“There is little difference in people, but that little difference makes a big difference. The little difference is attitude. The big difference is whether it is positive or negative.”
~ W. Clement Stone
Being around positive and optimistic people, in person or online, is something that inspires me on a regular basis. People like Sean Gardner (@2morrowknight) with his Awesome Blog, Ann Tran (@AnnTran_) with her inspiring blog, and countless others. One of those people is Bryan Breckenridge, whom I first came to know through his amazing social good work with LinkedIn as their “Nonprofit Success Enabler.” LinkedIn has long been a favorite and often-used site for me, which you can learn more about here.
BeliefEnergy.com is all about positive energy, optimism, and uplifting ideas and stories. Photo by Amy Neumann.
Bryan (@BGBreck) spends a lot of time figuring out positive ways to make the world a better place, and shares it on his blog, BeliefEnergy.com, as well as on LinkedIn, where you can find helpful articles like Why Volunteering Is Good For Your Career. I had a chance to talk with him in a little more detail about Belief Energy, how people can leverage LinkedIn for Good (and business), and how the two complement each other and provide continuous sources of ideas back and forth.
Bryan sees the world through an energetic enabler’s eyes. In his career, Bryan has helped thousands of nonprofits operate better using online platforms. Bryan is also helping people from all over the globe experience more optimal living. In 2011, Bryan joined LinkedIn to launch their LinkedIn Nonprofit Solutions program. Bryan also launched his personal development think tank at that time, Belief Energy . Belief Energy, LLC is committed to helping people experience more optimal living. Thousands of people from around the world have joined the Belief Energy conversation on facebook.
Your vibrant energy and passion for positive change also extends to your personal life. Can you talk about your site Belief Energy and how your work at LinkedIn and your personal mission intertwine?
Yes, I bring all of myself to work. It’s not work for me, it’s a calling. I intentionally integrate my professional and personal life. It improves both in my experience. Especially if I follow a surge and rest approach. Nobody can go 110% all-out in all categories forever.
Belief Energy, LLC is a personal development think tank that I created in March 2011 after reaching a personal plateau in my personal and professional life. I knew I could live a more optimal life and roll a significant career upgrade into it, as well. I’d done it before. Here’s a video I created for more context on Belief Energy and my quick personal and professional reflection on 2011:
I would not have written the LinkedIn Nonprofit Solutions program business plan if Belief Energy didn’t exist. I knew what I did next in my career had to enable the enablers. I knew what I did had to tap into my inner and outer life (my soul/belief and action/energy selves). When I interviewed with executives at LinkedIn at the beginning of last year I could have sworn many of them were reading entries from the Belief Energy blog word for word. I couldn’t believe it. They let me pitch my passion infused business plan for nonprofits. They loved it and have supported it from the start. LinkedIn has been 100% supportive of my Belief Energy work, as well. LinkedIn supports personal and professional transformation more than any company I’ve ever been a part of. In fact, I plan to host a global Belief Energy workshop in LinkedIn’s global meeting rooms this year.
LinkedIn is a great place to share your volunteering and giving passion. Photo courtesy of Nan Palmero (Flickr).
Your passion for helping your community professionally started in the mid-90s and led to helping nonprofits on one of the world’s largest social networks: LinkedIn. Last year you helped launch the new “Volunteer Experiences & Causes” profile feature. Do you have a couple tips on how individuals can leverage this?
The “Volunteer Experience & Causes” profile section was one of our most requested Profile enhancements. It became available to all our members in September 2011. Everyone knows that volunteerism is good for the world. But according to a recent LinkedIn survey, we now know that volunteer experience also can make candidates more employable. Intrigued? Consider this:
· 41%* of professionals surveyed state that when evaluating candidates, they consider volunteer work equally as valuable as paid experience.
· 20%* of hiring managers say they have made a hiring decision based on a candidate’s volunteer work experience.
· *Based on a U.S. audience.
What you can do to help spread the word?
1. For starters, please complete the Volunteer Experience and Causes section on your LinkedIn profile with past/current volunteer experience, causes you care about, and organizations you support.
2. Share the new section with your network and encourage your connections to update their profiles too. You can also point them to our blog post for more information.
3. Finally, ask the nonprofits you support or work for to encourage their support base to do the same. Some organizations like Green Peace, The Nature Conservancy, Samaritan’s Purse and may more are asking their LinkedIn Followers to populate the section and highlight their organizations.
What resources are available for individuals and nonprofits who want to make the most of LinkedIn?
Two excellent resources: Our nonprofit YouTube channel and a group I’d invite everyone to join called, “Nonprofits In Success.”
To learn more about how LinkedIn can help your nonprofit or cause here are 7 short videos about using LinkedIn for Non-Profits.
Bryan Breckenridge
You can learn more about Bryan at BeliefEnergy.com or on LinkedIn, and follow him on Twitter @BGBreck.
“The sun does not shine for a few trees and flowers, but for the wide world’s joy.”
~ Henry Ward Beecher
Charity Ideas 
Bryan is an incredible guy who inspires all he comes in contact with – glad to see him recognized here. Thanks Amy.
My son’s perception of the world as his backyard is embraced by those that love him. If only the world could have as open a view.
Reblogged this on dancgreen and commented:
Kudo’s Bryan. All true.