November 2012 Archives
Green Holiday Idea #1: Make Your Own Cards
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Did you know that there are enough greeting cards sold in the United
States each year to fill a building as long as a football field and at
least 10 stories high! That's a lot of paper, and most of it does NOT
go into the recycling bin!
There's
no better way to save paper (and money!) during the holidays than to
make your own cards for family, friends, teachers, and others in your
community you want to show some love this season. Start with some plain
solid-colored notecards or cardstock and try these ideas with items you
probably already have in your house (and are just waiting to get used!):
If you make a holiday card you're super proud of, scan it and email it to us so we can post it on this blog!
There's
no better way to save paper (and money!) during the holidays than to
make your own cards for family, friends, teachers, and others in your
community you want to show some love this season. Start with some plain
solid-colored notecards or cardstock and try these ideas with items you
probably already have in your house (and are just waiting to get used!):- Cut out images from wrapping paper, magazines, personal photos, and even last year's cards (if your family saved them) to make collages.
- Dig into your stock of stickers for funny images and accents.
- Fabric, ribbons, and buttons add a great artsy look.
- Check the kitchen for aluminum foil and cupcake sprinkles.
- If there's already a stock of craft supplies in your home, look for beads, glitter, pipe cleaners, sequins, felt, yarn, etc.
- Make a design on the computer and print it out, then glue onto the card.
- Go old school -- get some markers or crayons and DRAW!
- Peace sign
- Christmas tree
- Cross
- Planet Earth
- Heart
- Bunch of stars
- Picture of yourself
- Home
- Snowflake
- Snowman
- Santa
- Menorah
- The numbers "2012"
- Or anything you think your card recipient might like...
If you make a holiday card you're super proud of, scan it and email it to us so we can post it on this blog!
Expert thoughts on cyberbullying
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Are you sick of the word "cyberbullying"? We hope you are, because we hope you're hearing it a lot. We hope you're learning about it and talking about it and thinking about it. Because it's not simple, and it's not going away any time soon. Here at IML we're always trying to figure out what can be considered cyberbullying on our You Said It pages, so we were glad to have the chance to speak with Ryan Moreau, an expert in cyberbullying from KiwiCommons.com, a website that offers advice and information about Internet safety for young people. He has some great advice to help all of us better understand cyberbullying and protect ourselves -- and others -- against it.
IML: What counts as cyberbullying these days? Sometimes the line is a little blurry!
Ryan: Cyberbullying comes in many forms but typically includes harassing, hateful, or threatening messages, posts or material through the use of digital media. So what does this really mean? It means that a computer, mobile phone, digital camera, or any other Internet enabled device can become an avenue for cyberbullying if they're being used to potentially harm or make someone else even uncomfortable.
IML: If you think you're being cyberbullied but aren't sure, are there questions you can ask yourself to help figure out exactly what's going on? For instance, if someone is responding to you on a message board and they've hurt your feelings, what's the difference between them simply expressing a conflicting opinion or actually bullying and being cruel?
Ryan: The most important things you can ask yourself are: (1) is the behavior directed at me or another individual specifically, and (2) is it repetitive or a onetime occurrence? These two questions can also help us better define what counts as cyberbullying. You can also think about the question, is this person just generally cruel to everybody in the way they act online, or are they specifically acting this way towards me? Sometimes people act differently on the Internet because they feel it gives them the cover of anonymity. If this is how they act to everyone, they may be simply expressing themselves in a bad way; but if it is only towards you, then you may be being cyberbullied.
The other key thing to consider is whether or not the behavior or messages are being repeated. One mean message could just be a misunderstanding or misinterpretation, or even unintentional. But if you find that they keep doing it over and over, it's likely an attempt to be a bully or make you feel bad on purpose.
IML: How can a tween avoid being cyberbullied in the first place?
