Happy Earth Day 2025

April 21, 2025 by

Happy Earth Day

Portland 4.19.25

Portland 4.19.25

I’ve considered “Earth Day every day” for a long time. But it is also special to know that every year on April 22nd, it’s officially celebrated. And though the news is challenging to follow right now, there are still good things happening.

Something fun that you might know about me is that I use email marketing in my environmental efforts. I’ve been working for years to rid the world of gas-powered leaf blowers, for instance. Before that, I built a list and sent out news about getting rid of phone books. Yeah, remember them? I’m also very interested in trees and keeping them standing and planting new ones. And most recently, I’ve started a new Dark Skies group for the Portland area (happy Dark Sky week!). If any of these efforts interest you, there’s a newsletter for you!

If there’s an environmental issue you care about, starting a newsletter on the topic and building your list over time is an incredible way to make change happen. I love working with people who are doing this type of work, as you can imagine. If this is you, I will bend over backwards to make your experience a good and successful one! Hit reply and let me know what your issue is and where you are in your journey.

We all want and need clean water and air to live. There is no planet B. Happy Earth Day! I hope you find a way to participate this year in a way that brings you joy. Maybe it’s time to get a garden started!

Albert

PS – This was my newsletter to those on my business email list. You can see the original with a bit more content here.

Happy Earth Day!
Pics from a recent walk @ Powell Butte Park

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Neurodiversion 2025

April 2, 2025 by

These are a few of my Favorite Things

I attended the first Neurodiversion 2025 “A Celebration of Unique Minds” conference. One hope I had when I traveled to Austin was to come home with an idea for a new newsletter. Through a series of conversations and meetups, I came up with a weekly one featuring a talk by an inspiring speaker. Thanks to Hank from Wyoming who brought this idea to fruition. You can join in the fun by signing up here – the first talk will be headed your way and I believe you’ll enjoy it. Here is issue #1

I’ve been a fan of Chris Guillebeau ever since I first learned about him in 2017. That led to following his writing, reading his books, and attending a conference he put on for 10 years called The World Domination Summit (WDS). Like most cutting-edge events, this one attracted a lot of interesting people. When Chris announced in his A Year of Mental Health newsletter that he was trying out a new conference focused on neurodivergence I bought a ticket straight away. I’d been missing the magic of WDS and any excuse to gather with the types of people who are attracted to this type of event = I’m all in. As the event got closer I hemmed and hawed and considered selling my ticket (who needs to go to Texas? How can I leave Portland when the fruit trees are all starting to bloom? It’s easier to just stay put and keep doing what I’m doing!). But in the end, something stirred in me and I bought my plane ticket and I was off to Austin, Texas for 5 days!

I wanted to come to Neurodiversion with an attitude of openness and an interest in learning. I tried to be as open as possible and not push my agenda on others. This proved to be a good idea because so much of what I was about to experience was new information.

A couple of years ago I made a new friend, Sundeep, at the Breitenbush Summer Solstice Healing Retreat, who offered to host me. He was also able to buy a ticket, so we got to share the experience and I got to stay in his lovely house Northwest of the City. I also stayed a couple of days afterward and we visited some special places like Casa De Luz, The 3rd Eye Lounge, The Laguna Gloria sculpture garden, and the Zilker Botanical Garden above – with a beautiful view of Austin. For all the pics from my trip – go here. Tag people you know if you’re willing! Thanks!

On day 1 of the event my first meetup was about singing and led by Whitney. Unfortunately, it was held in a nearby bar which was kinda loud. But I also learned a few things and it was nice to start with an interesting meetup. I then followed a group to the gelato place across from Fair Market (the main venue) and talked to Whitney about Human Design. After that, I participated in a meetup about activism and ADHD. That was held in a nearby hotel where many who attended the conference were staying. Then, it was time for registration and the opening ceremony where we played this fun ice-breaker! The idea was to go around and see if you could fill out your bingo card. But the way this was set up it was hard not to meet a few people and hear some fun stories.

The next day began with a great couple of keynote speeches and then there were break-out sessions leading up to lunch. There were people attending from 4 countries and all over the US. I think there were probably about 250 people attending and 15-20 ambassadors – who helped answer questions and register us. They were very busy and I’m glad I paid to attend vs. doing that. I know the event is free for ambassadors, but I think it would be hard to see all the speeches and attend meetups if you were in that role.

Karla Starr’s presentation on AI really stuck out to me. She’s very smart – at one point the mic cut out and we couldn’t hear her (we were wearing silent disco headphones). After a minute she just switched to Spanish which was kinda hilarious. Eventually, her talk got back into gear and she regaled us with info from the AI highway. Productivity tools and various ways she’s using AI. Here’s an example – and for more of her slides visit my pictures.

