Helena Kaufman | Page 6 of 14 |

Mess o’ money to count on – en route to the writing life

February 21, 2020February 20, 2020 by Helena Kaufman

That will be $4.22 from $20.

So… 3 pennies to 4.25 then 50, 75 and another quarter to get us to 5.00. A blue fiver to $10 and a purple $10 bill for $20. Thank you for your business.

That’s old school change giving. Counted out one coin and bill at a time.

Now no pennies in Canada. So we round DOWN, or up to the nearest five. Anyway, the computerized register tells us exactly what to give back to the customer who is probably juggling a phone and not paying attention as they accept the mess of money handed them. All in one clammy fist-full by the clerk.

Snow Day Cinderella on a shiny Monday in Vancouver

January 14, 2020January 13, 2020 by Helena Kaufman

Walking past the blue public rental bicycles on a Monday in Vancouver and they are covered in freshly fallen west coast snow

It snowed overnight. Temperatures will be a handful of degrees below zero all week. By our southern west-coast of BC wussy standards it is cold. It is damp. There is wind. Skiers and snowboarders are happy, and likely high with the news of more snow. An upswing is expected in time for T.G.I.F. of +1 Celsius, daytime temperature.

There will be 5 entire Wednesdays, 5 Thursdays and 5 Fridays in this month of January 2020. This Monday, however, will not come again, nor did it exist before – all bright and shiny and new.

street scene covered in snow on a Monday in Vancouver — Night snow for Cinderella

OK. not so sun-shiny, but a new shiny. The snow was not as bright as the wonderland of snow that covered the Prairie winter I grew up in. But our rare west coast city snow was on the grass, the branches, the roof top of the church across the street and all along the hedges. All was calm and steady and the air was totally different – clean and fresh in the truest ‘sense’.

Anniversaries on the calendar and on the body – a writer remembers

May 17, 2020January 6, 2020 by Helena Kaufman

They say the body remembers…And so it is with me.

When I almost forget an anniversary, be it a sweet celebration or a calamity of suffering come and not yet fully gone my body sends me some kinda message.

Janus, god of endings, beginnings and transitions

2020 is here. I grew up with the phrase ‘Hindsight is 2020’ meaning we see more clearly after the fact, looking back. This saying from the days when we had to remember social sayings we learned. Lessons shared the common way – in conversation or embroidered on a gift pillow.

Yup, we didn’t yet have the benefit of a graphic digital meme to see, like and share yet, so we just remembered useful catch phrases.

Living to deadline, a writer’s diary begun Jan 1

February 1, 2020January 1, 2020 by Helena Kaufman

In the green room of life

On hold. Waiting for the New Year to start like a guest waiting in a studio’s ‘green room’ before going on air to a talk show or some other live event, with an audience, and floor directors and a host to greet your arrival. And snacks.

Facts are not story: on seeing your list Part 2 of 2

July 23, 2019July 23, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

OMGoodness. I’ve publicized more than 50 events. They have been press conferences, live shows, trade shows from crafts to gems to ‘world music’ and culture. There have even been two sports shows that I personally founded, sold space, sponsorships and ads for plus publicized. I know. You can’t imagine the sports part, right? I did it all as a one woman team with part time admin help and it was hockey and cycling.

But this. This one is something else. And as the event’s public opening dance and music night reminds us, it can take more than 2 lists to tango in publicity. It takes that special match of story and human emotion to connect what you offer to the needs of your partners in publicity. Not just the facts.

On lists and looking for the stories in them part 1 of 2

July 18, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

Lists and how to look at them is the topic of my real time PR efforts for the Festival Judio’s August 2019 debut. There’s a practical magic to having the right lists and how we interpret them. I work with 2 kinds and I’ll explain those shortly.

After this real time post all messaging will be uber short – only 15 sleeps to go.

Prime directive of story pulls you out of inaction – Progress post #2

July 18, 2019July 18, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

It’s been a humbling few days since I announced how I overcame, and I did, and then slid back a bit. Some of my energy seeped out as I filled boxes and tick off tasks that online life now requires of us as PR folks before I could return to my beloved writing FOR the project. So, today’s post is about how I lost the prime directive of my real time and current PR efforts for ¡Festival Judío! A Celebration of Latin American Jewish Culture. And, how I started back to the source with my signature ‘Bag and Board’ method.

How story reset my event PR efforts

July 16, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

“It all starts with a story.” I’ve said it. I’ve signed off my ‘shorty bio’ with it to close articles I write. Now it has pulled me out of potential paralysis into clarity on a project’s BIG publicity needs. 18 sleeps to this event’s evening launch reception and I’ll share how story set me back … Read more

C is for Consistent and Confident Communication

July 2, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

The only way to know if your story will work is to talk test it, out loud.

Hey there! Since you’re back for “C” in our 3-part ABC themed series- let’s take the next step to check out our stories. Let’s go live!

If you have taken on the lessons of A for accept, and B for the business stories to outline as your toolkit in talking to an audience of one or many, then we move on to C. Here is where we ‘test talk’ the story to see if works. The effect we are going for is a business story that is memorable to the listeners and one that is repeatable by your audience. How else are you gonna know – if not to test them out loud?

B is for Business + the 6 stories for your teller’s toolkit

July 2, 2019June 24, 2019 by Helena Kaufman

There are stories you must have in your toolkit ready to deploy as you weave stories into your business communications

B is for Business

Welcome back! Story has that power, eh? To pull people back to hear more and more. To put that power to work for you, this is part 2 of 3 in the series for you to get started weaving stories into your business communications. This set was first published with the Women’s Enterprise Centre BC based blog. Today, we explore storytelling’s impact on your business or community presence and success.