What is "Stolen Time"
This thought evolved for me after a conversation on LinkedIn recently where a friend was wondering if she was a "bad mom" for sneaking away from the kids to do bits of work. 

My response? Heck no! You're a "good mom" for insuring your kids are happy, safe, and self-entertaining when they don't "need" you at this moment. Way to go!

Why the Guilt?
I'm not a fan of things (or people) that make me feel guilty. There should be no shame or guilt in maximizing your time and energy. This includes while you're on full parent duty or your attention is supposed to be fully in one place, yet you find your attention drifting or have a short window of time to insert something else to your advantage. 

Four Thousand Weeks
I highly recommend this book Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman. The general premise is, based on an average lifespan, we have roughly 4,000 weeks in this life. So how do we maximize that time?

Is This Multitasking?
I suggest no. Per Merriam-Webster, multitasking is "the performance of multiple tasks at one time." In 2006, the American Psychological Association cited multiple studies from as early as 1994 indicating multitasking actually isn't more efficient. 

"Stolen Time"
Rather than multitasking, what I suggest is instead making the most of unexpected short points of time that become available. 

• The kids are playing quietly and self-entertaining.
• Unexpected delay between flights
• Wrapped up a meeting quicker than scheduled
• Waiting room opportunities

Have Those Tasks Ready!
I suggest having a list of activities in mind or (better yet!) written that you can refer to on just such occasions. These activities are likely to vary in type for your setting, space available, and time available. Suggestions below are more in the 15 min time frame.

• Read - having a  book handy inches you closer to finishing it.
• Calendar - add those new appointments to your planner or get those tasks out of your head into a safe place. 
• Correspondence - you can at least jot some thoughts into a draft email or text. If you're a pen and paper person, keep a few cards with you.
• Work tasks - consider editing a paragraph, write a paragraph, open a few tabs to research later and save those links; continue your work activity in a small way.
• Admin tasks - prep that invoice, file/scan a couple of receipts, respond to a social message.

Go Ahead - Steal Time from that Clock!
You have my permission to maximize your time and energy! The kids will not always be small. Stealing time becomes a bit easier as they get older.

There are  other tasks you can consider in very short windows of time that move you forward in self-care or time with your family. We'll review a few of those next time. 

Are you a "Time Thief?" Do you "steal time" to work on other things? What very small tasks have you found that slip into such found moments?

If you're looking for someone to cover some of these tasks or help you maximize your special talents, Let's Chat! I have many skills that may fill in the gaps you're looking for. 

LinkedIn Resources Available
LinkedIn offers a number of resources for nonprofits that can be found here. This is the most inclusive page to begin your quest for information. 

There's a LinkedIn for Nonprofits group available as a resource. LinkedIn held its first Impact Summit May 2024 that remains available for viewing. I'm looking forward to checking that out!

LinkedIn has a pdf available, LinkedIn Pages Action Plan for Nonprofits. You can access the resource here by entering a few of your details. 

Claim Your Nonprofit Page
Before you create a page, check to see if one exists already. LinkedIn "helpfully" created a company page for many 501c3's years ago. You may have one sitting around waiting for you! Search for your nonprofit's name and, if one exists, "claim" it when prompted. You can edit and build the page from there.

​Create a Company Page for Your Nonprofit
Anyone with a personal profile on LinkedIn can also create a company page. Company pages can have multiple Admins. It's always advisable to have more than one to counter the "hit by a bus" potential.

Once your nonprofit has decided who will initiate the project, create the page with your nonprofit's name, logo, and background header at a minimum. Be sure to add some way to contact the nonprofit in the page details, be it your nonprofit's email or website. 

Admins of a company page can toggle between the company page and their personal profile using the arrow under your name. Pay attention to how you wish to comment on posts - as your personal profile or the nonprofit page. Again, look for a toggle option by your profile image. 

Create Content!
Now comes the fun part! Share your amazing nonprofit with the world! Posts can be simply copy/pasted across all of your social platforms for consistency and ease, or there are apps that will post the same information across your platforms.

Ideas include sharing news of you upcoming events, shout-outs about stellar volunteers or staff, or sharing any news about your nonprofit, just as you would on any other social media platform. 

