BYLAWS OF BEN FRANKLIN'S SMALL BUSINESS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, INC.

DRAFT-- TO BE ADOPTED BY THE FOUNDING BOARD OF DIRECTORS

ARTICLE I - NAME, PURPOSE

Section 1: The name of the organization shall be Ben Franklin's Small Business Chamber of Commerce, Inc. (Ben's Chamber).

Section 2: Ben's Chamber is organized exclusively for charitable, scientific and educational purposes, more specifically to facilitate the education of entrepreneurs, business owners and creative managers about how inspirations become effective action through grassroots business and political systems through the formation and facilitation of Franklin Circles, adult self-directed learning groups based on the model of Ben Franklin's first such group formed in 1727. We affiliate with no one, cooperate with all. Our purpose is to inform, not reform.

ARTICLE II - MEMBERSHIP

Section 1: Membership shall consist only of the members of the board of directors.

ARTICLE III - ANNUAL MEETING

Section 1: Annual Meeting. The date of the regular annual meeting shall be set by the Board of Directors who shall also set the time and place.

Section 2: Special Meetings. Special meetings may be called by the Chair or the Executive Committee.

Section 3: Notice. Notice of each meeting shall be given to each voting member, by mail, not less than ten days before the meeting.

ARTICLE IV - BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1: Board Role, Size, Compensation. The Board and the Executive Director are responsible for overall policy and direction of organization, and delegates responsibility for day-to-day operations to the Executive Director (John S. Wren or his designee). The Board shall have up to 12 and not fewer than 3 members. The board may receive reasonable compensation and expenses as determined by the Executive Director and the Finance/Compensation Committee of the Board.

Section 2: Meetings. The Board shall meet at least quarterly, at an agreed upon time and place.

Section 3: Board Elections. Election of new directors or election of current directors to a second term will occur as the first item of business at the annual meeting of the corporation. Directors will be elected by unanimous concent of the current directors.

Section 4: Terms. All Board members shall serve 2 year terms, but are eligible for re-election.

Section 5: Quorum. A quorum must be attended by at least 51 percent of the Board members before business can be transacted or motions made or passed.

Section 6: Notice. An official Board meeting requires that each Board member have written notice two weeks in advance.

Section 7. Officers and Duties. There shall be five officers of the Board consisting of a Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary and Treasurer. Their duties are as follows:

The Chair shall convene regularly scheduled Board meetings, shall preside or arrange for other members of the executive committee to preside at each meeting in the following order: Vice-Chair, Secretary and Treasurer.

The Vice-Chair will chair committees on special subjects as designated by the board.

The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping records of Board actions, including overseeing the taking of minutes at all board meetings, sending out meeting announcements, distributing copies of minutes and the agenda to each Board members, and assuring that corporate records are maintained.

The Treasurer shall make a report at each Board meeting. Treasurer shall chair the finance committee, assist in the preparation of the budget, help develop fundraising plans, and make financial information available to Board members and the public.

Section 8: Vacancies. When a vacancy on the Board exists, nominations for new members may be received from present Board members by the Secretary two weeks in advance of a Board meeting. These nominations shall be send out to Board members with the regular Board meeting announcement, to be voted upon at the next Board meeting. These vacancies will be filled only to the end of the particular Board member's term.

Section 9: Resignation, Termination and Absences. Resignation from the Board must be in writing and received by the Secretary. A Board member shall be dropped for excess absences from the Board if s/he has three unexcused absences from Board meetings in a year. A Board member may be removed for other reasons by John S. Wren.

Section 10: Special Meetings. Special meetings of the Board shall be called upon the request of the Chair or the Executive Director or one-third of the Board. Notices of special meetings shall be send out by the Secretary to each Board member postmarked two weeks in advance.

ARTICLE V - COMMITTEES

Section 1: The Board may create committees as needed, such as fundraising, housing, etc. The Board Chair appoints all committee chairs.

