows “You Can’t Do That On Television” and “Double Dare”.
*Please note that while the ElevenMoms are all running contests, you may enter in more than one but you may only win one. In the instance that an entrant wins more than one contest, an alternate winner will be chosen.
It’s bittersweet to write this last post in the series. I’ve connected with a lot of those following along and have been truly inspired by what some of you have done with your brands and your blogs already. I know for some of you, it took a lot to step out of your comfort zone on some of these, and I can’t tell you enough how proud I am of all of you. You’ve accomplished so much and I know it’s just the tip of the iceberg!
Today I’m going to talk about setting goals and making a plan to achieve them. This doesn’t have to be a really formal activity. But it’s necessary if you’re going to get from point A, where you are now, to point B, where you want to be.
Let me tell you a little story. Early last year, I had come off a pretty good run of being a real estate agent. I had closed over $3 million in transactions my rookie year and was making good money. Plus, I was staying at home with my son, the reason I had pursued being a real estate agent in the first place. But the market was worsening and while I had no shortage of clients that wanted to work with me, they just couldn’t get approved for the mortgages they needed to buy a house in the DC Metro area.
So my husband and I were faced with a huge decision that I know many families face everyday. Do I go back to work full-time? Realistically, what would be my take-home pay after childcare, commuting costs, and taxes? Would it be worth not having that quality time with our son? These questions and their answers were a huge source of stress for us. We need my income. But we both felt strongly about our quality time with our son.
Our final decision? We’d give it six months. If after six months, I was unable to parlay my 8 years of professional experience into a bonafide virtual role that paid comparable to what I’d make out in the 9-5 brick and mortar world, then I’d reluctantly return to the daily corporate grind.
Two months later, I was hired as Chief Mom Officer for Wishpot. Less than two weeks after being hired, Walmart’s John Andrews asked me to be an ElevenMom. During that time, over the summer, I put up the Chief Mom Officer site to promote the idea with the hope that other companies would follow Wishpot’s lead and hire a mom for a high level position, too. Then, in August, I met Sheila Marcelo, CEO of Care.com and told her about the concept and we hatched MomForce.com over coffee at the DC Fairmont while she was in town for a conference. That same month I also started writing the Celebrity Business blog at Sparkplugging.
This all happened within that six month time frame. My head is still spinning.
Want to know my plan that led to all this? It was fairly simple, really.
- Only do work that I’m passionate about. If I’m not passionate, it will show.
- Think about every opportunity in terms of compensation. This does not mean dollar signs. Will it advance my brand? Connect me to other (perhaps paid) opportunities? Allow me to network with the people I’d like to work with most?
- Consider the compensation. If I’m worth more, I can’t be afraid to say so.
- Say “No” if my gut tells me to.
- If I see somewhere I can add value, I let the right person know.
- Keep the good karma going by helping others who are passionate and working hard to achieve their goals.
- Work hard each and every day to achieve my goals with mindful purpose and the best of intentions. Always.
- Be consistent and accountable. Everyone wants to work virtually so it’s important to remain competitive.
Needless to say, I’m not returning to the 9-5 grind again anytime soon. But I don’t take even one ounce of my current situation for granted. Because I stay true to the first point above, the last point comes naturally.
YOUR HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENT
Define your goal and tweak my plan above to fit yours. Then I want you to check in with me over the next six months and let me know how you’re doing.
EXTRA CREDIT
Is there something I didn’t cover in this series that you’d like be to write about in future posts on Jessica Knows? Let me know in the comments and I’ll take it into consideration.
UPDATE: I AM NO LONGER AN ELEVEN MOM, I STEPPED DOWN AT THE END OF 2008. MY REASONS ARE POSTED HERE.
Ok, so I gave you all the scoop on our Bentonville itinerary before we left. Here’s a little montage I’d like to share of our experience.
What was I most impressed with?
Their sustainability initiatives and how friendly all the Walmart employees and people of Bentonville were to us.