Video resonates highly on LinkedIn as with many of the socials currently. "Carousels" or "documents" (multi-image slides) perform well for engagement. 

Volunteers and employees can share or repost news of the nonprofit page and vice-versa, just as with other socials. 

Invite Connections to Follow
Page Admins are eligible to invite personal connections to follow the nonprofit page if you feel it may be a good fit. Each Admin has 250 invitations available monthly, but you're granted a "replacement" invitation for every one that's accepted. It's highly advantageous to stick with the connections you think may actually be interested in your nonprofit.

A timing sequence I heard recently is to use half of your invitations at the start of the month. Check on the status of those invitations at least by mid-month if you haven't looked sooner. You may have earned back some of those invitation credits from folks who accepted your offer. Share more invitations to use them all before the end of the month. 

Don't forget - these invitation credits renew monthly!

LinkedIn Premium Discounts
LinkedIn offers a drastically reduced price on two of its premium packages. Nonprofits providing confirming information may qualify for 75% off of Sales Navigator or Recruiter Lite. The advantage of both is definitely the higher messaging option available to expand your community. Learn more about these options here.

Have you created a company page for your nonprofit? What's worked well for you? What are your challenges or frustrations?

I'd be thrilled to help build or maintain your company profile. Let's Chat!

How to "Create a PDF" in Canva
We have a few things to consider for this question.
* How do you plan to use the end product?
* Where do you plan to share the end product?
* Which template will serve your purpose?

How Will You Use the Design?
Are you aiming for a simple 1-2 page document? Consider searching Canva's "document" or "newsletter" templates.

Hover over the design you're considering to see

• if design features will cost you every time you download the design. (look for the $ sign in the bottom right corner)
• if it's a free or premium account design. (premium designs have a little crown at the bottom right corner)
• number of pages built into the design. (bear in mind you can always duplicate or delete pages as needed)

Are you designing it to be a post on social media? 

• "Carousel" designs (search term) provide a colorful, consistent styled, multi-slide/page template similar to creating a PowerPoint design.
• "Document" has many designs that are only 1-2 pages or slides, still a consistent look, and can be colorful or a bit more muted in style. Many of these designs are sized perfectly for social media.

Where Do You Plan to Share the End Product?
If this will be a "cookie" or free give-away on your website to encourage folks to sign up for your newsletter or next project, the more simple "newsletter," "document," or even "flyer" can serve your purpose. You'll really only want a 1-2 page style.

You'll want to consider how saturated or colorful the design is if your target audience may print the item. You don't want folks "bleeding ink" with dark or highly colored backgrounds for your words. 

Test how your product will download into a PDF. Just because you can pack a lot of material onto what appears to be a one-page item, you may realize when you download as a PDF that it's actually 3 or more pages!

If you'll be sharing this as a social media post, "carousel" works especially well on LinkedIn. The more colorful and saturated the background is the better, as long as the text shows well in contrast to be readable. This format is able to be downloaded on LinkedIn for your audience to retrieve.

Do make sure to include your business logo, name, and a way to contact you someone on your project!

Which Template Will Serve Your Purpose?
The response to this is embedded in the earlier discussion. Each have their plusses with few negatives. 

Canva designs are highly adaptable, from adding and deleting pages, to adding and deleting features within a page design to customize it. You can change font size, style, and even colors. You can insert your own images. 

In all of your marketing, consider your business's brand style. This includes your color and font choices. You may be able to simply duplicate a template you're using elsewhere in your business to create your new items. 

If you have a Pro Canva account, you have the option to simply change the size or template style of an item you already created to maintain your brand look. Look to the top left corner for "Resize & Magic Switch." 

Canva does offer free 30-day trials of their Premium account! Keep an eye on the calendar if cost is a concern and focus your upcoming projects within that 30-day window. For as many free templates as Canva has, it's crazy how your eye is drawn to the premium template designs as "better!"

Don't forget if you're a nonprofit, with just a little electronic submission, an EIN, and the right kind of nonprofit (political nonprofits don't qualify), you may qualify for a free Premium Canva account! Be sure to check on the option.

Have these been your go-to template styles to "Create a PDF" in Canva? Do you have other template styles that work well?

If you're looking for assistance to maximize your use of Canva or you're looking for someone to create some designs for you, Let's Chat!