The world is so noisy!  Every day there's the breaking news through your multiple most trusted news sources; there's the buzz of your twitter and your Facebook showing all your friends seemingly enjoying a better life than yours; the technology feeds telling you how you can be a better leader.  Everywhere you look, there's more and more stimuli and it never stops piling up.

Step away from the blogs, the news, twitter, Facebook.  Stop the constant need for stimuli, for being faux-connected through living through other's online lives.

Step away so you can find your inner calm and focus on creating things that matter.

When I was planning the first UK SINE, for about a month, I split each day into two.  I would get up in the morning, and do all the actions needed to move every bit of the project forward, cross most things off my to-do list and then add more.

After working on that for a few hours, I would sit down and think, "what actions do I need to take to move this project forward?"  Then I'd write those down.  I would collate my to-do lists and make a new one.

Then I would take an extended break - eating, relaxing, thinking, mapping.  When I was sufficiently rested, I would do the same thing again.  And so I would make 1 day into 2 days in terms of energy management and productivity.  And then go to sleep at night.  I only did that Monday - Friday.

That wasn't a sustainable way to live, but I only did it for a month, and boy was it productive!

Why are people so critical when young people start non-profits?

Time and time again, I hear people say, "there are enough non-profits out there.  Young people should just join what's already out there.  I don't think starting another non-profit is the best use of resources.  I mean, I started my own, but…"

Starting a non-profit is hard.  It takes time, money and resources.  Starting a company is hard.  It takes time, money and resources.

When someone is thinking of starting a company, such as a new mobile app, no one ever says, "you should just join X mobile app company, you'll be able to make more of an impact that way".  Because it's not true.  So why do we say that to would-be non-profit founders?

There are many innovative, sustainably non-profit business models now that do good, while doing well.

Why can't we just accept that like in the capital marketplace, the best non-profits will survive, and the others won't.

The non-profit founders, the founders, the crazy ones - these are the people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world - but they need all the help they can get getting there.

"If you have too much on your plate, get a bigger plate."

I first heard this when I was doing a leadership course in London in 2009.  Everyone in the leadership course was doing too much stuff and getting overwhelmed.  And someone in the course suggested this quote.

I'm always trying to figure out how to make my plate bigger... I think that's why this quote compels me so much.

Go out and make those connections, meet people, have conversations.

It may land you a dream job.  My friend got an engineering internship in China by playing cards with a kid on a plane!

It may land you funding.  It may get you invited along to a fabulous experience.  Or an invitation to meet someone amazing.  Or it may just give you an idea or insight that gives you a new perspective on your life.