Part of what makes this type of conference wonderful is the workshops we all put on for one another. On the last day of the conference, I offered a meetup on how to improve where you live. This idea was based loosely on the various issues I activate on in Portland. I also wanted to make the activity interactive so asked people about where they lived and the types of issues they face there. Then I offered some tools and ideas on how to make a change where you live.  I talked about how everyone you interact with will take the information you share in a different way. And also how long some of these campaigns (to get a bike lane; get trees planted; stop a big box store from being built) may take. Some really great questions came up and I felt like the meetup was one of the best I’ve ever done.

How to Improve Where You Live Meetup

The days sort of blur together for me. But I’m excited to share that this conference had a really lovely feel to it. It reminded me of WDS in that the people were very interesting and also willing to come towards one another quickly. Not every interaction I had was fantastic, but quite a number of them were. And I got to learn more about neurodiversity and ADHD than I’d known before. I didn’t think of myself as neurodiverse before the event, but now I’m kind of wondering.

Through the course of listening to talks and meeting a wide variety of people, I really got a sense of what neurodivergence is about. I know a number of people who are challenged by this and now have some perspectives and tools I can offer that might help. I also got to wondering whether and how I might also be neurodivergent. I arrived at the event figuring that my brain works just fine and that I was there to learn to help others. But by the end, I realized that I shared some of the same challenges as others were speaking of through the weekend.

I’m fascinated by what it takes to put on an event like this. I feel like I’ve been to many things that have some similar elements, and have been planning my own funconference.me for a while (coming this Spring!) – but this also had an element that I’m not familiar with. I think it was the topic and people mix that felt different. My intention in attending was to try to come with an open mind and heart and that worked out well. I tried to pull back on sharing my own agenda too much, and stay open to learning and meeting people. I’m very glad I tried that approach as I felt that the conference kind of worked its magic on me.

At the last group meeting, Chris did a check-in to see how people were feeling and asked if we should do the event again the following year. He then shared that we could buy tickets and that Neurodiversion will happen next year (date and location TBD!). I decided to buy a ticket – both to support the event and cause I will likely attend.

After that meeting, we had a fun party outside on the lawn. It had been very hot during the day and it was nice to congregate on the lawn. There was a place to pet animals, a marching band, and some other fun things + two food carts, and a wine & beer bar. I wandered around and had some time with some of the people I’d met and met a few new ones, too. The conference also has a private Facebook group and people have been posting some pictures and lovely thoughts about our time together. An interesting part of that is that even people who couldn’t make it seem to have been touched by the event.

After Neurodiversion ended Sundeep and I headed back to his house and went to sleep. I had a good long sleep and woke up refreshed and very thoughtful! I spent another couple of days in Austin – got to see a great sculpture garden; ate a couple of meals at Cafe De Luz and hung out at 3rd Eye Lounge then on Monday visited a lovely botanical garden before heading to Cafe de Luz and then the airport.

Overall, it was great to get out of town; make some new friends; learn about ADHD and other neurodivergences; have a WDS reunion with folks I’d met in previous years, and get inspired. Thanks for reading this far!

I’m always open to feedback – feel free to leave a comment or write me directly. And, maybe I’ll see you at Neurodiversion 2026!

Activism and ADHD Meetup

Albert Kaufman, Portland, Oregon 4.2.25

PS – Here’s a short write-up by Chris Guillebeau of the event.

 

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Small Achievable Things – Take Action!

March 25, 2025 by 2 Comments

Nextdoor.comSmall Achievable Things

This post ➡️ was my first post on Nextdoor.com – a social media site like Facebook organized by neighborhood. I believe Nextdoor.com is the best tool for local organizing that’s ever existed. I use it to make my neighborhood a better place.  Here’s the first article I wrote about Nextdoor.com. Now, onto the small achievable things – you can probably take some action yourself to implement these right now. Hit me up if you need encouragement or have ideas on how to move these forward quicker – albert@albertkaufman.com

  1. Phasing out Gas-powered leaf blowers. Here’s our website for this effort Quietcleanpdx.org. Here’s a collection of approaches that have worked well in Portland, Oregon.
  2. I turned this one into a blog post on key fob/noise reduction – here.  Less beepingThis method sounds like it works on a lot of cars. https://youtu.be/W5Gd72boYNU
    4.27.22 – OMG – Best resource ever! http://www.silencethehorns.org/locking.html
  3. Traffic Calming on Hawthorne and Division – Still working on this 🙂 – but we got to 20mph on residential streets and 25 on some arterials!
    Traffic Calming in Portland

