Robert Egger´s Piece of Mind

Man, what a life. I’m on the road again, and this time I am really opening a big new door. I’m headed to the historic city of Edinburgh, Scotland to give the closing keynote at the Social Enterprise World Forum. Yeah, I know….double secret cool. But the best part…as the closing speaker, I have a full weeks worth of opportunities to learn about social enterprise in ALL its forms, not just what I know about from my journeys throughout the US. How cool will it be to learn from folks from Chile, Brazil, Australia, Egypt and a bunch of other countries about what they do—what they see—where they are going—and most importantly, how they might partner with their governments to take it up a notch.

You see…in most countries, social enterprise is pretty much still a novelty. Sure, it’s gotten some solid press and all…but for the most part, it hasn’t trickled down to become anything remotely relevant to regular people. THAT’S the big next step…and to do that, we’ll need to become partners with elected officials who fundamentally “get it,” and who understand the “keep the money” local principles that should have made Social E something special long, long ago.

That’s one of the big reasons I push the V3 Campaign so hard. It’s about electing that new generation of politicians—NOW—so we get a new dialogue going, asap. If you are unaware of the V3 Campaign, and how easy we’ve made it to reach EVERYONE who is running for office in your city or state, please take a gander at our website. Now, it’s so simple to reach out to your candidates, all it takes is the click of a button. Go to the V3 website and send the letter asking them to respond to the V3 Question about how they would partner with the sector to achieve their vision.  This campaign is on the move, be a part of it.

Anyway….Scotland will be a very cool opportunity. Stay tuned for some video and a few choice toss outs about cool programs I encounter.

And, FYI—Michael Jackson joins the 50 club today. The list of bad asses turning 50 this year includes me, Prince, Madonna, Michael, my friend Bryan…and, wouldn’t you know it, Kevin Bacon. See you soon.

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Can you imagine a candidate, for ANY office, standing before the Board of Trade, or the Chamber of Commerce and saying…”I don’t have a plan for how I’ll partner with business” ?

Do you think that person would be elected?

Then how can we let a candidate run for office, let alone win an election, who stands before us, the nonprofit sector, in any town, city, state…or in any country, without a plan for how they would channel our energy, tap into our ideas, muster our resources or elevate the dialogue about how we can work in tandem to make our communities stronger?

Really.

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For those of you who read my last post about turning 50, well….I’ve done almost the same amount of stuff in the few weeks that have transpired since.

First of all, I hit Peru for a staggeringly wild, tough, amazing trek—from the newly “discovered” city of Choquequirao to the bad ass boulders that make up Machu Picchu, I ascended the equivalent of Mt Everest (30,000 ft) in 12 days, and probably descended the same.

And I thought I was in good shape—man, was I wrong. 

Quick Life Lesson—I trained for months to get ready for this hike. I walked for miles each day. I hit the “Exorcist Stairs” over by Georgetown University weekly, and walked up and down them for hours. I even tried to exercise and ONLY breath through my NOSE, in anticipation of the altitude in Peru.

In short….I really put the hammer down and felt, by the time I arrived in Cusco, that I could tame any tiger they put in front of me.

First day out—MAN, I was front of the pack, roaring up the trail and smiling ear to ear!!! I wanted to call home to tell my wife and daughter that I was SO on top of my game, and let them know that, while I might be 50, I was kicking the Andes ASS.

And during that first day, I kept looking back at the group I was with. There were 11 of us, and we were stretched out along the trail, and from across the first valley we entered, I could see most of the group….and wayyyy in the back, was a women who, by her pace and age, made me wonder if she was going to make it. All during the day, I kept looking back, from my vaunted position out front…and worried about her.

The next day we got up and looked at the INSANELY high mountain we were going to climb, and the endless switchback that lay ahead of us…and I started to roar up the road—again, out front. But as the morning progressed….one by one…the group passed me by. As I finally entered into the first little “way station” for a rest, it was apparent that I was really messed up. In fact, from my shaking and quaking, it was clear that I was dehydrated and failing fast.

This was not a group that could, or would, hang back and pat me on the back, reassuring me that I would be OK—this was a serious group of hikers, and while they ALL tried to help, eventually they split, leaving me with instructions on how to rehydrate (big ass note—do not guzzle Gatorade when you are dehydrated—trust me on this, you won’t like what happens if you do).

Anyway….I’m sitting there, allll fucked up, when in walks Miss “Way In the Back.”

Long story short….this women, who I had looked at all worried that she might not make it….she hauled my ass up that mountain, and taught me a massive lesson….”The First Can Follow and the Last Can Lead”

More on that later on.

I came home to find that my sweet Momma had passed, and I had to catch a plane home to Indiana to be with my family and deliver her eulogy. How wild is the coil…..one day you’re a kid, and squealing with laughter as your mother tickles you…and the next your standing in front of a church full of family and friends, honoring her for the women she was, and the values she instilled in you and your siblings. My mom taught us, and then she taught 25 5^th grade classes, over 25 years, in a small town in rural Indiana. What a woman she was, and what a guide she’ll remain.

After the funeral, I had to go almost immediately to Denver to speak with the Colorado Nonprofit Association. I went out a week prior to the DNC convention to ask nonprofit colleagues to do what has now become my trademark—get involved in getting US involved in the decision making process. I’ve got to tell you—CO is ready to GO. The leadership out at that association, headed up by their dynamic President and CEO Charley Shimanski, is top drawer – they are already way out front in getting nonprofits into the political dialogue. I have no doubt–NO DOUBT—that if, during the Democratic National Convention in Denver next week, some local nonprofit leader ends up in an elevator with Senator Obama (or any other major party official)—well, then they will hear ALL about our voice, our value and our vote before that ride is over!!!

Speaking of which—the V3 campaign continues to roll on—in fact, today we scored a sweet spot on the front page of the Washington Post, in the article Some Nonprofits Push for Increased Federal Involvement… check it out, share it on Facebook, and forward it to a colleague.

Finally…before I roll, I want to give a shout out to Denver’s own Women’s Bean Project. I visited there on a great tour of outstanding CO nonprofits that included an amazing job training/food business called Work Options for Women and another crazy cool web based philanthropy tool for workforce giving at Community Shares of Colorado. Anyway…I have admired the Bean Project since I read about their efforts to train women while developing soup mixes way back in early 1993. They are closing in on over 20 years of great work, and deserve all the support you can give. If you are EVER thinking about sending food to a friend or colleague, please give them your business. You can thank me later.

More soon.

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