Seth Godin’s post on January 19th (Martin Luther King day) said:
“I wonder how those that are lucky enough to be web savvy can create work that really adds leverage.”
He listed things to do – and asked “What if you do one of these things every day?”
It made me think about trying something new on February 14th (Congenital Heart Defects Awareness day).
In fact, to take it further and suggest doing it every day UNTIL (and even beyond) “A Day for Hearts”.
From writing and distributing articles about congenital heart disease (1999), to building a “Chain of Love“ (2001) and running a “From My Heart“ gift giveaway (2002), this annual event to build awareness about congenital heart disease has involved many different activities.
Some were intense, like the 2003 Heart Kids Blogathon. Others were creative bursts like the movie, “You’re Lucky IF…“, which touched many hearts – and saved some too.
What was a hopeful experiment went viral in 2005, as hundreds picked “The Coolest Warrior“ and “The Coolest Niche Marketer“. But not every effort was successful – with the “Heart Kids Tagathon“ in 2006 being a nice concept which didn’t quite take-off.
The “Heart Kids Firesale“ has been a hot favorite with supporters since 2007 – and has helped donors grow their business while they gave a child’s family hope!
Last year, dozens joined “Squidoo for CHD“ to build a lens to raise CHD awareness and the Heart Kids Tweet-a-thon raised funds to sponsor 4 heart operations.
So… what can we do differently this year? I came up with an idea.
It’s based on a development that’s very real. An affinity between people who care. A bond that’s grown strong over years.
A group of passionate, committed people, all fired by the common goal of wanting to help a child with congenital heart disease, and working together to raise awareness about the problem while highlighting a solution.
A tribe that has supported, encouraged and helped extend the efforts of the Dr.Mani Children Heart Foundation, has been responsible for our carrying out 33 heart operations, and will make it a foregone conclusion to reach an even more ambitious target of sponsoring 100 operations this year.
If you are in this tribe, you can pick any one of the ideas from the past and use them every day upto February 14th (and beyond).
Or try one of these things:
- Tell the story of “Our Little Hearts“
- Build a CHD bridge to help a child reach safety and health.
- Use this ready-to-go promotional material to spread the word
Together, let’s help a child live – on “A Day for Hearts“