Ryan: It's extremely difficult to avoid being cyberbullied because you really can't control what other people on the Internet choose to do. One of the best things anyone can do is to be kind and courteous to the people they interact with on the Internet. Young people should practice positive digital citizenship in all of their online activities. Treat everything you do as if you were face to face not only with those people but also their close friends and family. Consider questions like, "Would I want my Grandma to see me saying these things?" Avoiding bullying is also a matter of not escalating situations to the level that they are cyberbullying. If we see or receive a cruel message or something that hurts our feelings, we shouldn't reply with a nasty response, since this could cause things to get much worse.
IML: If you find yourself a target of cyberbullying, what are your options for help? What can you do if you don't want to involve an adult?
Ryan: The best thing to do if you find you're the target of cyberbullying is to tell an adult; but even if you don't want to talk to an adult, there are some things we can do to help stop the problem. First, we should inform the bully that we feel they are bullying us and would like them to stop -- this should be done simply and nicely. All conversations, messages, or images should be recorded along with dates, times, and links to the websites so that we can prove there is a problem.
No matter how much we may want to be mean back to the bully, it's important that we don't become a bully ourselves. Instead, let the websites, message boards, or chat services know you think you're being bullied and provide a sample of what you recorded, and if you think the issue is serious you can report it anonymously to an organization like CrimeStoppers.
IML: Can you be cyberbullying without really intending to or being aware of it? Why does this happen so easily?
Ryan: It's actually very common to engage in cyberbullying without intending to or being aware that we are being a bully; in fact, most cyberbullying happens by accident. This happens so easily because people don't consider how others may interpret what they say or do online. When we don't consider that the people who see what we post on the Internet can't see our face or hear the tone of our voice, we forget that those things help people tell when we are joking.
We need to be very careful about everything we do on the Internet, especially what we say to and share with other people. We should always think twice and consider if that's something we would want said to us -- if not, we should take the time to rethink and reword our posts.
IML: That is great advice! Thank you so much for sharing these words of wisdom with us -- hopefully they'll help a lot of young people out there.
For more of IML's advice and information, check out our section on Online Bullying.
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Are you sick of the word "cyberbullying"? We hope you are, because we hope you're hearing it a lot. We hope you're learning about it and talking about it and thinking about it. Because it's not simple, and it's not going away any time soon. Here at IML we're always trying to figure out what can be considered cyberbullying on our You Said It pages, so we were glad to have the chance to speak with Ryan Moreau, an expert in cyberbullying from KiwiCommons.com, a website that offers advice and information about Internet safety for young people. He has some great advice to help all of us better understand cyberbullying and protect ourselves -- and others -- against it. IML: What counts as cyberbullying these days? Sometimes the line is a little blurry!
Ryan: Cyberbullying comes in many forms but typically includes harassing, hateful, or threatening messages, posts or material through the use of digital media. So what does this really mean? It means that a computer, mobile phone, digital camera, or any other Internet enabled device can become an avenue for cyberbullying if they're being used to potentially harm or make someone else even uncomfortable.
IML: If you think you're being cyberbullied but aren't sure, are there questions you can ask yourself to help figure out exactly what's going on? For instance, if someone is responding to you on a message board and they've hurt your feelings, what's the difference between them simply expressing a conflicting opinion or actually bullying and being cruel?
Ryan: The most important things you can ask yourself are: (1) is the behavior directed at me or another individual specifically, and (2) is it repetitive or a onetime occurrence? These two questions can also help us better define what counts as cyberbullying. You can also think about the question, is this person just generally cruel to everybody in the way they act online, or are they specifically acting this way towards me? Sometimes people act differently on the Internet because they feel it gives them the cover of anonymity. If this is how they act to everyone, they may be simply expressing themselves in a bad way; but if it is only towards you, then you may be being cyberbullied.
The other key thing to consider is whether or not the behavior or messages are being repeated. One mean message could just be a misunderstanding or misinterpretation, or even unintentional. But if you find that they keep doing it over and over, it's likely an attempt to be a bully or make you feel bad on purpose.
