Around the Mug: Shake, Shake, Shake It Up This #GivingTuesday

It’s December 2nd.  The leftovers are dwindling, you may feel a little less bloated than the day before, and you probably got a great Cyber deal on a new gadget yesterday. It’s just another ordinary Tuesday, right?

Wrong.

Today is a day to shake things up for good. 

(Start slow clap.)….It is #GivingTuesday today! Today is the movement that as Madeline Turner suggests should break the internet for social good.

This Tuesday tradition is not very old yet; the movement started just three years ago in recognition that in all of the holiday frenzy of consumption, we should set aside time to reflect and do something good for others and give to good causes.  Whether you are new to the movement, or looking for a new way to get involved this year, here are three simple things you can do to shake, shake, shake it up today. (Okay, okay…I’m not quite Taylor Swift, but we do share the same first name.)

1. Download the For Goodness Shake app.

If you are looking for a new way to give this Tuesday, the app can point you in the right direction.  The app is easy to use, and helps you find organizations to support based on both your interests and location.   In addition to the great service the app provides, want to know what’s really cool?  It was designed at an “Off the Grid” programming rally in which a group Blackbaud developers participated and came up with it.  I’ve got it.  Do you?

2. Create an everydayhero fundraising page.

Do you have an organization you love and want to support, but you don’t know how to raise money for them?    Creating a fundraising page with everydayhero is easy as pecan pie and can be used for any number of causes. Perhaps you want to start a fundraising page in honor or memory of a loved one? Or, maybe you are training for a mud run and you want to raise money for a cause in conjunction? Use this GivingTuesday as the motivation you need to get it started.  Hint: If you are an organization reading this, I recommend you claim your everydayhero profile (if you haven’t already).  This makes it easy for individuals to find you and devote their fundraising page to your cause!

3. Join the #unselfie movement.

Tired of all the selfies attempting to break the web?  Today is a perfect day to post an #unselfie.  If we’re going to break something, let’s have a good reason.  Take a pic of yourself doing something good for a good cause.  Join the #unselfie movement and tweet your #unselfie to @blackbaud.

I hope you enjoy your #GIvingTuesday and get inspired.  That’s it for now, my friends.  Until next time…around the mug.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Taylor Shanklin

Taylor Shanklin is a peer-to-peer boss lady, full-time mom and part-time marketing consultant in the non-profit sector.  Prior to her leap into full-time motherhood, Taylor spent an eight year tenure at Convio and then Blackbaud. In her time at Blackbaud she worked with organizations large and small and worn many hats.  She has led numerous Luminate Online and TeamRaiser implementations, and  has worked as a strategy consultant with the Go! program.  Some of her peer-t-peer projects included working with Alzheimer’s Association The Longest Day, National MS Society, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation’s Great Strides, and ALS Association’s Community of Hope.

Taylor (a.k.a., T-Shank) is a total coffee addict and has a particular affinity for peer-to-peer fundraising and has completed several Team in Training events with the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, receiving her triple crown for having competed in cycling, triathlon and marathon events. When not working, she is busy chasing around her two kiddos, lifting weights and getting in a little guilty TV time.  Originally from Austin, TX, she and her husband are huge UT Longhorn fans.  You can follow Taylor on twitter @tshankcycles and find her blogging on npENGAGE. Hook ‘em