Category: Adventure

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Making Your Honeymoon a Sailing Vacation and Adventure

Little girls often play dress up, thinking of their wedding and what their dress will look like. They do this before they even start liking boys so they have no vision of what the groom will look like. Then they get older and the wedding starts developing new layers, and the face of the groom starts to show up in their planning and their dreams. Then, as the days get closer, they start thinking beyond the wedding to the honeymoon vacation. Some women think of skiing trips or shopping or wine tasting. And some women dream of Caribbean vacations that will have them and their new husband off on sailing adventures under the moon and under the sun. From Tortola, Jost Van Dyke, White Bay, Virgin Gorda, to Norman Island, Peter Island, Anegada, there’s plenty of exciting Caribbean Vacations for you to choose for your honeymoon sailing vacation.

It is not that difficult to charter a sailing yacht and it can be the start of a lovely sailing vacation or can be the entire trip. Imagine spending your entire honeymoon on board a gorgeous sail boat or yacht as you wrap your arms around one another and talk about what the future will hold for you and your married life. Not everyone can spend two weeks or more on their honeymoon, and for those people who have less time, it is important to pack as much fun and excitement as possible into that time. Your honeymoon vacation is not just another trip, not just some sailing vacation; it is the start of your life as man and wife, an end to one chapter and the beginning of another.

When you start thinking about your honeymoon or if you want to recreate the love and adventure that you had back when you were first married, it is important to get an idea of what sailing vacations would cost and how much fun you can have when you charter a sailing yacht.

If you want to get an idea or to refresh your own memories, look at the photos by clicking on this link. Sail with Terry can definitely make your honeymoon an unforgettable sailing vacation.

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Adventures of the Irritated Development Professional

In my wanderings through the nonprofit sector I have found two important Truths:

  1. Your mission is your greatest asset
  2. Your second greatest asset is your staff

Volunteers, donors and staff want to work with your organizations for two reasons: they love your (secretary, Executive Director, CEO, board member, case worker, etc), and/or they believe in your mission. I don’t believe it is possible for a nonprofit to survive, especially now, without sticking closely to its mission and treating employees with respect and reverence. Capitalizing on these two assets will provide incredible strength and fortitude.

Almost all nonprofit leaders are mission driven. To be quite frank, no one goes into social services and nonprofits because of the great pay. They are there because they want to believe in what they are doing, and the mission of their organization defines that. It makes for incredibly motivated and loyal employees under the right circumstances.

I was discussing these points with a friend who works as a development professional for a rather large nonprofit outside my vicinity. I may be biased, because I know the work my friend is capable of, but her boss is doing a fantastic job of running off any talent she could hire by refusing to recognize the second Truth. Instead, this stubborn ED has refused to capitalize on the talents of her employees, ignores suggestions and ideas (or steals them without giving any credit) and generally acts superior to everyone around her. Subsequently, her staff turnover rate is pretty impressive. Employees will tolerate this insanity because of the first Truth- they love the mission, but only for about 6 months.

While every industry has those bad apples, in the nonprofit world it is especially devastating because it means the nonprofit will suffer in the long run. If the nonprofit suffers, you can bet the beneficiaries of their services will suffer as well. How awful to think the bad decisions of an executive can have such a tangible negative impact on the lives of those in need.

Sometimes I think executives (in general- not just nonprofits) forget that the mark of an outstanding leader is not what he himself has accomplished, but what can be accomplished without him. A good boss should be able to take a vacation and come back to an organization that is humming along as smoothly as before he left. I have seen this elusive situation with my own two eyes, and it was the direct result of positive, supportive and competent leadership coupled with a strong work environment, incredible staff and a fantastic mission. If you were to ask the executive in charge of that organization how he was able to manage such a feat, he would tell you how great his employees are and that he prides himself in finding great talent, deflecting all credit to his staff.

As you read this, I hope you remember two people- your best boss and your worst boss- and what you were able to learn from both situations. Sometimes a bad example can be just as educational as a good one- and it does leave us with interesting stories!