I don't think compassion and business are mutually exclusive. For me the most important human quality is kindness, and I will go out of my way to support businesses that have kindness as a core value.

For example, I was in a trendy coffee shop in Vancouver (actually, it was the Blenz on the corner of Davie and Granville) when a mentally ill street person came in. This individual made quite a loud commotion about what he was going to order, how much it would cost, etc. It went on for about 10 minutes. Eventually he asked for a (free) glass of water. The staff treated him with patience, kindness and respect.

After the man left, I talked about it with a staff member. She explained that he was a person who suffered from bi-polar disorder and was currently in a manic phase. She said that he came in regularly and the staff tried to keep an eye on how he was doing so that they could get medical help for him if needed.

This is the kind of thing that makes me happy. And from a business point of view, I have never forgotten the kindness of that staff member and by extension, the Blenz coffee shop chain.

What about you? What gives you a good impression of a business?

Although I''ve learned the futility of making New Year's Resolutions, at this time of year I can't help but reflect on the passage of time.

I took this photo a year ago this evening. I remember sitting on the bank overlooking the ocean thinking about what the coming year might bring. Well, now 2006 is just about over and 2007 is on the way.

Since I don't do resolutions, let's call these New Year's Intentions instead.

New Year's Intention #1: Higher standards regarding work-life balance.

You know, if I was single this would not be an issue for me. I see nothing wrong with working on business till all hours of the night. I find it fun and as long as it's not harming anyone, who cares?

As long as it's not harming anyone...that's the catch. I'm married and my husband is semi-retired, and he'd like to spend time with his wife once in a while. Not too much to ask.

And yet, I know myself. I get distracted up in my office and hours can go by. This will be a hard one for me to change. Really hard.

So here's my first baby-step towards this goal: I will tell my husband how long I'll be up in the office, and I will honor that time. So if I say, "I'll be right back" then I'll do that. If he says "dinner's ready in 10 minutes" I'll make sure to be there with time to spare.

In today's fast-paced world, many people find they have trouble feeling grounded and on top of things. Work is often filled with a sense of urgency leading to stress, fatigue, and even burn-out. Get some help prioritizing, by taking the Urgency Index test.

Used by Robert Gass in his Art of Leadership training at Hollyhock, this tool may help you find the right balance between what needs to be done now, and what can be reassigned or completed at a later date.

The Urgency Index test helps you determine the difference between things that are urgent and things that are important. And contrary to popular belief, you should not necessarily do the urgent things first. Why not? Because you could spend your whole life doing the urgent things (which are usually just self-imposed or putting out fires) without doing the important things.

via the Hollyhock newsletter. Hollyhock is an educational retreat centre located on Cortes Island, B.C. Hollyhock's mission is to inspire, nourish and support people who are making the world better.

I picked up a copy of Adbusters magazine yesterday, and opened it to a page that asked in big bold letters:

Before chosing a brand, more and more consumers are asking critical questions.

"What are the politics behind this brand? How does it promote the values that I believe in? What does this brand really stand for?"

The answer, more often than not, is "Nothing...this brand stands for nothing!"

That got me thinking about the HomeBusinessWiz brand. I wrote about my intentions for HomeBusinessWiz way back when I started this site. Here's a summary:

In an Adbusters magazine article called "my space" (pun intended) Eric Rumble quotes Sherry Turkle, director of MIT's Technology and Self program and author of Life on the Screen: Identity in the Age of the Internet

"Our society tends toward a breathless techno-enthusiasm...The self that grows up with multitasking and rapid response measures success by calls made, emails answered, messages responded to."

Rumble asks if we are now focussing on "quantity over quality" and points out that the communication patterns we are increasingly getting used to online are oddly reminiscent of the way that advertisers target audiences.

"In essence, networking netizens are getting better and better at producing what amounts to 30-second spots about our states of mind, our ambitions, our whereabouts, our passions and obsessions."

He asks "is there a purpose to this new breed of online social network beyond data mining its membership?" (If you're not familiar with the term "data mining", here's a definition: Data mining is searching large volumes of data looking for patterns that accurately predict behavior in customers and prospects.)

Have you ever noticed the Kiva banner on this website? I've made a screenshot of it here, but a live version is always in the right column of this site - if you can't see it right now just scroll down and it will appear.

What is Kiva?

Kiva enables me to make a micro-loan of any amount (I usually do $25) to a small business person in the developing world. Note that I said LOAN, not donation. These are loans which will be paid back.

How does Kiva work?

You can click on the banner on this site or go directly to Kiva's website and lend to someone in the developing world who needs a loan for their business - like raising goats, selling vegetables at market or making bricks. Each loan has a picture of the entrepreneur, a description of their business and how they plan to use the loan so you know exactly how your money is being spent - and you get updates letting you know how the business is going.

The best part is, when the entrepreneur pays back their loan you get your money back - and Kiva's loans are managed by microfinance institutions on the ground who have a lot of experience doing this, so you can trust that your money is being handled responsibly.

I just made a $25 loan to an entrepreneur named Catharine Ejenarhome in Nigeria. (You can see her pictured at right.) Mrs. Ejenarhome sells wooden combs to people in her community. She is 54 years of age, married, and mother of 7 children. She needs the loan amount of $625 to boost her business, which she started 2002.

Hopefully within a few days other people like me will chip in to make up the additional $600 to complete Mrs. Ejenarhome's loan request of $625.

It's very easy to actually do something about poverty using the microfinancing system that Kiva has introduced. I know exactly who my money is loaned to and what they're using it for. And most of all, I know that I'm helping them build a sustainable business that will provide income to feed, clothe, house and educate their family long after my loan is paid back.

Join me in changing the world - one loan at a time.

Thanks! Barbra Sundquist
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What others are saying about www.Kiva.org:

'Revolutionising how donors and lenders in the US are connecting with small entrepreneurs in developing countries.'
-- BBC

'If you've got 25 bucks, a PC and a PayPal account, you've now got the wherewithal to be an international financier.'
-- CNN Money

'Smaller investors can make loans of as little as $25 to specific individual entrepreneurs through a service launched last fall by Kiva.org.'
-- The Wall Street Journal

'An inexpensive feel-good investment opportunity...All loaned funds go directly to the applicants, and most loans are repaid in full.'
-- Entrepreneur Magazine