December 3, 2018
‘Tis the season for donating to the food bank, volunteering at the homeless shelter, and buying presents for Sub for Santa. But did you know that Utahns do volunteering better than any other state?
According to a report released by the Corporation for National and Community Service, Utah holds the number one spot for volunteers.
About 51 percent of our state’s population volunteers. Better yet, Salt Lake City is in third place for the volunteering cities in the country, with volunteer rates at 45 percent.
The report also compared the volunteer rates from 2016 and 2018. According to the findings, there were 77.3 million volunteers in 2018. This is a 14.7 million increase from 2016.
The report also estimated the monetary value of the volunteer work at $167 billion.
To all of Utah’s volunteers, thank you. Let’s keep up the good work!
December 4, 2018
The ninth annual Small Business Saturday, held November 24th, kicked off the holiday shopping season for consumers and small, independently owned businesses with record levels or reported spending.
Total reported spending among U.S. Consumers who said they shopped at independent retailers and restaurants on the day reached a record high of an estimated $17.8 billion, according to the 2018 Small Business Saturday Consumer Insights Survey from American Express and the National Federation of Independent Business.
Based on this annual survey over the years, Small Business Saturday spending has now reached a reported estimate of $103 billion since the day began in 2010.
Of those who took the survey, 42 percent reported shopping with family and friends at independently owned businesses and 83 percent reported encouraging others to also shop or dine small.
The Salt Lake Chamber was a proud support of Small Business Saturday this year and to those who participated, thank you for doing your part. We encourage you to continue to Shop Small all year long, not just during the holiday season.
December 5, 2018
It’s that time of the year where we start bundling up and bracing ourselves for the poor air quality that wreaks havoc during our winters.
While there are many ways Utahns can help reduce emissions, one of the most impactful and immediate ways to do so is by eliminating wood burning.
The pollution from one traditional wood-burning stove is equivalent to the amount emitted by 3,000 natural gas furnaces producing the same amount of heat per unit.
Currently, there are about 144,000 households in Utah’s non-attainment areas that have a wood burning fireplace, stove or insert.
To help reduce that number and cut down on the emissions that add to our poor air quality, the Salt Lake Chamber is encouraging Utah’s legislature to find ways to increase enforcement on mandatory non-wood burning days, invest in wood burning change outs–specifically targeted to geographic areas that are disproportionately affected by poor air quality, and assist home and building owners to become more energy efficient.
December 6, 2018
This is Derek Miller of the Salt Lake Chamber with your Utah Business Report.
On the latest episode of the Salt Lake Chamber podcast called CEO Success Stories, I was pleased to be joined with the CEO of Ski Utah, Nathan Rafferty.
Nathan was named president and CEO of Ski Utah in October 2005. Previously, he served as Ski Utah’s director of communications for seven years.
A Utah native and Park City resident, Nathan has worked in various capacities in Utah’s ski industry, starting as an intern with Ski Utah the summer he graduated from the University of Arizona in 1994.
In 2007, and again in 2012, he was named one of Utah’s “100 Most Influential People” by Utah Business Magazine and, most recently, received the magazine’s highest accolade – CEO of the Year, for 2018.
Hear about his leadership philosophy, best practices and lessons learned, as well as what Utahns should expect to see during the 2018-2019 season.
To listen to the podcast, visit slchamber.com or login to your iTunes account and search for Salt Lake Chamber.
If you have any ideas or thoughts about whom we should interview for the next podcast, send us an email at info@slchamber.com or message us on social media to our handle: @saltlakechamber.
December 7, 2018
Join us for the first Professional Development Series seminar of 2019. Come attend the once-in-a-lifetime chance to be coached by Hall of Fame speaker, legendary storyteller and professional speech writer Dan Clark.
The event will be held on January 30th, 2019 at Marriott City Center.
In addition to learning the art and science of “story-selling” and the eight elements or organizing an extraordinary presentation, by attending the workshop participants will learn how to:
- Identify your personal “signature story”
- Finely tune your most important personal message
- Make your stories funny, profound and emotional
- Create a show stopping speech, opening and killer close
- Choreograph the order of the speech for maximum impact
- Uniquely use PowerPoint with inspirational stories
- And perfect your skills and transform your speech into an unforgettable performance
You won’t want to miss this event.
