It’s a time of year when many people toss healthy ideas aside in favor or indulging too much. So, we took to the streets one Friday afternoon in December to search the city for fun ways to stay healthy during the holidays.  In our Healthy Holiday Scavenger Hunt, we split into teams, each tasked with healthy challenges to complete before our annual holiday party. Teams documented and shared photos of their adventures at the party.

Challenge #1: Grow, all ye faithful

Tucked away in the Argentine neighborhood of Kansas City, Kansas, is a small organic not-for-profit farm used by urban farmers for educational research.  Here, each team fulfilled a KCCUA wish list which included storage containers and wheel barrows. It was our small way of contributing to a vital resource in the community. Donations like these help the farm operate year round. If you’d like to help, check out more information at http://www.kccua.org/.

Challenge #2: There once was a man from Nantucket…

A limerick. We’ve all heard them, right? But have you ever written one? It’s not as easy as it you might think! In true creative fashion, each team sat down at Harry’s Country Club in the River Market to share pomegranate martinis and write a catchy holiday rhyme. Allegedly healthy Pomegranate martinis, made with the antioxidant and cancer-preventing power of the pomegranate, are not only tasty but packed with essential nutrients.

Challenge #3: Get fit!

Staying fit and healthy during the holidays is a challenge many people face. Once you find an exercise that works for you it’s important to stick to a routine, even during the holidays. Since exercise can be a lot more fun with friends, our teams each developed a 20 minute group workout.

Challenge #4: Share a feast

Now that’s a donation!

In the final challenge, teams were tasked to find a healthy snack to enjoy and to give to someone in need. Each team donated cash, fruit, veggies (or a sandwich) to a worthy recipient; choices included a homeless man and a Salvation Army bell ringer. It was a healthy reminder of the reason for the season.

Our adventure was a fun way to give back to our community and remind ourselves what it means to have a healthy lifestyle. Happy New Year from everyone at Dobies Healthcare Group! And here’s to another healthy, successful year in 2011!

For those of you who follow my blog (thanks, boss), you’ve probably wondered why I haven’t posted lately.  It seems that my decision to go back to school to earn my Master’s degree has affected more than my checkbook.   Time is my new precious resource.  I had just entered a new phase of life – you know, the one when your kids are teenagers and suddenly you are alone watching The Bachelor?   So what do I do with my newfound, much-anticipated freedom?  I enroll in grad school!  No rest for the…crazy?

For you, this translates to four years of listening to my ‘aha moments’ and scholarly pontifications.  For me, this means great blog fodder, stimulating discussions with other marketing professionals, and a balancing act between my ‘real’ work and my homework.  To demonstrate how well I’ve balanced everything so far, I actually took my first class last fall.  It started about the time I posted my last entry.  Now, I’ve caught my breath, adjusted to being the oldest person in class, and am ready to share. 

My degree will be a Master’s in Integrated Marketing Communications (MMC).  I’ll need to complete 36 credit hours, or 12 classes.  I plan to take one class per semester, year round.  Come on, follow along – it’ll be fun.

When you see a really good idea, you absolutely have to share it with everyone you know.  It used to be that we’d simply email a cool link to our friends and colleagues, but this one is worth talking about.

My hat is off to Volkswagen and thefuntheory.com.  From pianos to pinball, they have collected some great ideas to inspire healthy behaviors.

For all of my clients with offices on the second floor or higher, let this be an inspiration to you to use the stairs.  At a minimum, consider equipping your stairways to health to help fight obesity by giving it a fresh coat of paint.  Hang some artwork, include an inspirational message or two.  Maybe install Wii Fit stations on a landing, or wire up a video board so employees can compete with one another on the number of trips up the steps.   Please add to the list of possibilities by posting a comment.

Twelve business owners from Vistage Group 3416 (a Kansas City executive leadership group) recently joined for four days in Beaver Creek, CO for ziplining, rafting, fly fishing and some more serious leadership adventures. It was as much a time to escape from the day-to-day struggles of business ownership as it was a time for a deeper dive into it. Our goal is to become better leaders, make better decisions and achieve better results…and to achieve better balance in our lives. The retreat gave us insights not only into ourselves, but into our colleagues and how they work, live and play.

So while there’s no “so what” marketing message for today, I did want to encourage you to think about how you can “strategically withdraw” or retreat to take time for yourself. And make it a point to “be present” in the midst of a busy day no matter who you’re with. Make it a priority and part of your personal brand to engage at a deeper level with yourself, your family, friends, staff and business partners. It’s amazing what you learn and what you get back in return.

 Imagine if you will… happier and healthier employees, fewer sick days, improved productivity, better bottom-line. Sound like a fairy tale? It could actually be your in company’s future. Many companies that have adopted employee health and wellness programs are reaping these rewards as we speak. I came across an article recently that described how companies are handling rising health care costs and what they are doing to encourage employees to make healthier decisions.

The idea of employee health and wellness programs is not new but now it’s becoming more widespread.  And as part of President Obama’s health reform plan, I think we will be hearing more and more about it. So go ahead and participate in your company’s program. And if your company doesn’t have one, suggest one.

May is finally here!  No more cold and snowy weather. It’s time for fun in the sun with outdoor barbeques, weekends at the lake, gardening and a host of other outdoor activities.  But before you step outside, is your skin protected?  According to the American Cancer Society, skin cancer is by far the most commonly diagnosed cancer here in the U.S.  But there are some guidelines you can follow to help reduce your risk.

So remember to take a few minutes each day to protect your skin and if you’ve never had a screening, get one on the calendar.  I’ve got mine scheduled…do you?

We’re into social media here at Dobies. But unlike the cobbler’s kids who have no shoes, our kids  are social media gurus. That’s why recently when we dove into the world of moms and will-be-moms to research and write a marketing plan for a hospital client’s obstetrics department, I was able to passionately endorse the strategy that we reach new, Gen Y moms via text messaging. Because younger moms text. Heck, now even old moms text. Of course, I’m an old mom – my kids are teenagers and ‘young adults’ (it’s hard not to smirk at that description, but that’s another blog).

I’ve come a long way from the short, one-syllable words that beginners use like yes, no, huh? I’m even able to have complete arguments by text, a necessary line of communication with teenagers.  I even have actual conversations with other grown adults about important stuff. For example, last week, Kelley (who works here at Dobies) and I discussed via text what newspaper ad to run for a client.  I happened to be having lunch with this client at the time, so Kelley sent a text asking me to discuss this particular topic while we ate our chips and salsa. So, I did. Thirty seconds later, we were all content because we had checked something quickly and efficiently off our lists.

But compared to Generation Y women (those aged 9-31), my accomplishment is mundane.  Our next generation of moms has been raised in a world of instant information and connection. To effectively reach these young women, we need to join their world, because they’ve left ours way behind. In this case, ‘joining’ means offering pregnancy and parenting information via opt-in text messaging. I haven’t felt this good about a communication strategy since I texted my daughter to ask her to text a friend to text her mother to ask if she was interested in car pooling. It worked.