  4. Do you have fruit/nut trees that you’d like to share the bounty from? – 3.28.22 – See the latest developments. https://portlandfruit.org/

    https://portlandfruit.org/

  5. A Request: Please Drive Slower and More Carefully. This one is an ongoing issue. Luckily, we’re at 20mph on residential streets in Portland, now. I think 15 mph would make more sense (4.14.2020).
    Slow the Fuck Down

  6. Neighborhood places: Marino Adriatic Cafe on 41st and Division.
    Marino Adriatic Cafe

  7. Stop Receiving Yellow Pages @ https://www.yellowpagesoptout.com – Sadly, I can’t believe in October of 2018 yellow pages are still a thing, but they are. This is a good thread if you live in my neighborhood of Richmond, Portland, Oregon, USA. It talks about how to get off of various lists – Red Plum; Oregonian Food Day, etc. There is also a FB group for this purpose.
    https://www.facebook.com/groups/196729400366257/

  8. Be Idle Free: https://albertideation.com/be-idle-free
    Be Idle FreeHere’s more proof from the Washington Post – There is no need to idle in cold weather. 

  9. LED street Light improvements. Here’s how to get a shield on your nearby LED street light. Mention “light trespass” which is what is likely happening – light coming from the LED into your house/porch/eyes.  https://www.portlandoregon.gov/Transportation/article/672942 –
    Here’s a source for outdoor friendly lighting: https://darksky.org/fsa/fsa-products/
    If you’d like to participate in an effort to change these lights with me, please sign up, here.

    Shield Request Process

  10. Where does the dirt go? Dumptrucks on Division – Here’s a dirty idea:
    Where does the dirt go?
  11. Sign up for my newsletter, The Eleven. It comes out on the 11th of the month and is full of great actionable ideas. Thanks for the idea, Noam!

  12. Get Rid of Your Lawn – I’ve been posting about this one a lot, of course, given my love of Farm My Yard 🙂
    https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/08/04/lawns-are-a-soul-crushing-timesuck-and-most-of-us-would-be-better-off-without-them/?tid=sm_fb

  13. Sign up for my monthly newsletter, The Eleven.

  14. Here’s what we can do to keep large trees standing in our neighborhoods – Reform Portland’s Tree Code To Preserve Large Healthy Trees

    https://audubonportland.org/news/reform-portland2019s-tree-code-to-preserve-large-healthy-trees Reform Portland’s Tree Code To Preserve Large Healthy Trees Now is the time to reform City rules to preserve more large healthy trees in every neighborhood! Thanks to the direct action of neighbors and financial donations from the community, the 150-year-old giant sequoias in SE Portland’s Eastmoreland neighborhood were saved from the developer’s chain saws. However, the rules that permitted their removal and the cutting of large healthy trees in neighborhoods across Portland are still in place. From Powellhurst-Gilbert to St. Johns, from SW Hills to Richmond, Cully, and beyond, Portland’s neighborhoods are experiencing extensive tree cutting driven by a highly lucrative real estate development market. (article cont’d here).

    This led to starting a Facebook group to organize on this topic. Join us, here. And our newsletter, here.

  15. Learning permaculture – a possible way for us to transform our urban landscape:

    https://www.geofflawtononline.com/videos/

  16. TURN OFF YOUR CAR HORN – LESS BEEPING = LESS NOISE – This led to the post below (and one other) and a new post on my website: Feel free to share widely! https://albertideation.com/turn-off-car-horn-less-beeping-less-noise

    Stop using your car fob to lock your car and beep

  17. Solutions to Barking Dogs & Other Noise Nuisances – Answer 🙂
    Get your Dog Trained

  18. How to Throw a Great Voting Party in a vote by mail state:
    Voting Party

  19. A neat article on Communities vs. Networks – to which do you belong?
  20. Want to try out a new game; meet some neighbors; move your body?
    Birthday Game