IML: How can a tween avoid being cyberbullied in the first place?
Ryan: It's extremely difficult to avoid being cyberbullied because you really can't control what other people on the Internet choose to do. One of the best things anyone can do is to be kind and courteous to the people they interact with on the Internet. Young people should practice positive digital citizenship in all of their online activities. Treat everything you do as if you were face to face not only with those people but also their close friends and family. Consider questions like, "Would I want my Grandma to see me saying these things?" Avoiding bullying is also a matter of not escalating situations to the level that they are cyberbullying. If we see or receive a cruel message or something that hurts our feelings, we shouldn't reply with a nasty response, since this could cause things to get much worse.
IML: If you find yourself a target of cyberbullying, what are your options for help? What can you do if you don't want to involve an adult?
Ryan: The best thing to do if you find you're the target of cyberbullying is to tell an adult; but even if you don't want to talk to an adult, there are some things we can do to help stop the problem. First, we should inform the bully that we feel they are bullying us and would like them to stop -- this should be done simply and nicely. All conversations, messages, or images should be recorded along with dates, times, and links to the websites so that we can prove there is a problem.
No matter how much we may want to be mean back to the bully, it's important that we don't become a bully ourselves. Instead, let the websites, message boards, or chat services know you think you're being bullied and provide a sample of what you recorded, and if you think the issue is serious you can report it anonymously to an organization like CrimeStoppers.
IML: Can you be cyberbullying without really intending to or being aware of it? Why does this happen so easily?
Ryan: It's actually very common to engage in cyberbullying without intending to or being aware that we are being a bully; in fact, most cyberbullying happens by accident. This happens so easily because people don't consider how others may interpret what they say or do online. When we don't consider that the people who see what we post on the Internet can't see our face or hear the tone of our voice, we forget that those things help people tell when we are joking.
We need to be very careful about everything we do on the Internet, especially what we say to and share with other people. We should always think twice and consider if that's something we would want said to us -- if not, we should take the time to rethink and reword our posts.
IML: That is great advice! Thank you so much for sharing these words of wisdom with us -- hopefully they'll help a lot of young people out there.
For more of IML's advice and information, check out our section on Online Bullying.
Meet tween entrepreneur Lily Sandler
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Thirteen-year-old Lily Sandler (pictured, right) doesn't shop the way she used to. A few years ago, she thought that things just popped up in stores, like magic. Now she knows how much work and decision-making goes into every single product available for sale, and how many people help it get there. That's because she and her sister, eleven-year-old Melanie (pictured, left), along with help from their parents, are the founders and owners of Blamtastic Luscious Lip Balm, which makes natural lip balms especially for young people.
IML spoke with Lily and her mom Renee about Blamtastic and their journey from a random idea to a successful, growing business.
IML: How did Blamtastic first come about?
Renee: It all started when I was reading in the Wall Street Journal about how few female CEO's there were in Fortune 500 companies. At that time there were only 12. I know women make up 50% of the workforce, so that didn't square up with me very well! I thought about my two girls, these girls who are going to go out into that workforce. I read the article to them and they said, that really stinks. I told them, "If you ever decide that you'd like to start a business of your own, I will support you, because I think that's the key to controlling your own destiny.
Lily: The idea for Blamtastic was kind of an accident. I was looking for my lip balm one day, and I said, "Mom, where's my lip blam...I mean balm!" And she said, "Wow, that would be a really good name for a lip balm company."
IML: So you had a cool idea. What was the first step from there?
Lily: We started by ordering a bunch of lip balm bases and we cooked them up in our kitchen. We saw what we liked and what we didn't like, then sent what we liked to a manufacturer and they made it for us. It was a really fun process.
Renee: At first, it was really just an experiment. As we started to play around with the product and get it out there to the community, we realized we had a good product to sell. Then the girls and I got together with their dad and decided, are we going to go for this and take it to the next level? Because if we are, we've got to get a business plan together and get funding, and get serious. So we decided to go for it.