Tags: Bentonville, Bentonville Arkansas, blogging, campbells, canopy walmart, coca-cola, eleven moms, kelloggs, Paula Deen, photos, video, Wal-Mart, walmart
UPDATE: I AM NO LONGER AN ELEVEN MOM, I STEPPED DOWN AT THE END OF 2008. MY REASONS ARE POSTED HERE.
Today is Blog Action Day and bloggers all over the world will be coming together to fight poverty. I am honored to do my part for this very important initiative. My effort today is dedicated to my late grandfather (whom we affectionately called Gar), Bill Prigg, who even on the coldest nights of winter would deliver blankets to the homeless of Washington, DC.
This one’s for you “Gar”!
Walmart has pledged to match, dollar for dollar, all of the money the ElevenMoms raise today through our advertising. Their slogan is “Save Money. Live Better” and by supporting Blog Action Day they are helping those in need, live better, indeed. Every penny I make from advertising via YouData today (at top of far right hand column on this site) will go to the Blog Action Day efforts. If you haven’t experienced YouData yet, it is an advertising platform where YOU decide what ads to view. So take a moment to create your MeFile and start helping me raise as much money as possible today.
So who am I raising money for today? A project that a fellow ElevenMom, Colleen Padilla aka Classy Mommy, is passionate about. Project Peanut Butter. As a mom I wanted to give to an organization that specifically helps kids and when Colleen told me about what they do, I knew it was the perfect match for me.
What does Project Peanut Butter do? From their website:
“Project Peanut Butter is a therapeutic feeding program for malnourished children in Malawi and Sierra Leone, on the continent of Africa. It was founded by Professor 
Mark Manary, M.D., a pediatrician at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and a professor of pediatric medicine at Washington University School of Medicine. Dr. Manary has worked in Africa for more than two decades, finding his calling solving the problem of severe malnutrition among the world’s most impoverished and malnourished children. He is recognized the world over as a leading authority on severe childhood malnutrition.
Dr. Manary was the first to conduct clinical trials of Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food (RUTF), a peanut/dairy/vitamin/mineral food that offers a 95% recovery rate for severely malnourished children and is administered in the home. This represents a vast improvement over the milk-based formulas of the recent past that offered dismal recovery rates of 25% - 40% and required hospitalization, subjecting children to infectious agents when their malnourished bodies were less able to withstand this additional burden.
In 2007, the United Nations System Standing Committee on Nutrition, the World Health Organization and UNICEF issued a joint statement, establishing Dr. Manary’s community-based treatment protocols and formula as the most effective method by which to treat severely malnourished children the world over.”
I am really excited about this program and again I hope you’ll help me raise money for this worthy cause. Please show your support by visiting the other ElevenMoms’ blogs that have posted about poverty today.
Green Your Decor: http://www.greenyourdecor.com/2008/10/15/blog-action-day-fight-poverty-with-your-wallet/
Being Frugal: http://beingfrugal.net/2008/10/15/world-poverty-how-you-can-help/
Deal Seeking Mom: http://www.dealseekingmom.com/blog-action-day-doing-my-part-to-end-poverty-and-how-you-can-help/ and http://www.dealseekingmom.com/freebies-roundup-blog-action-day-edition/
Frugal Upstate: http://frugalupstate.blogspot.com/2008/10/blog-action-day-2008-poverty.html
From Dates to Diapers: http://www.fromdatestodiapers.com/2008/10/walmart-teams-up-with-elevenmoms-to.html
Kingdom First Mom: http://www.kingdomfirstmom.com/2008/10/fight-poverty-with-blog-action-day.html
Skimbaco Lifestyle: http://www.skimbacolifestyle.com/2008/10/join-me-fighting-against-global-poverty.html
Tags: blog action day, elevenmoms, Malnutrition, poverty, project peanut butter, Ready-to-Use Therapeutic Food, RUTF, Sierra Leone, Therapeutic food, walmart, Washington University School of Medicine, World Health Organization
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