  21. Building Neighborhood Resiliency (from 12/2016): As the snow is here – in Australia it looks warm and sunny 🙂 I just got this newsletter from an Australian group called Good Hoods.  Here’s what they write: Dear Albert, During the recent Discovery Tour around Australia we met some great people and heard about amazing initiatives working to build community connection and resilience. We now have a network of passionate resilience experts, including yourself, and together we believe we can create a nation that is ready for anything. Following the tour, we have been thinking through how we can continue to help people connect and come together. We know that resilience is a process and something that grows over time. One of the first steps we all can take is to connect with others so we feel a sense of belonging. That’s why we are launching Good ‘Hoods – a new initiative to help create connections and a sense of pride in where you live. We want to connect people who want to work together to create more resilient communities, and share initiatives so the good continues to grow. We have shared some of the great initiatives from the tour that you may want to replicate in your community, see a sneak peek below: Do good in your hood: learn more about the initiatives that we discovered during our tour. If you have an initiative you would like to add let us know about it so we can continue to grow the list. Street BBQ: there’s nothing like a good BBQ to bring people together. We’re encouraging our people to say that first hello to their neighbors this summer, and we want to share the resources with you too. To help get you to get started we’re giving the first 200 to register their own street BBQ a $50 supermarket voucher. These first resources are based on what we heard would be helpful. We would love to hear your feedback and ideas on how we can continue to grow and improve Good ‘Hoods. If you have any feedback please get in contact with IAG’s Shared Value team on 1300 306 493 and info@goodhoods.com.au. Please join us and become part of the Good ‘Hoods community. http://www.goodhoods.com.au/ Sincerely, Jacki Johnson Group Executive People, Performance and Reputation Insurance Australia Group SNEAK PEEK One of the great initiatives we heard about. Learn about this and others on the Good ‘Hoods website. In 2010 and 2012, floods devastated Uranquinty. So a local group, Progress Association, worked with the NSW SES to devise a disaster response plan to minimize damage from future floods.

    This led to a long list of items on building neighborhood resiliency.

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Build Your List

February 9, 2025 by 2 Comments

Create A Great Email List

Would you like to do a better job of marketing your business/cause/non-profit/self/project? – Great! Here are some first steps to get started! This can be hard for some people – but it’s worthwhile to go through this process. Reach out if you’d like a hand.

    1. Gather your email addresses into a spreadsheet – Feel free to download this example in Excel.  If you are already using an Email Service Provider such as Constant Contact you may already have this step covered. If not, you’ll want to download your email contacts from wherever they live. Some typical places might be Outlook (Constant Contact has an app that allows you to sync your Outlook contacts!); Gmail; LinkedIn; Hotmail; MSN; Yahoo or your Mac’s address book if you’re using MacMail. Do a little sleuthing and you’ll find instructions on how to download from any of these platforms into a spreadsheet that you can work with.
    2. Segment Your Lists. Once you have your emails in a spreadsheet you’ll want to create some columns to segment (categorize) your list.  The more columns, the better. Typical things people often segment people by zip code; relationship (friend, family, business associate, customer); age; or birthday; anything that makes a contact different from another one is a reason to create a column. Once you have your columns set up – run through your list and put an “X” in every box that makes sense – ie, a person can be part of more than one list – you may want to reach out to someone for multiple reasons.

      Why to segment your lists - working together

      Why segment your lists – Thanks, Sumo!

    3. Learn Best Practices. At this point, if you want to get an idea of my thinking have a look at one or more of my training videos.
    4. Join My List. If you’re not already receiving my business newsletter – sign up. This will help you see the process I use in my business and it’s something similar to what I’ll advise you to create if you don’t already have something like this setup.

    5. Extra credit – if you don’t already have a Constant Contact account – let me know and I will sign you up for a trial. I’d be happy to do this and you can learn the program and start using it in minutes.
    6. Buffer.com has a great article on how to build your list via your website, here.

If you’ve made it to this point, it’s time to get in touch and we can get started.  Thanks for reading this.  I’m always open to feedback – so feel free to let me know if this has been helpful or not. I look forward to working together.

 

Albert Kaufman
February 25, 2023

Updated on 6.13.24

Albert Kaufman December 2016 Working Together

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Alignable

January 2, 2025 by

Alignable

The other day I posted on Alignable: “I was on a local Smart Connect today for the Portland, Oregon area and we were discussing the current contest.” That brought me to a comment that I hadn’t realized I was going to make regarding the value of Alignable.

For many of us, it can take a while to figure out what Alignable can be useful for. There are the obvious “more business”, leads, and stronger network kinds of things (See my recent stats top right!). But I think that there are hidden gems which, after being busy on here for 6 months, are only now coming into view. Things like learning new processes/ways of doing things. Book recommendations. And even how one might tailor their profile better.

I’m curious about what you’ve found valuable about Alignable. I often tout it as a way to get clearer on what you’re doing in business. Improving one’s presentation skills. But there are riches that keep popping up on a regular basis. I feel lucky to be here now. There is a new energy on Alignable that wasn’t here in 2016 when I signed up. Maybe it’s the Smart Connects. Maybe it’s new leadership.