IML: How did you first get the lip balms out there to...you know...lips?
Lily: At first we did a test run at the mall. We saw what people were more fond of, what they didn't like so much, and in the end it really did sell pretty well. We saw that this was something that people want and need on the market: a natural lip balm. A product that's been done over and over, but making it even better and taking it to the next level.
IML: How did you put together the lip balm flavors?
Lily: We ordered different scents and sweeteners, and we tried out what we liked out of certain smells. We narrowed it down to five flavors for boys and five flavors for girls. In the end, we had ten flavors we were going to launch in the first run.
IML: Did you invite your friends to try things out?
Lily: In the beginning, we would make a flavor and I would take it to school and see what my friends liked and what they didn't really go for as much. If they didn't like it, then we trashed it. If they did like it, then we gave it a try!
Renee: I think every neighbor on our street has participated in our testing!
IML: So nowadays, who does what in the company?
Renee: This is the girls' business; they started it, but they can't run it at the level we're at now. I work 60-80 hours a week and the girls participate when they can. Melanie is kind of the creative force behind things; she'll come up with ideas and flavors. Lily is the mouthpiece of Blamtastic...she likes to participate in promoting the company.
IML: Lily, do you and your sister get into disagreements about the business?
Lily: Well, aside from me and my sister fighting about normal sibling stuff all the time, we do have disagreements about the business. Whenever we have something we're not so sure about, we'll all talk about it as a family. By the end we always seem to come to a decision about what we've been wondering about and what we can do to solve our problem.
IML: It sounds like you make sure everyone's ideas get taken seriously.
Renee: The biggest conflicts we have about developing the product line is if I come up with a concept that's just not "cool"! Lily will say, "That is just not cool enough and nobody will ever buy that." They pull me back. They know what the customers want because as tweens, they basically are the customers.
IML: You give a portion of your company's profits to causes that you care about. Why do you feel it's important to do that?
Lily: When we started our business, that was always one of our top priorities: To give back to the community and help others in need. To be able to donate something out of your business really does make it more worthwhile and gives you that warm fuzzy feeling inside.
IML: Lily, what have you learned about yourself during this whole experience?
Lily: It's been a great way to help me get in touch with my family. We've had a lot of disagreements and in the end we've been able to come through for each other, and it all comes down to the family and what we've been doing to support our business.
IML: What's your advice to other tweens who would love to start their own business?
Lily: First of all, I would like to say that starting a business is a huge commitment. But if you want to commitment to it and are really devoted, you should go for it. Do what you can to make what you're selling better and more well known to people. Make sure that you are really committing to your product and that you stick by it!
IML: Thanks, Lily and Renee! We can't wait to watch Blamtastic grow!
Lily: Thanks!
Renee: Thank you!
For more information about Lily's company Blamtastic, whose lip balms are cruelty-free, all natural, and feature flavors for boys as well as girls, visit www.blamtastic.com.
Tell us: How do you go about Making Money? If you've ever dreamed of starting a biz, check out our Be Your Own Boss game and see if you have what it takes.
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Thirteen-year-old Lily Sandler (pictured, right) doesn't shop the way she used to. A few years ago, she thought that things just popped up in stores, like magic. Now she knows how much work and decision-making goes into every single product available for sale, and how many people help it get there. That's because she and her sister, eleven-year-old Melanie (pictured, left), along with help from their parents, are the founders and owners of Blamtastic Luscious Lip Balm, which makes natural lip balms especially for young people.IML spoke with Lily and her mom Renee about Blamtastic and their journey from a random idea to a successful, growing business.
IML: How did Blamtastic first come about?
Renee: It all started when I was reading in the Wall Street Journal about how few female CEO's there were in Fortune 500 companies. At that time there were only 12. I know women make up 50% of the workforce, so that didn't square up with me very well! I thought about my two girls, these girls who are going to go out into that workforce. I read the article to them and they said, that really stinks. I told them, "If you ever decide that you'd like to start a business of your own, I will support you, because I think that's the key to controlling your own destiny.