Section 2: The five officers serve as the members of the Executive Committee. Except for the power to amend the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws, the Executive Committee shall have all of the powers and authority of the Board of Directors in the intervals between meetings of the Board of Directors, subject to the direction and control of the Board of Directors.

Section 3: Finance/Compensation Committee. The Treasurer is chair of the Finance/Compensation Committee, which includes three other Board members. The Finance Committee is responsible for developing and reviewing fiscal procedures, a fundraising plan, and annual budget with staff and other Board members. The Board must approve the budget, and all expenditures must be within the budget. Any major change in the budget must be approved by the Board or the Executive Committee. The fiscal year shall be the calendar year. Annual reports are required to be submitted to the Board showing income, expenditures and pending income. The financial records of the organization are public information and shall be made available to the membership, Board members and the public.

ARTICLE VI - DISSOLUTIONMENT

Section 1: Upon the death of John S. Wren, this organization will be dissolved and the assets conveyed to any person(s) who makes a proposal to continue this work within 90 days of Wren's death that is accepted by a simple majority of the board. If no proposal is accepted within 180 days, the assets will be conveyed to the University of Denver. Notice of this provision will be published within 30 day's of Wren's death in the University of Denver Clarion Newspaper, the Denver Post, the Rocky Mountain News, the Denver Catholic Register, the Denver Jewish News, and the Colorado Statesman Newspaper.

ARTICLE VII - AMENDMENTS

Section 1: These Bylaws may be amended when necessary by a two-thirds majority of the Board of Directors. Proposed amendments must be submitted to the Secretary to be sent out with regular Board announcements.

These Bylaws were approved at a meeting of the Board of Directors of _____________ on

_______________________, 19XX.

Marci Alboher, a former lawyer, is a journalist/author/writing coach. She is the author of One Person/Multiple Careers: A New Model for Work/Life Success (Warner Business: 2007) Recently she wrote about the business benefits of blogging in the New York Times. How’s it working for me do you think?

Rush Limbaugh's Blog has the complete transcript of his interview today with Karl Rove. Highlights:

On George W. Bush:

KARL ROVE: Look, the thing the American people need to know about him is he is just as passionate today about doing his job of protecting America and of growing the economy and being focused on big reforms that will make America better and safer and stronger in the years ahead, as he was in the day that he came in, and he walks into that office and lights up that building with -- you know, it sounds corny, but it's inspiring to work around him. He's got a wonderful spirit. He's got a great sense of humor. He treats people with the greatest respect and dignity… I think one of the reasons why this White House staff consists of so many wonderful people is because they're around him and realize what a great experience it is to be around him.

RUSH: Does it frustrate you...? I know you said earlier just ignore the criticism. Does it frustrate you with all the attacks on him as brain dead or a frat boy, that you're the brain and this sort of thing, or do you shelve that and just go about your day?

KARL ROVE: Well, I shelve that, but I have to admit I'm amused by it because, you know, this is one of the best-read people I've ever met. This is a Harvard MBA. This is a Yale undergraduate whose major was history and whose passion is history. Many times the people I see criticizing him are, you know, sort of elite, effete snobs who can't hold a candle to this guy. What they don't like about him is that he is common sense, that he is Middle America.

RUSH: He outsmarts 'em.

KARL ROVE: Yeah, and look, in a way, they "misunderestimate" him, and he likes that.


On Hilary Clinton:

KARL ROVE: I think she's likely to be the nominee, and I think she's fatally flawed… I want to set a high tone here, on the high road, but look, she is who she is. There is no front-runner who has entered the primary season with negatives as high as she has in the history of modern polling. She's going into the general election with, depending on what poll you look at, in the high forties on the negative side, and just below that on the positive side, and there's nobody who has ever won the presidency who started out in that kind of position.

The short quote below is from an interesting article in last weekend’s New York Times Magazine about a yearlong couples-therapy group led by a Philadelphia psychologist named Judith Coché. Seems to me the benefits of the couples group are very similar to the benefits of participation in a Franklin Circle: accountability to the group, the benefiting from shared experience and observation of changes in behavior, and the isomorphism (see excellent definition below.) I wonder if Ben Franklin has influenced Coche’s work.