So, what are you finding that’s valuable?  Thanks.”

—————————–

And Jesus had this great response which I think is on point:

Jesus Devesa  • 

I agree that Alignable has evolved significantly since 2016, and the new energy you mentioned is palpable. For me, the value of Alignable lies in several key areas:

Local Business Networking: Alignable has provided a fantastic platform for connecting with other local businesses. This has been invaluable for understanding local market trends and establishing collaborative relationships.

Referral Opportunities: One of the most significant benefits I’ve experienced is the ability to both give and receive referrals. This aspect of mutual support within the community is not just about growing our businesses but also about building trust and reputation.

Learning and Sharing Insights: The platform has been a great place for learning from others and sharing my own insights. The diversity of businesses on Alignable means there’s always something new to learn.

Improving Online Presence: I’ve found Alignable helpful in strengthening my business’s online presence. Engaging with others, responding to queries, and participating in discussions have enhanced my visibility and brand recognition.

Smart Connects and New Features: Like you, I’ve noticed the impact of features like Smart Connects. They’ve made networking more dynamic and targeted, allowing for more meaningful connections.

Feedback and Reviews: The opportunity to receive genuine feedback and reviews has been crucial for refining my business offerings. It’s also a great way to gauge customer satisfaction and loyalty.

New Leadership and Direction: The changes in leadership and direction at Alignable have been noticeable and appreciated. The platform seems more user-centric and geared towards real business growth.

In summary, Alignable has become more than just a networking site; it’s a community where businesses can grow, learn, and support each other in tangible ways. I’m keen to see how it continues to evolve and aid in our business journeys.

And.. another entry by James

I’m teaching classes and hosting Smart Connects on Alignable. To stay in the loop, click here. Here’s one of the groups I lead on Alignable.

 

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How to make Parties go better for everyone – especially the host

December 23, 2024 by 11 Comments

Make Parties Go Better!parties

If you want to enjoy parties better; help your host(s) enjoy their parties more; and generally improve all functions you attend, here are some ideas.

First: you’ve been invited. If it’s on FB – there is no need, ever, to RSVP that you’re not coming. Ever – send the host a private message filled with love and enjoy your trip to Spain. Why? A FB event that’s filled with negative RSVPs can be a real downer – skip it. Thanks.

Arriving: Check out my thoughts on parking, here. And car horns here.

When I entertain, I really like to have time to talk to people and enjoy myself. What helps me do that is guests who make themselves feel at home. They can do that by: looking first and asking questions second. The attitude I’d love people to have is that my house is their house (mi casa, su casa!) and that if they need anything they can search for it themselves before asking me. Here are some easy things that any guest has permission to find in my house (and perhaps yours): a corkscrew, the bathroom, a lighter, any kinds of dishes; hand towels; a blanket; etc. That’s the first step in lessening the burden/distraction level for the host – look for things yourself first and assume that your host would much rather be having a great conversation than answering your location question.

Second, come to the event early and ask if there is anything you can do to help set up. Better yet, come early and just start jumping in and doing the obvious. Does it look like the tables and chairs are set up for maximum flow? If not, move them so they are. Are the dishes done? If not, do them. Is there a last minute need that the host has – ask and then run out and get the order filled.

Are you shy? Are you nervous at parties? Well, getting there early and adding your sweat and energy into getting things in order will help make you feel more a part of things and your host will love you for it. Also, there’s an old Marxist saying that if you put your labor into something it’s more yours. True here, too.

Some more things you can do to make the party flow better – act like the host. Feel free to play greeter and be close to the door. When people come you can welcome them, take their coats, and take any food or drink they’ve brought and bring it to where it needs to go. Imagine how much more ease you’ll create by doing this. How’s the music? How’s the lighting? How’s the ambiance? How’s the temperature? These are all things that the host may or may not be good at and/or might be too busy to mind. Feel free to adjust.

When more visitors start taking on the attitudes and actions outlined above, gatherings will surely go better. I’ve been taking on this attitude for years and I think it’s helped the hosts of events I’ve attended have a much better time. And when the host is having a good time it gives a signal to everyone that it’s time to have a good time.

Feel free to try this out over this holiday season and let me know how it goes. If you have any questions, please ask and if you have suggestions, leave a comment. Thanks!

Albert

Reminder: RSVP’s – rsvp directly to a host you can’t come (on FB events) rather than saying why you can’t make it. Example: “I’m camping that weekend” or, “I’ve moved”.  An event that’s full of these makes it seem like no one’s coming and can be a real bummer for the host.

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