Lily: The idea for Blamtastic was kind of an accident. I was looking for my lip balm one day, and I said, "Mom, where's my lip blam...I mean balm!" And she said, "Wow, that would be a really good name for a lip balm company."
IML: So you had a cool idea. What was the first step from there?
Lily: We started by ordering a bunch of lip balm bases and we cooked them up in our kitchen. We saw what we liked and what we didn't like, then sent what we liked to a manufacturer and they made it for us. It was a really fun process.
Renee: At first, it was really just an experiment. As we started to play around with the product and get it out there to the community, we realized we had a good product to sell. Then the girls and I got together with their dad and decided, are we going to go for this and take it to the next level? Because if we are, we've got to get a business plan together and get funding, and get serious. So we decided to go for it.
IML: How did you first get the lip balms out there to...you know...lips?
Lily: At first we did a test run at the mall. We saw what people were more fond of, what they didn't like so much, and in the end it really did sell pretty well. We saw that this was something that people want and need on the market: a natural lip balm. A product that's been done over and over, but making it even better and taking it to the next level.
IML: How did you put together the lip balm flavors?
Lily: We ordered different scents and sweeteners, and we tried out what we liked out of certain smells. We narrowed it down to five flavors for boys and five flavors for girls. In the end, we had ten flavors we were going to launch in the first run.
IML: Did you invite your friends to try things out?
Lily: In the beginning, we would make a flavor and I would take it to school and see what my friends liked and what they didn't really go for as much. If they didn't like it, then we trashed it. If they did like it, then we gave it a try!
Renee: I think every neighbor on our street has participated in our testing!
IML: So nowadays, who does what in the company?
Renee: This is the girls' business; they started it, but they can't run it at the level we're at now. I work 60-80 hours a week and the girls participate when they can. Melanie is kind of the creative force behind things; she'll come up with ideas and flavors. Lily is the mouthpiece of Blamtastic...she likes to participate in promoting the company.
IML: Lily, do you and your sister get into disagreements about the business?
Lily: Well, aside from me and my sister fighting about normal sibling stuff all the time, we do have disagreements about the business. Whenever we have something we're not so sure about, we'll all talk about it as a family. By the end we always seem to come to a decision about what we've been wondering about and what we can do to solve our problem.
IML: It sounds like you make sure everyone's ideas get taken seriously.
Renee: The biggest conflicts we have about developing the product line is if I come up with a concept that's just not "cool"! Lily will say, "That is just not cool enough and nobody will ever buy that." They pull me back. They know what the customers want because as tweens, they basically are the customers.
IML: You give a portion of your company's profits to causes that you care about. Why do you feel it's important to do that?
Lily: When we started our business, that was always one of our top priorities: To give back to the community and help others in need. To be able to donate something out of your business really does make it more worthwhile and gives you that warm fuzzy feeling inside.
IML: Lily, what have you learned about yourself during this whole experience?
Lily: It's been a great way to help me get in touch with my family. We've had a lot of disagreements and in the end we've been able to come through for each other, and it all comes down to the family and what we've been doing to support our business.
IML: What's your advice to other tweens who would love to start their own business?
Lily: First of all, I would like to say that starting a business is a huge commitment. But if you want to commitment to it and are really devoted, you should go for it. Do what you can to make what you're selling better and more well known to people. Make sure that you are really committing to your product and that you stick by it!
IML: Thanks, Lily and Renee! We can't wait to watch Blamtastic grow!
Lily: Thanks!
Renee: Thank you!
For more information about Lily's company Blamtastic, whose lip balms are cruelty-free, all natural, and feature flavors for boys as well as girls, visit www.blamtastic.com.
Tell us: How do you go about Making Money? If you've ever dreamed of starting a biz, check out our Be Your Own Boss game and see if you have what it takes.