Professional-led groups for people with discrete emotional or physical conditions — Coché has run them for overweight adults and learning-disabled adolescents — have become ubiquitous in the last three decades. More recently, couples education, especially the premarital sort, has taken off inside and outside of religious groups, spurred in part by federal financing from the Bush administration. But the type of ongoing experiential group Coché runs, which is heavily dependent on mining the interactions among the members in the so-called here and now (“Sitting here for six hours you just know what it’s like to be married to him,” Coché muttered to me once, out of earshot of the offending spouse), aren’t terribly common.

When Coché lists the virtues of the group over other forms of therapy, she cites the “Greek chorus” effect, a term that captures how members begin to harass one another, if politely, about the habits corroding their marriages. “In a group, there’s an experience of being held accountable for one’s own behavior,” Coché told me, adding that it’s more powerful to be called out — or cared for — by a civilian than by a professional. “I’m a paid consultant. I’m a nonperson.” Other benefits she cites are the often-silent products of group dynamics. No matter how ultimately prosaic their woes, members are startled to see reflections of themselves in the other marriages — My God, I do that, too — and if one person musters the strength or resolve to make a change, somebody else may consciously or unconsciously follow. The principle of isomorphism also comes into play, she said, meaning that as people forge intimate connections within the group, the enriching encounter in that system may spread to the other system: the marriage.

In response to a copy of an email about where to find good listings for jobs from one IDEA Cafe attendee to another who is looking for a new job, I just sent this:

My experience is that most good jobs don't get listed.

I've found great jobs this way:

1. Make a list of the 10 or 15 business people who know your skills & are supportive.

2. Call and say, "I'm looking for a new challenge where I can be helpful using my skills and make a real contribution. Who do you know who might want to hire me?" Let them give you names & numbers, then say, "who else do you know who I should call?"

3. Call whoever is suggested say, (name of your friend) suggested I call you, because (name of your friend) thought I could help you, and if it sounds like I could help you, I'd like to set a time when we could meet. What kind of help do you want right now? (Listen) It sounds like I could help you, and that it would very possibly be a good opportunity for me. Do you want to get together this afternoon, or would tomorrow morning be better?

4. Meet with them. Get an offer. Then decide whether or not to take it.
No one has ever told me this does not work for them.

This works quick.

I got a great job in 3 days using this approach.

Try it, come again to the IDEA Cafe, and tell us about your new job!

If you have any questions, feel free to call me (303)861-1447.
Good luck!

John

"Because this is extremely difficult mentally to get here and to turn around and start all over again, I use a strategy," he said. "I call them micro-goals. OK, I'm going to hike, walk to that tree and when I reach that tree, I spot another object. Ok, I'm going to walk to that rock. Then OK, I spot something else, I'm walking to that ridge top. And if you do that over and over and over again, for months, pretty soon you've walked over 5,000 miles." Interview on CBS Sunday Morning today with Scott Williamson who hiked 5,310 miles from Mexico to Canada and back, traversing the Pacific Crest Trail, the West Coast cousin of the shorter, more famous Appalachian Trail in the east.

"The trail's over 2,500 miles long, but it's only about a foot and a half wide," he said. "So it's a very small community of people who know about me."

He started his hike at the Mexican border May 22, 2006 and went 191 days — more than six million steps, wearing out 13 pair of shoes.


Out on a walk just now, I've made a decision precipitated by the above interview with Scott. Following 50+ years of experimenting with and reading about exercise programs and time management, I’m going to 1) forget about trying to start running again, which I’ve been toying with, and rededicate myself to regular walking. And 2) I’m going to really get serious about my LOGoS, and see Steps in the action-intention model as micro-goals, using www.tadalists.com #1 right now for me:
Franklin Circles Worldwide/ Form Small Business Chamber Board/ Form Franklin Circle with Each Board Member